PART V.

1. PART V. MOBILIZING HISPANICS

2. SECTION A :Mobilizing Hispanics in Missionary Service • The missionary movement among Hispanic SBC churches is better than ever. • Quick measures of momentum can be glimpsed in the following:

3. Quick Measures of Movement • More churches adopting Unreached People Groups (UPGs) in Africa, South Asia and South East Asia. • New Hispanic IMB personnel – 24 in the last 24 months. • More churches giving to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering (LMCO). (In 2010, 100 churches gave for the first time). • More churches reaching out to Unreached People Groups (UPGs) in the US. (Hispanic churches from various states have gone to NYC to reach UPGs).

4. Quick Measures of Movement • The flourishing of a variety of home-grown missions conferences. (In Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, Tennessee, Virginia, Maryland, and California). • More Hispanic leaders and churches involved in evangelistic, training and human need ministries in the Americas (Mexico, and Central America). • NAMB’s bold initiative to partner with IMB to enable church planters to go to the unreached will impact Hispanic trans-cultural missions here and abroad

5. Have not met our objectives • A large number of churches are not significantly involved in trans-cultural or international missions. • Many churches have yet to buy into the vision of excited, transformational giving for missions. • The lingering effects of unhealthy dependence continue to keep many leaders and churches from responding in faith to the challenges and opportunities before them.

6. Needs & challenges WE FACE • Southern Baptists are not providing sufficient avenues necessary for those who are called to be sent to the mission field. • God’s purpose for Hispanics (as well as for those of other cultural background) will not be fulfilled through the limited funds available to the IMB. • An upsurge in giving to the Cooperative Program as well as the Lottie Moon Missionary Offering is desperately needed.

7. Needs & challenges WE FACE • There is a need to communicate more effectively with denominational and church leaders regarding the strategic nature of Hispanic deployment to the UPGs. • There is a need to recognize the excellent potential of Hispanics to establish social bridges that will facilitate the communication of the gospel with strategic UPGs. (Because of their cultural background and pilgrimage they are equipped to do it).

8. Needs & challenges WE FACE • Overcoming the error of Hispanic Great Commission thinking. • Hispanic denominational and church leaders need to understand that we are not called exclusively to those who speak Spanish, but rather, those who don’t speak “Jesus”. •  On a national level we need intentional 3rd Culture mobilization gatherings to cast a vision to 2nd Generation ethnic believers (not only Hispanic) about their role in kingdom advance.

9. bEst practices -Associate Mobilizers • God has raised up a cadre of Mobilization Associates to carry the vision, training, and empowerment to the grass roots. • Associates were identified from the larger group because of their passion and because they were mobilizing at some level and wanted to influence other churches. • Most associates are local pastors, but there are also some women and laymen involved. So far they are mainly located in the East and the South.

10. bEst practices - Autonomy • One of the keys in the expansion of the movement has been freeing leaders from the strictures which structures demand. • As they find successful approaches, others are brought in by the excitement, passion and direct involvement. • This creates new challenges to leverage the excitement, creativity and passion in ways that are still strategically aligned with the vision of a multitude from every language, people, tribe and nation.

11. bEst practices - Embrace networks • The launching of the Embrace challenge necessitated a plan for smaller ethnic churches to be involved. • The solution being implemented is the formation of churches focused on one UUPG. We had seen this work in an unplanned way in Africa. • We are now intentionally helping pastors establish formal networks of churches committed to reaching the same people. • This has multiplied the number of churches willing to embrace and the number of trips, prayer and resources available for some of the most difficult UUPGs. 

12. bEst practices - Faith Promise • As society and many Southern Baptists have lost their desire to give in a carefully planned, budgeted and denominationally loyal way, God has provided a resource that has allowed Hispanic giving to continue growing. • Well planned and passionately presented Faith Promise Offerings for Missions have for 6 or 7 years transformed giving patterns in local churches. • The excitement is also enlisting more churches committed to the vision.

13. RECOMMENDATIONS •  1. We recommend that Hispanic promotion of the Cooperative Program passionately spell out a vision and tell poignant stories of every day Hispanics attempting great and impossible things for the Lord. • Hispanics respond to passionate appeals to give to great joint visions. • Hispanic leaders are not enthusiastic about promoting Cooperative giving based on past loyalties or as a quid pro quo for benefits received.

14. RECOMMENDATIONS • 2. We recommend that the SBC come up with new channels for fielding ethnic missionaries. • Our churches are beginning to look for new channels to send candidates who don’t meet all of the IMB qualifications. • There are many options in non-denominational agencies. • We do not want to see a lessening of support from the very churches which are taking bold steps to the nations.

