Act Global

South West Baptist Church is committed to spreading the good news of Jesus to the ends of the earth.
As we have partnered with God in mission we have come to understand that our part is to have a focus on certain people and places.

  • The least-reached: people unlikely to have heard the good news of Jesus
    The poor: people enslaved and degraded by material poverty

  • Asia: our global neighbour, with a high concentration of poor and unreached people.

    At times God has called us to the poor and unreached in other places. We continue to seek and follow God’s calling to serve wherever he asks us to go.

  • We will give just about anything a crack, as long as we are working with and benefitting the poor and unreached. That may mean you stay where you are, or it may mean going overseas. Either way we are involved globally.

    South West people have already been active in many different ways. No doubt we will add many more in the future!

  • Every follower of Jesus is invited to be part of God’s plan of spreading the good news of his kingdom among the poor and unreached around the world. So we all have a decision to make: stay or go.

You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses… to the ends of the earth.”
— Acts 1:8

Going…

Perhaps you feel God is calling you overseas. If you want to do this long term as part of the global work of South West there is a ‘preparation pathway’ for you to complete, and you will need to be approved by the church leadership and Elders. Email us and we can begin a conversation.

South West has two ways of supporting you to go.

  • With an agency: We have a long history of partnering with various mission agencies working with the poor and unreached. We can help connect and support you with the agency best suited to your call. The agency you go with would oversee your work and be the primary source of pastoral care. South West commits to supporting you financially and with pastoral care both overseas and in New Zealand.

  • With South West Baptist Church Global site: People from South West have relocated from New Zealand to be part of a community in Asia. We are working together towards creating redemptive communities as we walk the journey of learning to love God, each other and our neighbours. South West is committed to lasting transformation in both local and global communities. South West commits to supporting you through financial support and pastoral care both in New Zealand and overseas.

Staying…

If you feel called by God to stay here in New Zealand:

  • Consider the ways you can be involved locally in what South West is doing around the world. Praying and offering financial support is where we encourage everyone to begin the journey. To help you pray check out our Global nights held bi-monthly, and our people’s newsletters from the Welcome Centre.

  • Talk with your community to develop new ways to be involved: perhaps different ways of consuming, advocating, or doing business. You could also take a trip to visit our people overseas and see what they are doing.

These two options are how we work together as a church.

Of course, many South West people are involved globally in ways other than this. We have people who finance their own time overseas, use their skills and time globally, or support various causes, movements and organisations. This is great!

South West can be greatly encouraged by the myriad of ways our people are involved around the world.