We planted and pastor a church in Burgos, Spain. From the beginning of the work, the purpose has been to provide Burgos (and Spain) with a church whose emphasis is the teaching of all the Word of God and an ever growing knowledge of and cooperation with the Holy Spirit. There is certainly no other church in Burgos and may be no other church in Spain that holds these principles as their central purpose. (Though, of course, there are other good churches in Spain!) What an honor to be providing this type of ministry to the people of this land during these important times!
Our heart is to reach the lost in Burgos, a city where less than 1 in 50 have a personal relationship with the Lord. It has been so amazing moving here and following the Lord as He leads us in building relationships. For instance, we have developed connections with shop owners that have gone from doing business to something more personal to opportunities for ministry. Some have even become involved in the church and grown in relationship with the Lord.
Fast Facts on Burgos:
• Burgos was founded in 884 AD and became the capital of Castile (land of castles) in the 11th century.
• Its current population is approximately 180,000 people.
• Burgos is less than 2% evangelical according to Worldmap.org. Anecdotal evidence indicates that it could be much closer to ½% evangelical, which means that the people for the most part do not understand the importance of having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. We are working to change this! (In contrast, the USA is around 35% evangelical according to ISEA & Wheaton.)
• Cultural Note: A medieval, Catholic pilgrimage route called The Way of Saint James brings 100,000 religious pilgrims through Burgos each year. It is quite easy to discuss God with these individuals who are excited to share about their religious hiking trip. (Hollywood has released a movie called “The Way”, starring Martin Sheen, set on this pilgrimage route.)