Sometimes it is difficult to see just how impactful our giving can be. As such, I would like to highlight just one example of how your support makes an incredible difference to our Movement and in the world.
As one of the 35 Lausanne issue networks, the Church Planting Network has existed for only four short years, with Ron Anderson appointed the first Catalyst in 2014. Soon after, a one-day consultation on church planting was organized in Croatia, a nation of four million people and only 178 churches, with a small growth rate of five new churches a year.
Croatia is also a nation of deep historic rifts between the denominations—so much so that, when asked what a good outcome for the consultation would be, one leader responded, ‘Anything short of drawing blood!’
At the gathering, the 25 Croatian denominational and mission leaders were asked to pinpoint what was keeping them from having greater impact. The overall consensus was one of repentance: ‘We are not working together as one body.’ This discovery helped them break the silo trend that had caused such disunity and begin building personal relationships with one another. They went on to form a national church-planting platform with a shared vision to reach Croatia with saturation church planting—a moving testimony of how God brings reconciliation, peace, and new life to his church.
Since then, Ron and the Church Planting Network have organized one-day gatherings on church planting in many other European countries and in Central and South America. More recently he has begun to concentrate on North and East Africa because of their close proximity to Spain, where he has been involved in church planting for forty years. He is also in discussions with Ed Stetzer, the North American Regional Director for Lausanne, about implementing the process in the US and Canada.
Ron’s ultimate goal is to work together with Lausanne and other church planting networks to see a saturation church planting process established in every country of the world, that the Lord might move in similar ways as he did in Croatia. In appreciation for Lausanne, he wrote recently:
‘In addition to learning from my peers in Europe, I have appreciated the training and encouragement I have received through Lausanne on how to start and improve these country and region networks.’
Your prayers and support for Lausanne are having an impact all over the world. Denomination and mission leaders are overcoming prejudices to coordinate and even partner with one other, not only in Croatia and not only in church planting. These are but a small taste of what God is doing through Lausanne’s 35 issue networks, which are only able to function through the support of the global church.
Will you prayerfully consider giving to Lausanne in support of these strategic networks?
Your gift will channel into the global Body of Christ to help write the testimonies of the nations. Through it, we will be able to release even more funds to benefit Children-at-Risk, to expand Church Planting worldwide, to reach refugees (Diasporas) with the gospel, to support solutions to more than 30 other challenges and opportunities the global church is facing, and to accelerate evangelism in the workplace through the Lausanne Global Workplace Forum.
Right now, the Lord has provided two anonymous and generous friends who will match all gifts to the Lausanne Movement, dollar for dollar,up to $125,000. That means your gift to Lausanne will be doubled. Will you consider taking advantage of this opportunity to double your impact?
Thank you in advance for whatever the Lord leads you to do. Please join me in prayer, thanking God for this wonderful opportunity and asking him for favor to see the match fulfilled.