15. RECOMMENDATIONS • 3. As an Advisory Council we fully support the resolution adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention in 2011 and welcome an opportunity to dialog with key SBC leaders on finding ways to train and deploy all Hispanic Baptists who are being called to missions. • A significant portion of Hispanic Baptist endeavors are carried out in the shadows because of the legal situation of thousands of members in our churches and many leaders and pastors. This naturally affects missions.

16. RECOMMENDATIONS • 4. We recommendation that Hispanic churches take bolder steps than ever before to be instrumental in the appointment of Hispanic missionaries.

17. RECOMMENDATIONS • At the SBC-related Missionary Advance conference in Houston Texas on the 9th of June, 2013, Dr. Tom Elliff made a commitment to lead the International Mission Board to appoint 40 additional Hispanic missionaries over the next five years. • This is great news for Hispanic Baptists all over North America.

18. RECOMMENDATIONS • This places great responsibility on Hispanic pastors and congregations to find, encourage, and assist in the educational as well as spiritual preparation of those who will be appointed as missionaries in different parts of the world. • 5. The Hispanic Advisory Council urges all Hispanic Baptists to make this a matter of concerted prayer that this marvelous and challenging goal will not only be met but surpassed.  

19. SECTION B Mobilizing Hispanics in Mission Education/Action(Hispanic Baptist Women in Missions)

20. INVOLVEMENT • Baptist women have been involved in missionary education, support, and action throughout the history of the Southern Baptist Convention. • As Hispanic Baptist churches were established in America, Hispanic Baptist Women played an integral role in missionary education, support, and action.

21. INVOLVEMENT • The minutes of some of the earliest meetings report that Hispanic Baptist Women were instrumental in coordinating the missionary offerings for their state, for this country and for world missions. • Despite severe economic limitations, Hispanic Baptist women made the necessary sacrifices to contribute to the missionary offerings as well as to promote them.

22. INVOLVEMENT • Today, in many of the Baptist State Conventions, Hispanic women occupy positions of leadership in their conventions, associations, churches, Hispanic fellowships (in the Hispanic women organizations). • In a number of instances, Hispanic women leaders serve as a vital link between their Hispanic Fellowship-related woman’s organization and that of the State Convention.

23. INVOLVEMENT • Eleven of the Baptist State Conventions have consultants on their staff that relate to Hispanic Woman’s Missionary Union. • Others have Hispanic Baptist women making significant contributions in volunteer roles.

24. NEEDS • A survey conducted by the Hispanic Advisory Council reveals the following needs and challenges among Hispanic women in Baptist churches: • I. Needs • Emotional Needs • Educational Needs • Economic Needs • II. Challenges • Assimilation Challenge • Contextualization

25. EMOTIONAL NEEDS • Need to connect with professionally trained counselors. Many women don’t know where to go when facing problems with husband, children or depression. • Need for mental healing due to past experiences of abuse, negligence and rejection which occurred during childhood or before becoming Christians. There is a need of Support Groups and Christian Counselors capable and willing to minister in this area.

26. EMOTIONAL NEEDS • Need to provide assistance for single mothers in the Hispanic community and church. • Need for more retreats - Women look forward to participation in retreats where they are spiritually renewed, but this kind of retreat is generally offered only once a year and not all of them are able to attend, due to lack of financial resources. • Need to address issues of aging women who are experiencing emotional difficulties.

27. EDUCATIONAL NEEDS • Need for more churches to equip and/or train the women and their leadership to serve and minister within the church and to reach those in the community with the Gospel, for the expansion of the Kingdom of God. • Need the skill sets which enable them to assist women suffering from domestic violence and counsel teenagers from a Christian perspective. • Need of English as a Second Language (ESL) classes for pastors and church members

28. EDUCATIONAL NEEDS • Need to prepare women to share the gospel to non-Christian women using tools and resources appropriate for women. • Need for more channels for accredited higher education and intentionally recruit HW for post graduate

29. EDUCATIONAL NEEDS • Need for more our seminaries to personally connect with Hispanic Women events to recruit them and enable them to attain a higher education. We cannot assume that all churches are getting the information needed for higher education awareness.

30. ECONOMIC NEEDS • Need to take into account the low income level of many members in Hispanic churches in setting the costs of training events and materials. • New Hispanic Women’s organizations need to partner with Women’s groups in other State Conventions to make it possible for them to have the type of training events that are needed. • Need to enable Hispanic Baptist Women to obtain information from leaders in SBC entities on stewardship, money management, creation of endowments, and grant writing.

