“Sending” our 1st Missionary
We are focused on being a transforming church that is part of transforming the world. We do this corporately together by being focused on our three T-CHURCH initiatives: Culture Investment, Nation Engagement, and Church Multiplication. One of the ways that we stay focused on this is by giving 25% of all of the offering received within Relevant to these three initiatives…which is one of the reason I am raising my entire salary this year. We have not yet developed how we pursue all these initiatives, but are working hard at it.
Until we identify a nation of an unreached people group that we are called to engage in long term, we have asked God to show us where to invest. A few weeks ago a young lady named Tera Sharp (who is a good friend with our Worship Leader, Mike Rhoades) contacted me and told me that she was a missionary in Austria w/ the EFCA. She has been back in the states raising support so that she can go back there and carry on the work God has called her to. After talking to her for quite a while and hearing what God had called her to, we chose to financially and prayerfully support her as a church. This is so cool, b/c she is the first missionary that we are part of “sending” oversees to a people group that truly needs Jesus. Here is her story!
Who I Am: For a year and a half I was in Innsbruck, Austria working as a missionary with the Evangelical Free Churches of America (EFCA). I thoroughly enjoyed my time there and rejoice with the opportunity to continue serving. I am originally from Nebraska, where I graduated from high school and college. Now I am dedicated to serving where God leads me. And the next stage is to return to Austria to continue my work there.
Innsbruck: Innsbruck, Austria is a city of 135,000 people. It is situated in a valley with the Alps mountain range towering above it. It is a beautiful place, but terribly dark spiritually. The state religion is Roman Catholic, but the churches are poorly attended. The younger generations have given up on God and religion. Only about 0.5% of Austrians are Christian.
What I Do: supporting and helping lead both the middle school and high school youth groups, programming and leading the summer English Camps, mentoring individuals from youth group, beginning a new rock-climbing sports outreach, supporting the church by participating on the worship team and operating the technical duties, tutoring in English as an outreach tool, learning German by attending intensive German classes
Please be in prayer for Tera Sharp as she gets ready to head back to Austria in the next couple of weeks.
Pastor Ronnie