In October of 2021, Salvation Church in Jacksonville, FL held it’s first worship service led by Pastor Ryan Jorgenson. From day one, Ryan knew that the Lord would use Salvation Church to spread the word to the ends of the earth. So he stood, with open doors to his new church and hands, palms up to the Lord ready to go out into the world. Ryan knew it was a huge ask for his new church. He was not asking for people to lead vacation Bible school or to paint and weed at a local church in a large city. He was asking for people willing to knock on doors and share the gospel.
Ryan laughed a little as he said, “This is a mission trip that scares people off. I mean, ‘hey what are you going to do?’ well we’re not going to build something. We’re gonna literally, all day, every day, go door to door, person to person… and we’re gonna share the gospel.”
Because of this willing posture to live out the great commission, God led nine bold believers from Salvation Church to sign up to travel to the remote mountains of Guatemala and reach out their hands to the Achi people only eight months after the church opened its doors.
“Lead people to Christ and plant churches,” Ryan shared, that was the mission from the beginning because that's what the Bible calls us to do. Out of this one week in the mountains, 459 people heard the gospel in 5 cities/villages.
There were no handouts, only a call to give up their old lives and receive the gift of eternal salvation. One moment Ryan will not forget is the moment he watched the leader of one of the villages and his father, raise their hands and surrender their lives to Christ in front of the whole village.
After sharing the gospel, the group connected them with local Christians who would sever as pastors for those small villages. It was important for them to ensure the Achi people were connected with locals to continue the strengthening of their faith after the group returned home.
Three new churches were planted.
A posture of surrender, a willingness to go, and a boldness to share. It sounds like a big ask for those within your church, but the truth is, we serve a big God. When we stand, palms up with a humble heart, and remove the limits we place upon the Lord, God is ready to grow the Kingdom one person at a time.
We are so blessed to be part of what the Lord is doing through Salvation Church and continue to keep our 208 new brothers and sisters in our prayers.
If you, or any of your members have expressed interest in participating in such a bold missions trip Ryan would love to connect with you. While he is giving space priority to those within Salvation Church, if there is space available he would be happy to have you serve with them. Just visit their website here.
Is your church impacting your community? We as a network want to celebrate that with you! Contact Elise Iler at eiler@highpointsend.org so we can praise God for what he is doing through your ministry together!