31. CHALLENGES • The Assimilation Challenge • As is true of other aspects of Hispanic Baptist life, the fact that second and third generation Hispanic women progressively become more proficient in the use of the English language have a difficult time functioning within women’s groups that are basically Spanish speakers.

32. CHALLENGES • The Assimilation Challenge • The fact, on the other hand, that second and third generation Hispanic women still retain some of the basic cultural characteristics and values leads many of them to seek to remain in Hispanic Baptist churches. • The challenge, therefore, is to have the programs and materials available for them to form parallel groups within the churches. If this does not happen, however, some will leave their churches.

33. CHALLENGES • The Contextualization Challenge • Despite the fact that an organizational structure and materials may be available, there can be a tendency on the part of some Hispanic Baptist Women to want to do things in ways that feel comfortable to them. • This, therefore, gives rise to the formation of Women’s groups within Hispanic churches that are not officially Unión Femenil Misionera (Woman’s Missionary Union) but that essentially have the same goals and objectives. • This is especially true in settings where Hispanic Fellowships are formed in regions (sometimes crossing Associational lines) where Hispanics are concentrated.

34. CHALLENGES • There is the challenge, therefore, of recognizing the work of these groups, finding ways to relate to them, and working cooperatively in efforts of common interest. • A Hispanic Baptist Woman explained it this way: “God is moving among Hispanic Women and it does not have to be seen as a competition with existing programs, rather, it is to be taken as another opportunity to see how we can better work together for extending God’s Kingdom in reaching Hispanic Women being careful that resources are pertinent to Hispanic Women’s dynamics and challenges.”

35. BEST PRACTICES • For Hispanic Women, the best approach is relational. Week-end retreats, small women’s groups in local churches as well as support groups are well attended. • One-day conferences on awareness of education, immigration, family relationships, finances and spiritual growth are well accepted. (Most attendees are hard working women whose jobs do not allow for a “vacation day” without receiving a reprimand even the possible loss of job, thus one day conference).

36. BEST PRACTICES • Another method for evangelizing Hispanic Women is on a one-on-one; cultivating friendships, meeting physical needs and then presenting the Gospel. (One pastor’s wife takes a decorated cup filled with goodies, door to door, to meet Hispanic Women which resulted in cell groups). • Support groups to help Hispanic Women in their transition from other country to the U.S., domestic violence, mental illness, are helping to make a community impact with the Gospel.

37. BEST PRACTICES • In a number of states Women Retreats are sponsored by La Asociación de Iglesias Hispanas (Association of Hispanic Churches). These retreats meet very important needs in the lives of Hispanic Baptist Women. • Small study groups implemented by some Hispanic Baptist churches have been fruitful in the area of evangelism. Churches have gained more women than men and it is what we call “Células en los Hogares” (Home Cell Groups). • Community Ministry Projects such as “Advocates for Reading” carried out by Hispanic women in local schools is helping many Hispanic students to acquire the necessary reading skills to complete their public school education successfully.

38. BEST PRACTICES • The Leadership Development efforts being carried out in the various states are helping a significant number of Hispanic women to attain the skill sets they need to become effective Christian leaders in their churches and communities. • Some excellent materials have been developed to train Hispanic women. Theseincludebookssuch as: Sigue la historia (Wanda Lee); Cartas vivas (Jason Dukes); El llamado de Dios (Henry Blackaby); Impulsados por el amor (EdStetzer, Philip Nation); Vive el llamado (Wanda Lee), Rayos de esperanza, Florence Littauer; aboutconqueringdepression). • (These are listed in 2013–2014 WMU Catalogue, W135052.)

39. BEST PRACTICES • The catalogincludespamphletssuch as: Witnessingleaflet "¡Gracias!", Té de Oración Para Mujeres – Guía del Líder (Guía del Participante); Voces de los Fieles; Etnias del Mundo; Una Iglesia Sin Fronteras; Misión Mundial: Propósito y Plan de Dios; Hasta lo Último de la Tierra; Calendario de Oración; Hasta lo último de la tierra – 30 días de oración; Estudios Para Grupos Pequeños; Boletín Kids on Mission; Oportunidades de Servicio para Jóvenes. • It includes publications such as NuestraTarea, Planes de trabajo de la UFM (annual product, planning tool for the year with dated emphases); Guía de la WMU paralíderes (biblical basis of missions, WMU's six objectives, description of church-wide missions and each age-level organization, how to plan, planning forms, etc.; guide/manual that is generally updated/replaced every five years or so)

40. BEST PRACTICES • While there is cause for rejoicing over the existence of these materials, three major challenges remain: • One challenge is to produce additional materials that address the needs of Hispanic Women mentioned in the section above. • Another challenge is to get the information about existing resources to the Hispanic Women’s groups across the nation, especially in the newer convention areas. • A third challenge is to encourage and enable Hispanic Women’s groups (with the help of their churches) to obtain the material that is already available and has been produced to assist them in their task of promoting missions education and action.

