Tactical, Strategic and Logistical

The Annual Report from Hatcher Pass Baptist Association

Submitted by Gary Bearce,

Associational Missionary / Church Planting Catalyst

Hatcher Pass Baptist Association’s guiding statement is: Under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, the churches of Hatcher Pass Baptist Association are serving together in the Kingdom of God with a cooperative focus to develop and encourage healthy churches, made up of growing disciples, who in turn produce additional growing disciples and new discipling congregations.  We believe that the Body of Christ is being built up across the Mat-Su Valley and beyond for God’s glory, with a clear understanding that much, much work remains. We believe that our existing churches must plant additional churches to accomplish our task.  Our building together requires developing discipling churches that have the Word of God as their foundation and that have a solid commitment to reach and multiple Kingdom leaders who understand vision, planning, team building, communication, evangelism, celebration and yes, church planting.

I was recently involved in a discussion and challenge focused on the Kingdom of God, the role of the local church, the traditional and the changing role of the association, the role of the state convention, the changing role of our mission agencies and new missions tools outside of our denomination.  No doubt the pastor of a local church and his team of co-laborers have a gigantic leadership role in building the local church and thus growing the kingdom of God.  In our case, autonomous churches, that can be as independent as they choose, have chosen to use some of the marvelous tools available from outside their local church to build the Kingdom of God.  During this discussion the words tactical, strategic and logistical were used. One of the leaders stated that the task of each local church is to be tactical, in other words, to be the “boots on the ground” when it comes to accomplishing most of what our Great Commission commands us to do. To understand that better we have to agree that God has given us the association and other entities that must support, encourage and assist in the work of the church. This leader stated that if the local church is tactical, then the association is in the best position to assist the church strategically and that the state convention is in the best position to assist both the church and the association logistically.

I continue to ask the churches of Hatcher Pass Baptist Association to allow me to be their strategic partner.  I want to thank our churches for allowing me to be that partner.  Not that I personally have very many of the answers but I can and will find strategic help when I am asked.  I want to be a key partner, trainer and encourager when it comes to the Great Commission task of discipling that includes vision, planning, enlisting, teamwork, communication, delegation, motivation, evangelism, correction, celebration and new work.  As you know, or if you are not a part of Hatcher Pass Baptist Association, might guess, the monetary resources to assist churches and church plants are very limited, so our association must depend on logistical help, primarily from your Cooperative Program dollars coming through our state convention and the North American Mission Board. I want to thank our logistical partners for their teamwork and their continued willingness to help us find every available dollar and training resource to build His church and His Kingdom.

Recently we have developed a Church Planting Strategy and a Summer Missions Strategy that we call “PlantLife.” This effort has allowed us to focus on expanding the local church through new work as well as to seek resources from new sources.  We are urging mission teams coming during the summer to serve alongside us and, perhaps just as important, experience church planting up close and personal in such a way that teamwork develops and continues.  I want to thank GraceWorks for their logistics partnership.  Mission teams are actually encouraging missionaries and church planters to leave the lower 48 and serve with us full time.

Thank you for your gifts to the Cooperative Program, State Missions and to your association that allow us to be a partner is missions, ministries, church growth and church planting.  It is a joy to partner with you.