The new American missions field is.....(drumroll).......New England?
Wait a minute. The old stomping grounds of George Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards, Solomon Stoddard, and the Puritans is now behind even the dreaded Pacific Northwest? Well, yes. Chalk it up to years or legalism or the slow secularization of culture, but the facts are facts; this ain't your Valley of Vision Puritan New England. Church planting in New England is difficult, but the Gospel has not lost its power here? Of course not. We need to begin missions to New England. I read a great blog by Jared Wilson, a pastor in Vermont, outlining why pastoral ministry, whether church planting or re-planting, is so hard in New England. But difficulty shouldn't scare us away, but excite and inspire. Where better to see God's power than those places where He appears most invisible (notice the word "appears", for God is never absent, even in the worst of situations).
For this student and future Pastor (Lord willing), these articles excite me. Planting a church in New England sounds like a task I would love to undertake. Of course, I'm not saying I've made up my mind in any sense, but it is a possibility. I still have much time to pray and learn before the day comes when I undertake such an undertaking. For those interested (myself included) through my initial research into this topic I found a great organization, the NETS Institute for Church Planting, which specializes in church planting in New England. Check them out, read the links on this blog, and pray for New England. And maybe, eventually, plant a Church in New England.
