Years ago, I was blessed to take a mission trip to Altamira, Mexico. One memory from that trip is burned into my mind — an impoverished young woman who asked for help. My Spanish was limited to basic phrases, so I stood there unable to do anything about her pitiful situation. I left Mexico with a burden for Hispanic people. But with that burden came frustration, because I could not clearly communicate the gospel to them.
Over the years, that burden grew. As I prepared to move to Athens, Alabama, to plant Cultivate Free Will Baptist Church, I thought how wonderful it would be to have a multiethnic, multicultural congregation. I called bilingual friends and asked them about joining us, but none felt led to join our team.
After we arrived in Athens and got to know our new community, I was astounded by how many Spanish-speaking people I encountered each day. I began praying for someone to come help us reach this growing people group. God answered that prayer with the opportunity to bring Amilcar Castro and his family from Honduras to begin Cultivate’s Spanish ministry.
Excitement grew among the congregation as the launch of our Spanish ministry neared. They heard messages about the need for servants to help reach people, about how we are all one in Christ. Most of all, they heard constant reminders that love is a universal language. We are called to love our neighbors regardless of their language, ethnicity, or nationality.
This love for others was the key to God’s blessing upon our Spanish ministry.
American immigration debates often stir up feelings of resentment and anger, and, unfortunately, much of that bitterness is directed at immigrants themselves. But when new Hispanic people came through the doors at Cultivate, they were greeted with a warm smile and a firm handshake. Some were truly shocked to meet Americans who cared about them. They continued to come, and they brought as many as they could with them. Today, almost as many Spanish-speakers attend Cultivate Church as English!
Cultivate Church has worked hard to ensure we are one church. Many times, Spanish ministries take on the look of two congregations simply using the same building. This is not what God has called us to do. Scripture reminds us, “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:12-13).
Every Wednesday evening, we eat a potluck meal together.
We don’t understand all the words we speak to one another, but we are sharing life. Before we break up into different classes, we sing praises to God together. Surely this is a small glimpse of Heaven where every tongue will gather to worship the Lamb with one voice. Perhaps the greatest blessing is seeing our children learning together. Once Hispanic children start school, they learn English very quickly. So, all the Cultivate Kids learn together in English. They will be the ones to demonstrate to the world we can get along with people different than us. They will demonstrate through their actions our unity in Christ.
There are difficulties with any ministry. The mixture of many cultures creates challenges. Each country has its own culture. Currently, people from at least eight nations attend Cultivate. Rather than argue about cultural practices, we have learned to appreciate our differences and to love one another despite them.
Recently, we noticed an influx of Haitian immigrants in our community. Several Spanish-speaking Haitians began attending our services. Shortly after they started coming, I met a Haitian man at my son’s school and struck up a conversation. I invited him to attend church, and when I did, his eyes lit up. He is the community coordinator for Haitians in our area, and he was hoping to start a church for Creole-speaking people. Now, we are searching for a pastor to come help us reach the nearly 2,000 Haitians who have moved to Athens and the surrounding area.
Perhaps the Lord has brought them to our town to learn of His love from Cultivate Church. We surely don’t want to miss that opportunity.
It’s hard to miss the challenges facing American immigration today as the news is filled constantly with stories. I cannot change that. However, rather than choosing to complain about the immigrants arriving, I choose to reach them with the gospel message. God is bringing the nations to us! Let’s show them the love of Christ and help them find a better life — new life in Jesus Christ.
About the Writer: Joel Franks is the lead church planter at Cultivate Free Will Baptist Church in Athens, Alabama. He and his wife Melanie have three children: Jonathan, Makayla, and Ethan. Joel grew up in a church planting family and enjoyed a long, successful pastorate in Glasgow, Kentucky, before following God’s call to plant a church in Athens.
