“And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God: For he took away the altars of the strange gods, and the high places, and brake down the images, and cut down the groves: And commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment” (2 Chronicles 14:2-4).
As a child, my church family made Bible stories come to life for me.
With shock, I learned about Aaron, Moses’ own brother, making the golden calf. With a lump in my throat, I empathized with the three Hebrew boys’ dilemma of whether to bow to King Nebuchanezer’s golden statue or die. With regret, I pitied Samson as he tore down Dagon’s temple. With a sense of justice, I imagined the lives of the Egyptians as God sent plagues to show His power over Pharaoh and the false gods. With prayer, I learned about overseas missionaries living in villages, towns, and cities with idols of gold, silver, metal, and stone.
However, in all my years of Bible teaching, learning about missionaries, and listening to sermons, I never considered my own hometown could be harboring idols.
I know what you may be thinking. Yes, we all struggle to keep God first. We can all have “idols” or “high places” as Scripture states, creep into our lives. But I am not thinking about spiritual idols such as placing your personal dreams above God’s plans for your life. I am not speaking about pursuing wealth, conforming to the world to gain the favor of our friends or colleagues, or striving for the next promotion to gain a sense of self-worth. I am referring to actual idols made with human hands: statues made of gold, silver, glass, plastic, or any other material.
As a pastor’s wife, I now know false gods are present in my hometown. I have seen them with my own eyes and been in homes where they dwell. And, if my small town of two thousand people has graven images, I imagine your community has them as well.
The Roman Catholic church teaches followers to worship the saints, pray to them, and venerate their writings in ways that often conflict with biblical teaching. As a result, in countries where Catholicism is prevalent, many people have statues of saints in their homes. These statues are often surrounded by decorations, paper images, candles, or other items, effectively creating an altar to that saint. The inhabitants of the home then pray to that saint often. These altars may be dedicated to Mary, Peter, John, Paul, the Pope, or any other saint their community has deemed a benefactor.
Sadly, Catholic believers are not alone in this struggle. Numerous religions worship false gods. These precious people for whom Jesus gave His life are victims of their cultural traditions. They do not know the errors of their ways, because they are taught by religious authorities they are doing what God wants. They work hard to gain righteousness with God through unbiblical, unfruitful rituals and customs that take the place of the true power of the living God in their lives.
How can we Christians, who have torn the idols from our hearts, help tear down the high places that threaten our communities?
One way to start is to prayerfully consider beginning a Hispanic ministry in your area. Our church, Iglesia Cristiana Fe En Accion (Faith in Action Christian Church) now has our own church building dedicated to teaching our Spanish-speaking neighbors about Jesus. But we did not start out this way.
Our ministry began in 2014 when Pastor Tim Forman and his wife Sandy felt a call to start a Spanish-speaking ministry in their town, Star City, Arkansas. They contacted Rick Bowling, head of cross-cultural ministry for North American Ministries. He, in turn, contacted Pastor Alfredo Botello from Bartlesville, Oklahoma, seeking a potential pastor from within the Bartlesville congregation.
Micael Gonzalez answered the call to start a Hispanic work in Star City. Pastor Tim’s church, First Free Will Baptist of Star City, volunteered their fellowship hall as a space where the Hispanic church could meet and helped Micael find work in the area. Micael and I met at First Church, and I joined the ministry as his wife in 2015. Iglesia Cristiana Fe En Accion became part of the Saline Association, the first Hispanic church to join a Free Will Baptist state association in Arkansas.
Before long, God began speaking to Micael about obtaining a separate church building in which to hold services. God chose a four-plus acre plot on the main highway just south of Star City for His new church. The land is located within two miles of most Hispanic people in the area. In 2020, the Arkansas State Mission Board met with Pastor Micael, and they began discussions concerning how the board could help us build a church. The mission board agreed to loan the church funds for five years until we could obtain traditional financing.
In 2021, the land was dedicated, and construction began in June 2022. At this time, Arkansas Free Will Baptist Women’s Ministry chose our work for their state project, providing more funds for construction. The Arkansas State Association and Free Will Baptist Foundation
also gave us generous grants. And, of course, several churches and individual brothers and sisters in Christ gave to the project.
Arkansas Missions Director Travis Alexander oversaw the church’s construction. He coordinated several volunteer groups to help, mostly Free Will Baptists from Arkansas and Oklahoma. Even some of the materials were donated, including the baptistry, carpet, chairs, and sound equipment. July 29, 2023, Iglesia Cristiana Fe En Accion held an inaugural service to celebrate all God had done and commit the new church to Him.
God has called English-speaking churches to either start or partner with Hispanic churches in eight additional Arkansas communities. Some Spanish-speaking churches have their own buildings. Others meet in English-speaking church facilities. All of God’s churches are blessed as a result.
In Star City, we are excited to see how God will use our new church building to teach His Word. We know the Bible has the power to break down strongholds, including deep-set traditions of idolatry.
We pray God will build up generations of believers to continue to tear down the “high places.”
We are blessed God saw fit to share this mission with all His Church. Our English- and Spanish-speaking brothers and sisters love the Lord and are not complacent concerning spreading the gospel to all nations—doing what is good and right in the eyes of the Lord.
I ask you to reflect on your own community and ask yourself, “Do the high places still exist where I live?” If so, what can you do about it?
“Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwelling places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God” (Ezekiel 37:23).
About the Writer: Heather Gonzalez has been married to Pastor Micael Gonzalez for eight years. Together, they serve the Spanish-speaking community in Star City, Arkansas, both at church and through their jobs in the public school system. They have two sons, Elias and Josiah. Learn more at www.fwbnam.com.
