Participants: Gary Krause (Host)
Series Code: GMS
Program Code: GMS000903B
|
00:09 Welcome back.
00:11 My guest is Pastor Wayne Krause 00:12 who is the director of the Center for Church Planting 00:15 for the South Pacific region of 00:17 the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 00:19 He's also a church pastor, a church planter 00:22 and interestingly enough, my brother. 00:24 Welcome, Wayne. It's good to be here. 00:26 Church planting starting new congregations, 00:28 why is that important? 00:31 I think church planting is important 00:32 because it's afantastic way to make disciples. 00:36 We don't plant churches to plant churches. 00:38 We plant churches to make disciples. 00:41 So church planting is I think 00:42 the most effective way of making disciples. 00:45 Now you were working within a Western context in a-- 00:49 mainly in Australia, New Zealand 00:52 and also some in the South Pacific. 00:53 But these are mainly secular context. 00:56 How do you go about starting 00:57 the new congregation in that sort of society? 01:01 It is a real challenge. 01:02 And we're very grateful that we have the Holy Spirit 01:05 because the real challenge 01:07 is talking to people who have really no interest in God, 01:12 they don't see Him on the radar screen, 01:14 they don't think of Him when they reach a crisis. 01:17 And predominantly, they see themselves as happy. 01:20 So happy pagans if you like. Right. 01:22 So you really have to spend 01:23 a lot of time building relationships, 01:27 intentional, authentic, long term relationships 01:31 and that can be a challenge for some people. 01:33 You know, what are some of the dangers, 01:35 some of the pitfalls you can fall into 01:37 when you are working with the community? 01:41 Pitfalls, I think one of the challenges 01:44 we've discovered is sometimes you can go into a community 01:48 and work for them. 01:49 Yes. 01:51 Okay, so you go in and you do a survey 01:52 about their needs or you see a need 01:55 and you just go in there and try and meet that need. 01:58 What we found is much more effective 02:00 is actually with the community, not for them. 02:03 So you work alongside people in the community 02:06 to work with the community. 02:08 In actual fact then, 02:09 the people you are most effective 02:11 in reaching is often the people you are working with. 02:13 Yeah. Not working for. 02:15 So you involve people have an interest 02:18 in what you are doing? 02:20 Yeah, so we, for example, 02:21 have been running a breakfast club 02:24 at the local elementary school, 02:26 public school, and we found that the children, 02:30 even though they are hungry wouldn't come 02:32 because they thought-- saw themselves as poor 02:35 and they didn't want anyone else 02:36 to see themselves as poor. 02:38 Right. 02:39 So as soon as we got teachers involved on our team, 02:42 the parents involved on the team, 02:44 the children themselves involved in the team 02:46 and it became a social event. 02:47 It became a lot more effective. 02:50 The kids who are hungry would come up 02:52 because the popular kids were there. 02:54 So they would turn up. 02:56 Now we have people coming to our church 02:57 from the school. 02:59 We have teachers coming and those from the community 03:01 as a result of them feeling that our church 03:04 was part of their community, 03:06 not just doing things for the community. 03:07 Right, so nobody wants to feel like a charity case. 03:09 That's right. 03:10 In actual fact, you can make people feel 03:12 less of themselves. 03:14 When a child sees their dad receiving a food parcel 03:17 because he can't work or something like that, 03:20 it can actually demean the father in the child's eyes. 03:22 But if you get the father involved 03:25 in helping other people with food, 03:27 then it could actually lift the whole-- 03:29 the whole process with the children 03:31 and the parents. 03:32 Now this breakfast club for the local public school, 03:35 it won confidence with the community. 03:37 Tell me about that. Yes. 03:39 It won so much confidence in the community 03:41 that the community said they would like our church 03:44 to provide a chaplain for the school. 03:46 And they said, if it's any other church, 03:47 we don't want it. 03:49 But they asked the parents, 03:50 they asked the teachers and they said yes from that church, 03:53 Adventist church we wanted, no where else. 03:55 Wonderful. 03:57 Now tell me about the procedure 03:59 you went through where you actually 04:01 went to the police station to ask how can we be of service. 04:05 Well, in actual fact, the police chief 04:08 knew one of our church members 04:10 who was in charge of the rescue squad for the region. 04:13 And they were talking and the police chief said, 04:16 "Could your church please do a ministry 04:19 at the local railway station where the teenagers come, 04:22 Friday and Saturday nights are real problem for us?" 04:24 And we said, "Well, there's other big organizations 04:27 that you could do this." 04:28 And they said, "No, we know you, 04:30 we'd rather your church do it." 04:32 So we are looking at that in the future 04:33 of our ministry we could be doing. 04:35 So how important is Christ method of ministry for you? 04:39 The issue of mingling, the issue of seeing 04:43 the good in other people and wanting the best for them, 04:46 not seeing them as a project or a target 04:49 but as friends, is a huge thing. 04:52 And once you build those relationships, 04:54 then you can have the other conversations 04:57 about their eternity and their love for Jesus Christ. 05:00 So win the confidence before you do the biding? 05:02 That's right. 