On the Move

By Gene Williams

Each year at Parkers Chapel, we prayerfully choose a verse and spiritual emphasis theme. In 2021, while navigating through the residue of the pandemic, the Lord directed me to Revelation 3:7-9. He had blessed the church of Philadelphia with an open door no man could shut. Throughout that year, we saw the Lord open many doors and bless the ministry of our church.

As I headed to the Free Will Baptist Leadership Conference in December, that truth continued to resonate with me. Prayerfully, I told the Lord if He had something else for us, I would be open to whatever door He opened.

As the conference concluded, David Crowe, director of North American Ministries (NAM), asked if we could meet to discuss a prayer need. That afternoon, I met with David, Brad Ransom, and Jeff Jones to discuss the potential of relocating the Free Will Baptist Hispanic Institute to North Carolina. Specifically, these men asked if Parkers Chapel and NAM could partner for the project. I must say, this was a larger “open door” than I thought the Lord had for us.

We spent that spring (with the theme “By Faith” for 2022) praying as pastors, ministry leaders, and the church body to discern the Lord’s direction. One thought continued to surface. It wasn’t, “Why would we do this?” but “Why wouldn’t we do this?” In May 2022, we stepped out by faith and committed to receive this work. We are excited to work with NAM and its leadership in this joint project moving forward.

In 2021, the Census Bureau recorded the U.S. Hispanic population exceeding 62 million, with that number projected to reach 84 million by 2030. In short, this group now represents 20% of the U.S. population. Today, Free Will Baptists are not only going to our “Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the uttermost parts,” but they are coming to us. Often, God’s people have willing hearts but lack the means or resources to reach the world at our doorstep. Without the right tools, we find ourselves at a loss.

This is why the Hispanic Institute carries an ever-expanding potential for Free Will Baptists in the years to come. Institute Director Alfredo Botello has done an apt job of leading this work over the years, and he continues to have a passion for the institute and its future. Over the decades, he and his lovely wife Ruth have ministered to countless students. These graduates now serve in works across this country, in Mexico, and even throughout Central America and into South America.

We will begin offering classes in January 2024, and we are excited to see the ministry up and running again. Students will experience intensive Bible training along with hands-on instruction designed to enable their work in the ministry. They will learn theology, doctrine, philosophy of ministry, and everyday life skills to benefit them in every aspect of their work. We also hope to provide online and digital resources for them as the work progresses.

It is our vision for these graduates to go on to serve at one of the many Free Will Baptist Hispanic churches. Others will become “church planters” in a community needing a Hispanic ministry. Some will find a place at English-speaking churches in search of a “Hispanic pastor” to reach this fast-growing demographic. And, in other cases, we believe we will see students choose to pursue more concentrated training at one of our Free Will Baptist colleges.

We ask you to join in praying for this ministry as we move forward by faith. We believe the Lord will use the Hispanic Institute in a great way in the decades to come.

About the Writer: Gene Williams is pastor at Parkers Chapel FWB Church in Greenville, North Carolina. Learn more about this important ministry: fwbnam.com.