Sound Teaching: And the things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also (2 Timothy 2:2). The longer we are in Guatemala, the greater the need becomes obvious to equip faithful men and women for ministry with sound and solid Bible teaching. There are too many workers teaching every wind of doctrine, deceiving the hearts of the simple, seeking self-gain or simply lacking convictions. Sadly, emphasis on numbers has overshadowed the important work of sound, adequate, and balanced teaching.
A Solid, Grounded Leadership: The church continues to suffer with a lack of good leadership. There is a need to train men and women who will serve as future leaders—leaders of integrity, character and honesty—which has been one of our goals in local ministry, and one important reason we began ITL, a preacher training school. We need more leaders who have vision for the local churches, who are interested in fidelity to God’s word, and who seek the lost with passion.
Short-term and Long-term workers: There is a need for individuals and congregations to send short-term mission teams. If you are not able to come, perhaps you can help finance someone who can. These teams are a source of encouragement, are instrumental in building up the faith of many, and help create a strong tie between Christians from different cultures. Additionally, there is a need for other faithful men and women to consider Guatemala for full-time mission work.
Advantages to Local Preaching Schools
Over the years, churches in the U.S. have done a great work through preacher training schools. However, allow us to share some advantages of training foreign students on their own soil. By training the students on their own soil, the students:
- Are able to study in their native language
- Do not have the temptation to remain in the US after graduation
- Do not experience culture shock or reverse culture shock
- Require significantly fewer funds for support while they study
- Are less likely to Americanize (rather than Christianize) the local brethren