05:04 So how-- you as a pastor have a vision for, 05:07 you know, you started church, 05:08 this is what you wanted to look like, 05:10 how do you involve church members? 05:14 Well, one of the challenges that the established church 05:17 has is a lot of church members see themselves as recipients 05:22 of what the professional clergy do 05:24 or what the church does for them. 05:25 So the churches there to serve me. 05:27 The church is there to serve me. 05:28 So we can actually talk about the fact of 05:30 I didn't like today's sermon, thinking it's about me. 05:33 Right. 05:34 But if you have the attitude of we exist 05:36 for those aren't here yet, 05:38 and you design your church around that 05:39 where every member sees themselves as a minister, 05:43 wherever they go throughout the world, 05:45 there a minister, if they go to school, 05:47 they are minister, at their home they are minister, 05:49 then you see a big change. 05:51 Wonderful. That's the way we do it. 05:52 So how is church planting going in the South Pacific region? 05:56 It's a challenge, in the olive fields, 05:58 a lot more successfully amongst the immigrants 06:01 and ethnic groups, a lot more stronger. 06:04 We are challenged with the idea of 06:08 the Anglo-Caucasian church planting. 06:10 But that's still happening. It's still happening. 06:12 We're still trying. Wonderful. 06:14 Wayne, thank you so much for sharing with us today 06:16 the challenges but also the good things 06:18 that are happening in the South Pacific. 06:20 Thank you. 06:22 Church planting is the lifeblood 06:24 of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 06:27 But being a church planter can sometimes a bit lonely, 06:29 sometimes it can be even discouraging. 06:31 So it's very encouraging to know 06:33 that there are people praying for them. 06:34 So please continue to remember, 06:36 church planters and church planting in your prayers. 06:40 Next up, we travel to Southern Africa 06:42 to see your mission offerings at work 06:44 with the 13th Sabbath offering project. 06:47 "Be still and know that I am God. 06:50 I'll be exalted among the heathen, 06:52 I will be exalted in the earth. 06:55 The Lord of hosts is with us. 06:58 The God of Jacob is our refuge." 07:05 Before I was an Adventist, before I was baptized, 07:09 I usually came home late and I just wanted, 07:12 you know, every time I wanted to play 07:15 just that rather than going to school 07:17 on Wednesdays, on Sabbaths, I'll just go and play. 07:21 Now ever since that I'm an Adventist 07:23 I know I can separate right form wrong. 07:28 "There is a river, the streams whereof 07:30 shall make glad the city of God, 07:33 the holy place of the tabernacles 07:36 of the most High." 07:38 Bhatisani lives in the country of Botswana. 07:41 Before, he didn't take life seriously 07:44 and used to get himself into trouble. 07:46 He became a Seventh-day Adventist 07:48 because a friend invited him to come to church with him. 07:51 It didn't take long for Bhatisani 07:53 to believe in Jesus and read the Bible 07:55 every chance he could. 07:58 Now he's even a deacon at his local church. 08:01 But he faces challenges that is, public school. 08:04 The teachers expect him to attend school on Saturdays 08:07 for classes and exams. 08:09 Bhatisani knows he needs an education 08:11 but feels a conflict in his heart. 08:14 Yes, I feel sad because this is against our choice 08:18 and that's not what Jesus wants. 08:20 Jesus said, "We should remember the Sabbath 08:23 and keep it holy." 08:26 Bhatisani's family are not Adventists 08:28 but they are very supportive of his decisions. 08:31 They want him to study hard so that one day 08:33 he can get a good job. 08:35 Every day after school they help him with his homework. 08:38 His family knows that he dreams of the day 08:41 an Adventist primary school opens near them. 08:44 That would be better because I would be now in-- 08:48 I'll be receiving an Adventist education. 08:51 That means that I'll be able to attend-- 08:55 on Sabbath I'll be able to go to church 08:57 and do out good one's than rather than going to school. 09:01 There are many Adventist children in Botswana 09:04 who faced the same Sabbath challenges 09:06 that Bhatisani faces. 09:08 This quarter, a portion of your 13th Sabbath offering, 09:11 will go toward building a primary school in Botswana. 09:13 So that children like Bhatisani can go to school 09:16 without worry of compromising their faith. 09:19 Thank you for your support of mission projects like these. 09:24 I'm proud of my church because I know 09:26 that they can do every thing best for us 09:28 so that we can end up in the kingdom of heaven. 09:38 Well, thanks for joining us 09:40 on today's Global Mission Snapshots. 09:42 I hope that you've been inspired and challenged 09:44 by what you've seen and heard. 09:46 From dense population areas here in the United States 09:50 to remote villages in Southern Africa, 09:53 men and women are sharing the life of God's love 09:56 in practical, tangible ways 09:58 and thank you for your continuing prayers 10:00 and financial support that makes this possible. 10:04 We'd like to send you a small piggy bank, 10:07 a money box where you can collect mission offerings, 10:10 put them together over the course of 10:12 two months, three months, 10:13 whatever and then bring them to church. 10:15 It's a nice reminder of the importance 10:17 of continuing to sacrifice for mission. 10:20 It could be used for small groups for children, 10:23 whatever to keep our focus on mission. 10:25 Just call the number on your screen right now. 10:28 Well, that's it for Global Mission Snapshots 10:30 and I hope that you can join me next time 10:32 right here on this program. |
Revised 2015-11-09