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Reaching San Salvador

April 30, 2012 in Events, International Leadership, The Global Leadership Summit with 0 Comments

Mario Vega: Reaching San Salvador for Jesus

With 73,000 in attendance, Elim Church in San Salvador is one of the largest churches in the world. The church has survived a civil war that killed 75,000 people, an earthquake that devastated the country, killing 100 of the church’s members, and it has survived the difficulties that came when the senior pastor stepped down because of a moral failure. Elim Church has not only survived; it has thrived.

Part of the reason is Senior Pastor Mario Vega, the man who took the leadership reins in 1997.

In a city of 1.5 million, San Salvador has its share of gangs and gang violence. Gang members are threatened by their peers that they’ll be killed if they leave the gang, yet Vega is among those reaching out and opening a door of hope to them that connects them to a relationship with Christ.

As a child, Vega was sick and spent a good deal of time reading, and today he reads books on theology, history, and politics—for fun. Overseeing a staff of approximately 100 pastors, Vega rallies the church around justice and the rights of children and drives the explosive growth of the church’s successful cell group strategy.

Each of Elim’s 11,000 diverse cell groups are made up of between six and fifteen people committed to reaching others for Christ. Cell groups members build friendships with those who are far from God with one goal in mind—serving them and sharing God’s love. “The Elim cells personally care for the hurts and needs of those around them, winning people to Jesus as a result,” says Vega. “It’s what’s behind our evangelism strategy.”

Hear more from this pastor and leader at The Global Leadership Summit in August.

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Are you bringing hope into the world today?

April 4, 2012 in Follow the GLS, International Leadership, Uncategorized with 1 Comment

As you reflect this Easter on hope in the unconditional love of Christ for you, for the Church, and for the world, we encourage you to celebrate the new life that Christ can bring into a community through His bride, the Church. We love the Church and are committed to its growth, restoration, and celebration as the bride of Christ. Your investment in leaders helps bring hope into the world. Watch this video of Jim Mellado after he spoke at The Global Leadership Summit in Mexicali, Mexico early this year.

The Church is the hope of the world

Bringing hope into the world is a tough calling that requires inspiration, encouragement and strength – exactly what the GLS aims to deliver. But many leaders find themselves in hopeless situations as they bring the Message into communities stifled by poverty, apathy, corruption, persecution, and war.

This year, the WCA has received a number of requests from Christian leaders in these very situations – they want to know how to bring The GLS into their communities. These requests are coming from such countries as: Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, The Gambia, Senegal and the newly independent Southern Sudan. The WCA would like nothing more than to partner with these courageous leaders, but we cannot do it alone.

Plans to bring the GLS to these countries will begin this month, and final decisions will be made by May 4th on funding the initiative. Will you join us in making an investment in the Christian leaders of these countries as they work hard to bring the hope and the love of Christ into their communities? Your support matters.

How can you bring hope into the world today?

  • Celebrate Christ’s love, and His love for the church that spreads hope into a broken world
  • Invest in making the GLS a reality in countries like Southern Sudan and others, where leaders are asking to share it with their community and its leaders
  • Pray for courageous leaders leading in difficult situations around the globe

    • Hope Found in Leaders Responding to God

    December 22, 2011 in Changing Lives, Follow the GLS, International Leadership with 3 Comments

    A couple years ago, the programming team at Willow Creek Association worked to shape The Global Leadership Summit 2010 (the GLS), they created a compelling little device called a “Declaration”. They wanted to challenge the Summit audiences all over the world to respond tangibly to what they heard at the Summit and commit to taking action that would better their churches and communities. Leaders responded enthusiastically by sharing their Declarations with us via social media and through a Declaration wall we created for people to share the action they had committed to.

    Then, as the team turned to the GLS in 2011, the Declaration idea resurfaced. The team asked, What if we treated 2010 as a year to plant the Declaration seed and then used 2011 as the harvest?

    And so, the idea for a little project affectionately named ‘DEX’ (short for Declarations) was born. I was privileged to get to work on it along with our partners from all around the globe, sending Flip video cameras for them to record their Declarations in creative, lively ways to about 20 different countries on 6 continents.

    For me, the best part of the whole experience was at the end, viewing the final product. I had tears in my eyes as I watched our partners in ministry whom I worked alongside declare to the world – literally – how they had responded to the whispers of God during their Summit experience.

    I felt honored to get to work for an organization God was working so powerfully through, an organization challenging leaders – tens of thousands of them from all walks of life – to bring God’s love into their spheres of the world.

    So – check out the DEX video. I hope itwill bless you. But I also hope it will challenge you to ask yourself what can you do to lead where you are.

    …Created in collaboration with Prolifik. If you’d like to know more about how DEX was created, check out this blog from our production partner Prolifik Films here.

