The Brethren Church

David and Cecilia Molina (seen pictured here with their sons at the 2008 Brethren Church General Conference), were sent by the Brethren Church in Argentina as Church Planters to Coria.

Today they shepherd a growing congregation in this western Spanish community that may be resistant to change, but is spiritually hungry!

To learn more about the Molina’s ministry in Spain please read the information at the right of this page.

There is nothing like the experience of being on a mission field firsthand, or to interact with our missionaries firsthand, to change the life of an individual or of an entire congregation. For the past several years the Milford congregation has experienced this transformation through having missionaries come to speak and spend time, through short term mission experiences, through building churches, supporting pastors, buying coins, and developing very close, personal ties with a missionary family. Believe me, our missionaries enjoy these things also. They truly need the contact, the support, the interaction, the relationships, the money and the prayers.

The depth of this transformation is most evident in a project that the congregation has recently undertaken. Long story short - the Molina family (our missionaries in Spain), have been on the field for over nine years with no furlough. Combine this with a desire from Ken Hunn and the International Ministries Council to have all of our missionaries home for the 2008 General Conference to celebrate our 300th anniversary with us. Mix in the creative thinking of the Milford missions ministry. The result is what you are reading about today. The Milford congregation is offering the gift of the 2008 conference experience and a family vacation to their home in Argentina to the Molinas, all at the expense of the Milford Church.

Now, the Milford Church is not large, nor wealthy. However, the congregation is willing to step out in faith, trusting God to provide what is needed. The total cost of this gift package is approximately $11,000. The budget is done for the year without including this project and we can’t simply write a check. What follows is how we are doing it, how others are getting involved, and a challenge to you and your church family.

The first step required doing a little bit of homework. Flight timetables and costs were checked out, hotel rates were examined and a tentative timeline was put together. After these prices and schedules were put into place, every logistical piece of making such a trip was examined. For instance, how do we get the Molinas to Madrid; do the flight schedules require some extra lodging; where and when can they eat; what will they do while in the states; how do we move them from place to place? Answers to all of these questions were put into the overall plan. Costs for all of these items were then determined and included. The goal now becomes three - fold: fulfilling our commitment in providing this experience for the Molinas (especially since they are aware of it), getting as many people as possible involved in the process, and not jeaporadizing our regular ongoing giving and ministry.

The next step involved a trip to Hobby Lobby to find items to make a bulletin board. Each logistical part of the trip was identified on the bulletin board and the cost was listed on a corresponding tag. There are 17 pieces in all. The congregation was then challenged to lay claim to any of these 17 individual tags and cover the cost of that tag. Items were as diverse as a $25 car ride to the train station up to the $3,200 tickets for a flight from the US to Argentina. The congregation will work together utilizing fundraisers such as silent auctions, concert concession sales and more to fund the larger amounts. Individuals, families, and SS classes then made commitments to fund specific parts of the trip. The only requirement is that any regular giving pattern is not interrupted to pay for the tag. At this writing, (4 weeks into the project), only 5 tags are not yet spoken for. There are 9 families, one SS class and four teenage boys working as a group, that have chosen to participate so far.

The rewards that come out of a project like this are many. First and foremost, the Molinas will receive a well deserved vacation. Secondly, the Milford congregation receives the blessing of being this driving force to not only make this trip possible, but to show and share with others about how to accomplish something like this. Thirdly, there is a unified goal for the congregation to pursue, to get excited about and to celebrate when it is brought to completion. Fourth, people are learning how to stretch their giving a little more, in turn trusting God to provide a little more. And finally, people get to learn that by working together and everybody contributing, no job is too large to tackle. Take the four teenage boys for instance. Only one of the four has a job. Their responsibility is to cover the $200 of expenses for moving the Molinas around Ashland and then to Richmond for the General Conference. They looked at the timeline for getting the money raised and realized that they each only need to find $1/week over the next year to accomplish their goal. Doesn’t sound too tough does it?
Here’s the lesson: too often we only look at the end product to decide whether or not we have what it takes to get there. If we were to all look at ministry projects in terms of how do we get there and what will it take from all of us to get there we would probably embrace more challenges and enjoy more successes. We do a lot of this at Milford. We look at a project and break it down into the smallest pieces and ask people to attack these small pieces. Doing things this way allowed us to give away over $40,000 to various mission and ministry projects last year, including our District and National apportionments, while still meeting all of our other ministry needs.