41. RECOMMENDATIONS • 1. We recommend that the State Conventions that have Hispanic Staffs/Consultants and well-developed programs for women’s work, partner with the State Conventions that do not have these resources in order to enable them to be more effective in their work. • 2. We recommend that the national training events which include Hispanic Baptist Women be continued and that resources be found to increase the number of participants

42. RECOMMENDATIONS • 3. We recommend that efforts be made to create a well balanced system for the Hispanic Women where all can integrate as part of a whole, and where there is a passion to guide them to reach their potential in Jesus Christ with their gifts by equipping them with practicable resources giving them the freedom to customize accordingly to the needs of the community of faith. • Such system should include but not limited to higher education, spiritual development, mentoring and integration into top positions within the numerous organizations in the national, state and local levels.

43. RECOMMENDATIONS • 4. We recommend that a national data-base directory that includes the Hispanic Baptist Women’s organizations (at the national, state, associational, and fellowship level) be developed to enable more Hispanic women to tap into existing resources and to communicate with one another more effectively. Hispanic Women Leadership training should be a priority. • 5. We recommend that a dialog be established between key Hispanic Baptist Women and the SBC agencies/entities that are more closely related to missions support, education, action, and service to achieve greater collaboration in the goals that they have in common.

44. CONCLUSION • Hispanic women are proud to be a part of a denomination that is committed to and prioritizes evangelism and missions. The end result is to inspire Hispanic Women to develop spiritually; to equip women to seek leadership in order to fill roles in their communities, in local churches, in SBC; thus fulfilling the Great Commission of our Lord Jesus Christ.  • Due to the continued explosive growth and geographical expansion of the Hispanic population (as indicated in the introduction of this report) the role of Hispanic Baptist women is becoming increasingly crucial in missionary support, education, and action. The effectiveness of Southern Baptists in these areas in the years to come will be dependent in a significant way on the training and involvement of Hispanic Baptist women. The great challenges are coupled with even greater opportunities for Hispanic Baptist Women to be involved in missionary endeavors.

45. SECTION C MOBILIZING HISPANICS IN MISSIONARY SUPPORT

46. Cooperative program giving • Survey Of Key State Convention’s Executive Directors • What would be the best way to encourage more Hispanic Baptist Churches to contribute more to the Cooperative Program? • This survey was conducted by a member of the Hispanic Advisory Council. The answers are direct quotations from the Executive Directors and or designated staff members.

47. Cooperative program giving • “Providing a good missions education.” • “Helping them to understand the importance of CP in local, state, national and international missions.” • “I am certain that it should start with education and training of their church bodies on what is the Cooperative Program and what it means to the Kingdom, in Spanish there are barely enough materials for this task.”

48. Cooperative program giving • “Training at the local level is even less noticeable. Multimedia is not used at all for this purpose though many Hispanics are very computer literate.” • “It seems that the Directors of Missions and State Conventions are not doing this in Spanish for their Hispanic Churches on a large scale.” • “Responsible offices often respond that they have neither personnel nor funding to provide language specific training.”

49. Cooperative program giving • “Missions Education at the local level is needed. Also, since the Hispanic culture is relation -based, visiting Hispanic pastors in an informal setting and explaining what CP is all about is needed.” • “A task that needs to be done to encourage more Hispanic Baptist Churches to participate in the Cooperative Program is to provide more information to the pastors and leaders (especially to the younger ones) about the history of the Cooperative Program and how it has helped our denomination to fulfill the Great Commission at a local, state, national and worldwide level.”

50. Cooperative program giving • “More Spanish promotional and educational materials are needed”  • “When our capable Hispanic leaders are welcomed into the inner circles of influence this will encourage Hispanic Baptist Churches to see they are valued and this will motivate them to contribute more.” • “If the SBC listens and acts on their report, this will help to get more Hispanic Baptist churches involved.” • “Invite capable Hispanics into inner circles of power.” • “By creating CP material in Spanish (it includes multi-media and printing materials).