Today I am flying out of Cincinnati with a volunteer mission team headed to Panama. The team is composed of members of the missions commitee of the Tates Creek Baptist Association located in the Richmond, Kentucky area. They are headed to Panama with the primary purpose of visioning for future opportunities of partnering with IMB missionaries Kenny and Cheryl Morris. The team, led by Vincent Carman, will be traveling to various places in the country to look at possible furture work sites. I am accompanying the mission team to assist with the formation of the formal partnership agreement and to offer my services in strategy and planning.
The Tates Creek Association has carried out work in Botswana for the past several years, but missions leaders felt it was time to move to another area. The Associational Director of Missions, Hamp Valentine, contacted the KBC Partnership Missions Department last year seeking help in locating a new place of service. I traveled to Richmond to meet with the committee and present to them criteria to consider when searching for a new area with which to partner (see Criteria to Consider when Choosing a Country) as well as share with them information on some specific countries to consider.
From there the Tates Creek Baptist Association leadership continued to pray and research these countries and others. Not feeling God’s leading in these areas the committee patiently kept up the search. I directed Hamp to Gary Tufts, an IMB Personalizer from the Middle America and Caribbean Region (MAC Region) to inquire about another country in that region. That didn’t work out, but Gary eventually put Hamp into contact with the Morrises in Panama, and after more praying and many phone calls and emails back and forth, the Tates Creek folks felt led to pursue a possible partnership with Panama.
This vision trip (see Vision Trip: An Act of War) will serve as both a spiritual and logistical foundation for a future partnership as the team gets the opportunity to take a first-hand look at the needs of the areas. They will be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s leading as they open their heart’s eye to help in the selection of a specific spot of the Lord’s choosing.
If everything goes as hoped, this will be a “LEVEL THREE” partnership (see LEVELS OF COMMITMENT), with Tates Creek committing to supply volunteer teams to meet the needs of the field missionaries. Its duration will be negotiated between the two parties, but the usual time frame is about three years with the option to renew at a later date.
I hope to be able to have access to the internet to do some “live blogging” from Panama to keep you updated on this developing relationship, so stay tuned!
