Esperanza — Becoming a Hope for the Church

The members of Esperanza Church have begun meditating on the Word.

They did not begin because someone told them to. The members themselves first approached their senior pastor. A desire arose within the church to meditate on the Word, record the grace they received, and share it together.

Now the members meet weekly or every other week to share the Word. Each person reads and meditates on the QT passage, applies it, and brings a notebook in which they have recorded their reflections and prayers to share the grace of the Word within the community.

As I watched this, I was reminded of the early Korean churches more than 120 years ago—churches that stood independently, strengthened themselves, and governed themselves.

The members of Esperanza Church have promised to stand before the Word for the next three years. Their goal is not to complete a short program, but to make reading and meditating on the Word part of their daily lives.

What remains even more deeply in my heart is the members’ decision to become self-reliant.

From the moment they become members of this church, they decide that they will no longer receive relief goods. It is a confession that they will not live by depending on help, but will rely on God and build their own lives and church.

That decision is quiet, but resolute.

I believe mission is not about making someone continually dependent, but about helping one person stand before the Word, one community rise in faith, and both become able to build up others in turn.

Now the members of Esperanza Church are beginning to be filled by the Word.

We hope that the Word they have received will not remain only within the church. We pray that it will flow again to other churches and believers, and to those who are just beginning their journey of faith.

Today, in these small QT notebooks, we see the future of the church in Mexico.

A church where, together with precious pastors, believers read the Word for themselves; a community that brings its life before the Word and encourages one another’s faith; and a church that shares the gospel it has received with others again.

We believe these people of faith will lead the evangelization of Mexico.

Esperanza.

As its name means hope, we pray that the Word will become the hope of this church, and that this church will become someone else’s hope in turn.