The church in Mexico through Charlie Fletcher's eyes

Evangelical Christianity is growing steadily in Mexico, and Mexican churches are enthusiastic in evangelism and church planting. The conversion of entire families is common. Frequently, when one member of a family becomes a Christian it starts a chain reaction. So you will often find many members of an extended family in one congregation.

Another strength of God's people in Mexico is their perseverance in the face of persecution. Particularly in rural areas in the centre and south of Mexico, evangelical Christians suffer discrimination and even violent persecution at the hands of the Catholic majority.

But alongside evangelistic zeal and perseverance under trial, Mexico's evangelical churches suffer from a lack of mature discipleship. This leads to a revolving-door syndrome in which many newcomers become involved in local churches, but retention rates are low.

A vital need is the training of pastors. Many church leaders didn't finish high school, let alone any ministry or theological training. There are many consequences of inadequate training for ministry, including poor Bible teaching, an anti-intellectual approach to Christian faith and sometimes the dictatorial abuse of pastoral authority.

Charlie Fletcher is a CMS missionary serving with Compa, the IFES movement in Mexico. He is working to raise up godly young Christian leaders in Mexico's high schools and universities - investing in the future of the Mexican church.

Short-term volunteer Tess Holgate shares how she came to serve with Charlie Fletcher at Compa in Mexico

If three years ago you had asked me my thoughts on cross-cultural mission work, I probably would have said that I thought it would be a really great thing to do, but it wasn't really where I saw my life heading. Later on, while I was at university, I came to understand more fully that faith in Jesus Christ's death and resurrection is the only way to be saved. At the same time, I was thinking more about mission ? and I realised that all people need to hear this wonderful truth! I attended a couple of CMS Summer Schools and I came to see that unlike Sydney and Wollongong, most places in the world don?t have lots of great Bible teachers, big student groups and Bible-believing churches. I started thinking about how I could contribute to this disproportionate distribution of well-educated Christians in the world.

In 2007 I attended an AFES National Training Event where I met CMS missionary Charlie Fletcher. We started talking about the needs of Compa (IFES Mexico). He suggested to me that Compa might be interested in having volunteers come on a short-term basis, for a year or so, to encourage and equip Christian students in their faith. I decided to pack up and move to Mexico for a year so that I could help Mexican students to know Jesus, so that they can share in the life that God offers for eternity.

Current opportunities in Latin America with CMS

A long-term student worker is needed to support a Mexican staff worker in ministry for the large universities in Central Mexico. A theological degree is required, but student ministry experience isn't necessary.

There are also other opportunities in Church-based ministries, student work and leadership training in Argentina, Chile and Spain.

Contact for more details.