International
International missions is an opportunity for us to reach people who may not have ever heard of the love of Jesus Christ. We currently support seven different international missionaries in Asia, Africa, South and Central America and the Bahamas. Most of the areas we go into are very poor, typically have no clean water, and are in desperate need of medical help. We have helped to build churches, medical facilities, schools and are currently working in Brazil to build a fish processing plant closer to the local fishing villages.
International mission trips help us to see how most of the rest of the world lives and the challenges they face every day. Everyone who goes on one of these trips proclaims that they got more out of the trip than they gave.
International Christian Development Mission, Haiti
ICDM has been ministering in Haiti for more than 30 years and is led by Reverend Yvan Pierre. Six out of ten Haitians cannot read or write. Because of this, ICDM seeks to educate, equip and empower God’s people to respond to God’s call. Reverend Pierre is working to train women and men to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout Haiti. Through the school of Evangelism and the Portable Bible School, they have trained and sent out over 4,000 pastors and Christian leaders. ICDM’s Christian-based elementary school educates and cares for over 600 students and their families located in Bayonnais, Gonaives.
Over the past several years Heritage has sent many teams to Haiti to work on buildings, train teachers, run vacation Bible schools, and build relationships. Pastor Yvan is a highly inspirational leader of this ministry. Once you meet him and hear his story you will never be the same.
The Go Center
The mountainous regions of Southeast Asia are home to many unreached people groups who have their own languages and cultures and whose villages extend across national borders. T & J, along with their family, have been sent to one such group known as the Tai Dam (meaning Black Tai). There are currently one million Tai Dam, most of whom have never met a Christian or heard of Jesus Christ. But T & J have a vision of seeing a church in every Tai Dam village and seeing every Tai Dam family encounter the Good News of Jesus. The first years were spent learning their language, getting to know them personally, and developing materials that could be used to help them learn about the love of Jesus Christ. They prioritize communicating the Gospel in the heart language of the people, and utilizing simple and reproducible church planting methods.
Heritage was T’s church home church before he was married. Now he and his wife have five children, who were all born in Asia. Due to security concerns, their name and location cannot be included here. For more information, or to receive updated information on how to pray for T&J and the Tai Dam people, please contact the Director of Missions at Heritage.
New Life Center, Zambia
The ministry of the New Life Center (NLC), led by Pastor Delbert and Sandy Groves, include health education, construction and distribution of P.E.T.s (Personal Energy Transportation) for the disabled, learning and computer labs, English education, and other training ministries, all with the goal of sharing the love and life of our Lord Jesus Christ. The current focus is on church leadership and spiritual growth training. NLC Zambia has as their goal to construct two new church buildings a year alongside local pastors and their congregations. Through the Heritage Faith Promise and sweat equity, we have partnered with NLC to build five churches in the past years. The United Methodist Church has asked Delbert and Sandy to expand what they have done in central and northern Zambia into the southern part of the county to establish a second base in Livingstone opening up new churches there.
Victorious Heritage Church, Dubrocq, Cuba
In 1997 the Methodist United in Prayer organization (MUIP) was established to renew the sister church relationship between Florida and Cuba churches. Victorious Heritage Church, Heritage’s sister church in Cuba, is located just outside of Matanzas in Dubrocq, and is being led today by Pastor Yosvani Pupa Alba and his family. It is a very vibrant church that is growing beyond measure. They have entered a new era of worship and faith. Heritage members and staff have visited several times over the past years since travel to Cuba has been opened up for Americans. Tim Harrigan has been serving as Heritage's ambassador in Christ and has been a blessing to the pastors . Tim visits them every year and is always looking for people to join him on his next trip to Cuba.
