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Peoples of New Zealand are searching for life’s meaning with a fresh openness that has not been seen in decades.
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ALAN PHILLIPS, Associate Director
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On March 3, following three years of preparation, three families arrived in the city of Auckland, New Zealand … the first American church-planting mission team in churches of Christ to that nation in three decades.
Justin and Jennifer Cherry (and daughter, Rylee), Skylar and Morgan Ely, and Elijah and Kristen Peters met while students at Sunset International Bible Institute. Prioritized by MRN as one of the top ten sites in the South Pacific for future church plantings, these families answered the ‘call', formed a team, and began their journey for the sake of reaching the multi-national peoples of Auckland.
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Auckland is described as the commerce center of the South Pacific, where 1.5 million people reside (one-third of New Zealand's population). Following a team survey trip to Auckland in 2007, accompanied by team coaches Alan Phillips (MRN) and Charles Speer (Sunset), team members set their sites on the culturally diverse western sector of the city.
"From the genesis of the dream, this has been a God-led collaborative effort," states Phillips. "Satan's relentless attacks were overcome as God raised up partner churches and Christian leaders on both sides of the ocean to bring this to pass."
Sponsoring churches for this team include: Georgetown, Texas (Cherrys), Rusk, Texas (Peters), and the Pine Tree Church in Longview, Texas (Elys). Additionally, another dozen churches, Bell Trust, and many individuals from several states are partnering with this team. At the invitation of the elders of Otumoetai Church of Christ in Tauranga, New Zealand, long-term visas were awarded by New Zealand immigration for team members.
With plans to eventually launch a new evangelistic work in Auckland, the team's early focus is to settle into the western suburbs of the city, build relationships with existing congregations, connect with the community, and be on-site learners of the culture.
History is being made. Peoples of New Zealand are searching for life's meaning with a fresh openness that has not been seen in decades. Praise God for the beginning of a new day in the South Pacific!
For more information about the New Zealand team, see www.imaginenewzealand.org.
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