    By: Alex Mills (@xandymills)
    International Team, Willow Creek Association

    Movement of God in Myanmar

    December 19, 2011 in Asia, Follow the GLS, International Leadership with 2 Comments

    Leaders praying for their country matter. The prayers of some of these leaders are being felt powerfully in one of the poorest countries in Asia. Despite being a resource rich nation, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma) is desperately poor, Asia’s third poorest.

    But, church leaders there have a vision for how things could be different. Several years ago, a small group of leaders began praying for their country. Those leaders were able to work out a way to bring the Global Leadership Summit there, despite the watchful eye of government.

    Now in its third year, the impact of the GLS in this country has been almost unimaginable. A report from this year’s event:

    Words can’t express the day we have had here. It is the year of breakthrough for Myanmar. More seats had to be put out to add to the already 880 set up the day before. At the morning breakthere were 1000 people wall to wall in the auditorium, not counting the volunteers. They had to turn away 200 more people as there just wasn’t room.

    Because of the number of people, they were not allowed to go to breaks or lunch because the owners of the hotel were worried the government would come and shut down the event. So all delegates were served food and refreshments in their seats throughout the day.

    As you can imagine, the event staff has worked around the clock to cater for the last minute growth. They did not sleep at all last night, even going and buying 2 printers to work through the night printing 250 more workbooks for everyone.

    The presence of God is a tangible thing here.

    This is our poorest nation in Asia, and it may grow to be one of our largest sites. The reason? The people here are hungry and desperate for the teaching they are receiving. They are engaged and drinking in every word! Praise God for those who have carried the vision of seeing this come to pass.

    Leaders matter. Vision matters. Prayer matters. God is moving in Myanmar – Please join us in serving under-resourced leaders.

    By: Alex Mills (@xandy_mills)
    International Team, Willow Creek Association

    God’s Breath in Stoke on Trent, UK

    December 6, 2011 in Follow the GLS, International Leadership with 0 Comments

    Pastor James Galloway leading at Breathe City Church in Stoke on Trent, UK


    Sometimes God reminds me that He shows up in unexpected interactions. Last week, Willow Creek Association hosted 54 international pastors and Christian leaders for five days of intensive training during the Partnering to Prevail conference. My pleasure was scooting over to hear stories of the local church being the hope of the world.

    When I invited Pastor James Galloway to tell his story, his testimony rattled me. James is a lean thirty-something pastor from Stoke on Trent, United Kingdom. He describes Stoke on Trent as a troubled town between the better known cities of Manchester and Birmingham. The city struggles with 30% unemployment, as manufacturing and mining jobs are disappearing.

    During the summer of 2007, while listening for God’s whisper on his next pastorate, he felt lead to Breathe City Church. His account of his family’s transition to Stoke on Trent is accurately detailed in From Beach Hut to Palace, a Story of Church Repurposed.

    I was struck by his story. He humbly shared, about starting a church with 60 congregants, declining to only 15 people, and then repurposing the church to be a servant to the community. Any worldly-wise church planter would have thrown in the towel, called it hopeless and left town. But Pastor James sensed the Holy Spirit was going to do something special.

    Pastor James is a focused leader. He didn’t have to share his value, his mission, his guiding principles; they were there. I could tell he was grounded in the Word, innovative in his thinking, and quick to share praise of his congregants and staff; all attributes of a wise leader.

    Today, Breathe City Church celebrates worship with over 850 congregants in four locations across the city. This type of explosive church growth is rare in the UK, where the average church size is 37. James’ face lit up when he shared what the church is really doing. It’s not talking church; it’s a living breathing Acts 2 church in the city. Programs assisting the poor, congregants active in the schools, assisting those with addictions, and being relevant in worship and word; all combine to develop a positive image of the church. And people are coming to know the Lord, with over half the membership coming to faith in Lord through Breathe City Church.

    The church has tangibly demonstrated to local government officials the impact a dynamic and effective church can make on a community, and gained their confidence and support. Ministry expansion continues with plans for a larger building able to gather more new believers and serve Stoke on Trent with the hope only a church can give.

    Pastor James Galloway’s leadership example of persistence in the face of adversity shook me. I can’t help but pause and wonder, “Do I give up too easily? Am I willing to buck the world view that the church is irrelevant in this mixed up world?” Breathe City Church in Stoke on Trent is a living breathing example that the local church is the hope of the world.

    What stories have charged your spiritual batteries lately about the local church? I find sharing stories of thriving churches is such an encouragement to leaders in the trenches. Let’s celebrate the gift of story this Christmas.

    By Steve Spoelhof
    Vice President, Development
    Willow Creek Association

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