Colombia Today and Tomorrow - Josue Reyes

(Strategy of the Evangelical Confederation of Colombia (CEDECOL) to coordinate the growth of the Colombian Christian Church)

I. Generalities

Colombia, one of the Latin American countries, is located in the northwest end of the South American continent with coasts on the Pacific and on the Atlantic Ocean. It has an area of 1,141,758 square kilometers and has a population of more than 34,000,000 inhabitants.

Colombia is divided in 33 Departments with their capital cities, where more than the 70% of the population lives.

The Christian Population is near to 1,200,000 believers, attending 2,400 congregations. This mean that 3.5% of the population are evangelical Christians and there is one church for every 14,167 inhabitants.

II. Colombia Today and Tomorrow Plan (CTTP)

After a National Survey about the Church Mission, the following are the conclusions regarding the needy conditions for a harmonious growing: 1) Clear mission and vision; 2) Contemporary and efficient proclamation of the Gospel as an integral option for the people; 3) Adequate training and, 4) A faithful and effective administration of the Great Commission.

Vision

The church in Colombia will collaborate with God to: "Gather under the authority of Christ all things both in heaven and on earth. Thus God testifies now, by means of the church, to the angelic rulers and powers in the heavenly world, that they might know God's wisdom, in all its different forms and to demonstrate for all time to come the extraordinary greatness of his grace in the love he showed us in Christ Jesus" (Eph. 1: 10; 3:10; 2:7).

Mission

As a contribution to the body of Christ in Latin America, we strive in the foundation and establishment of new local churches through multiplication of believers and disciples of Christ.

Goals

The disciples of Christ in Colombia will work, committed to reach for the year 2000 the following challenges, if God permits us:

1. To reach unity of vision and work of the church in Colombia.
2. To gain for the Lord 5,300,000 new believers.
3. To found and establish 18,000 new local churches in every Department, City and small towns of the country.
4. To train and develop 18,000 new ministers and 36,000 new leaders.
5. To establish a National Center of PC's Resources for 1995.
6. To increase to 15% the percentage of believers among the national population (a minimum of 6,000,000 believers).

Strategy

The framework of our work is the strategy given by Jesus to His church: 1) To announce the Gospel to all nations, multiplying the number of believers; 2) To disciple all believers around our nation, and 3) To plant new congregations to the point of saturation -- 1 church for every 2,000 inhabitants -- all over the nation.

III. Consolidation of the CTTP

The "Colombia Today and Tomorrow Plan" (CTTP) approved by the General Assembly of CEDECOL (1992) to be implemented by the Board of Directors, is articulated in seven areas with ten teams, leading projects that seek that the Colombian evangelical church works together and orderly, in an efficient and effective way, in the fulfillment of the Great Commission with the aforesaid growth goal for the year 2000 (18,000 new congregations and 6,000,000 new believers).

1. Great Commission Area: Evangelism, Discipleship, Missions, promotes evangelism, gathering and basic discipleship (maintenance level), establishment of new churches and sending of missionaries.
2. Direction Area: Integral Training of 18,000 ministers to train, lead and prepare the leaders of present and future congregations; and Integral Training of 36,000 leaders to develop various ministries inside the present and future congregations.
3. Integral Mission Area: Integral Education from congregations and educational institutions, through an integral expression of both formal and no formal education, with the main goal to serve the church and also to serve and to be a testimony to society. And the Social Action Project and Solidarity Groups as an integral expression of socioeconomic and civic aspect both in the church and also as a service and testimony to society.
4. Publication Area: Social Communication Media and Christian Literature; promotes the use of newspapers, radio, TV and electronic mail. Also the promotion and publishing of Christian literature.
5. Congregation Administration Area: Strategy Planning and Management by Objectives, which train congregations in the disciplines of Strategic Planning, Goalsetting and Operation Planning; and Efficient Stewardship and Projects Financing which provide a means to develop an efficient administrative and financial direction for congregations to fulfill their goals.
6. PC's Area: Investigation and PC Support, coordinates all the technical plans, compiling the required information to improve work methods and administration of the tasks.
7. Praying Area: Every Project requires the organization and development of a supporting praying program to receive a spiritual vision of the work.

Thus, Colombia will fulfill the will of God and honor and glorify Him forever.