Walls' Latin-American Mission

After two and half years of living together, learning together, growing together, and ministering together this round of the Pastor School has finally come to a close. Oscar, Dennis and Jose have officially graduated from the training program and have all moved on to the next chapter of their life and ministry. Over the next couple of updates I hope to tell you about the program and what we accomplished, as well as show you some of the fruit of the Lord’s work in the life of these three men and their families. 

“For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? ²⁰ For you are our glory and joy.”

1 Thessalonians 2:19-20

Paul was very proud of the Thessalonian believers and he loved them dearly. They were in his prayers constantly, he gave thanks to God for them non-stop, and he loved to speak about their faith and labor of love in other areas of the Mediterranean. He even considered them as his own children. As I think about these students, I know what Paul was talking about. They are my joy and crown, and I rejoice to think of the ways God will use them for his kingdom both now and in the future. 

When we first met, it was obvious that we all needed to grow in many areas, but through these two and a half years of living, laughing, crying, praying, reading, and studying together, I have seen them grow into spiritual men who will lead their families and one of Christ’s churches with integrity, love, humility and faithfulness to God’s Word. They have been conformed to the image of Christ more than when we started back in March of 2020. At the same time, they have helped me to grow, as a Christian, husband, father and as a pastor.

Several hundred hours of class time, over 7,000 pages of lecture notes, courses on topics such as Biblical Interpretation, Biblical Theology, Biblical Greek, Systematic Theology, Old and New Testaments, the 1689 Confession of Faith, Ecclesiology, Early Church, Medieval Church, the Reformation, and Pastoring, as well as many hours of preaching and teaching practice, even a full sermon series on the book of Jude, were just some of the things that filled our time this past two and a half years. Most weeks we met together four days in a detached room of our house where we spent up to 5 or 6 hours together. We had times of lectures, prayer, Bible reading, discussion, debate, preaching practice, and just talking about life in light of God’s Word.

Apart from the formal aspects of teaching, one of our emphases in the program is the joy of living life together, eating together, going on trips together. We have had many hours to talk about pastoral ministry, parenting, being a godly husband, and many other topics. Whether we were just sharing a conversation Sunday after church, or enjoying a meal together in one of our homes, or maybe even driving in the car to another part of Ecuador for a conference, God’s glory and the care of our families and his people were always at the center of our conversations. It has been a full and arduous program, but it has been a blessed time of fellowship, growing, and sanctification. I will cherish the memories and lessons learned in these two and a half years as a king cherishes his crown and as Paul cherished the memory of the Thessalonians. 

Though a lot has happened in two and a half years, there is a lot still to come. As the title of this update suggests, this is only the end of the beginning. Though we may not be together as much during the week, our friendship and partnership in the Gospel continues to grow each week. At the same time, the time of formal training has come to an end, but now they have the opportunity to apply what they have learned as they transition to the next chapter of ministry. Oscar has been ordained as the pastor of his home church in Tulcán. José has been leading the charge on behalf of our local church in Santo Domingo to plant a church in the city of Manta. And, Dennis has had various other opportunities here in Santo Domingo for teaching and pastoral ministry and is beginning to be seen as a future pastor by many of the members of the church.

Over the next few weeks, I will send out two other updates giving more detail about the way God is using these men. Please stay tuned so that you will be better informed about how God has already begun to use the Pastor School ministry, as well as how to pray going forward. 

It is the end of the beginning for these students, but it is also the end of the end of the beginning for the Pastor School. The Pastor School has had various forms over the past 8 years, but this model we believe to be the most sustainable and effective. So, Oscar, Jose and Dennis were also our guinea pigs for this new Pastor School model. We have learned a lot about our method and how to improve things, and we hope to implement them in the next round. We already have students lined up to start the next round of the Pastor School in the Spring of 2023. There are some wonderful families lined up to come and live with us here in Santo Domingo and take part in this program. We can’t wait for you to meet them. We are still waiting to confirm exactly who will be able to take part, but hopefully at the beginning of 2023 I will have more detailed information on the students and ways you can help. In the meantime, please pray for Jorge and me as we make plans and pray over this next round of students, and also for the potential students so that the Lord would make their paths straight.