Friends, the blessings and the provision of God, since we have committed ourselves to significant over and above mission support in Milford, have been incredible. I believe that every church is capable of doing this same kind of thing. I believe that every church can step up and be a part of what is going on in the Brethren Church. As we say in Indiana, “we are better together.” Think about this: the average cost of building a church in India is $3,000. That’s only $58 each week. If any church of 60 families gave an additional $1/family each week towards building the church, those churches could build an Indian church each year. Even in the tightest of personal financial situations, there is a dollar a week floating somewhere. Now think about this: according to the statistical reports from conference there are over 5,700 family units involved with the Brethren Church. Lets say that on any given Sunday there are 4,500 of those family units in worship and each of those families gave an additional $1 for international ministry. By years end that would account for an additional $234,000. Think of what we could accomplish!

To close I would offer this challenge and invitation: the challenge is for other churches to bring a missionary family to the US for the 2008 General Conference. It would be great to celebrate with all of them. It is not difficult to put these trips together, but it does require some time, creativity and commitment to do right. Join with other churches if you simply cannot do it yourself. If you would like to join with the Milford congregation and claim one of the remaining tags for the Molinas, contact Pastor Billy and let him know. The invitation is this - we would love to have another 2, 3, 4, or more churches to be a part of the regular and ongoing support of the Brethren Church in Spain. The Milford church has been the sole local church supporter, in the US, of the Brethren Church in Spain. The Brethren in Cordoba, Argentina also provide monthly support. We plan to continue this support as long as it is necessary. $900/month is the total support money we’re talking about. Would your church like share a part of this amount with us? Contact Pastor Billy and let him know. He’ll answer all of your questions regarding the ministry in Spain. He will also welcome your involvement. He will even offer you a spot on the upcoming trip this fall.

The reality is this: God is using the Brethren Church to make a difference not only in the US but also around the world. To continue these efforts will require all of us to be involved at a deeper level. To continue these efforts will require our finances, our prayers, and our willingness to experience these mission fields personally. To continue these efforts will require us living out “we are better together.” To continue these efforts requires you.

What picture comes to mind when you think of the word “missions?â€? No doubt we think of someone from the United States traveling to a “foreignâ€? country. You might be surprised to know that Mexico, Ireland, and Malaysia are just several areas of Brethren ministry that have a vision beyond their borders. In addition to a vision for church planting, the Brethren Church in Argentina has for several years been supporting a church plant of their own in Spain.

David & Cecilia Molina, along with sons Lucas and Nicolas, have ventured from their home church in Cordoba, Argentina to the city of Coria, Spain to plant a new church there. Coria is located in a region known as Extramadura, directly west of Madrid next to the border with Portugal. Situated at the crossroads between Africa and Europe, Spain has a unique cultural heritage. Spanish society is multi-lingual and multi-cultural with immigrants from Latin America, Africa and other European as well as diverse Spanish communities. Catholicism is the official religion but 80% of the population say they are not practicing. Only 0.2% of the population are evangelicals and 13 million people live in towns with no evangelical witness. This spiritual vacuum is being filled with secularism, materialism, cults and the occult.

Our ministry in Spain is assisted by partial support from the Milford First Brethren Church in Milford, Indiana. Please pray faithfully for the Molina family. Church extension work in this country is difficult. Though many hunger spiritually, they are also resistant to change. Pray that those in this community will have receptive hearts to the ministry of the Molinas and their own vision to reach out from Coria into new areas in western Spain as well.