It used to be that if the International Mission Board had one missionary unit enter a country, then the whole country was colored in on the maps that they printed. Could you imagine if we had a map of the Cincinnati Area Baptist Association and colored in a county each time we started a church there? It would have been filled in long ago.
If you look at CABA’s map, we have dots for three category of churches – red is for fulltime pastor-led churches, blue for bi-vocational pastor-led churches, and green for church plants. We do that on purpose to show the approximate location of our churches.
The Christmas season is traditionally tied to international missions promotions. I know that some churches have one month dedicated to all missions. Cincinnati is increasingly an multi-ethnic place. It could be said that Cincinnati is becoming an international city!
Over the past seven years, CABA has used volunteers and teams to identify people and places that have their origins from around the world. In fact, we’ve identified some 62 diaspora people groups. By diaspora, I mean people who have left their homes overseas and are now living in the Cincinnati Area. The diaspora is in three parts – immigrants, refugees, and students. Out of the 62 diaspora people groups, only 21 of them are engaged by evangelical churches.
Rather than have our Baptist association adopt just one of these, we’re asking your church – all of our churches – to engage at least one of these diaspora peoples. We truly hope you’ll pick one that the Holy Spirit leads you to so that when you engage them here, you’ll then go to where they are in the world.
Clough Pike Baptist adopted a group from South Asia. The church helped the church plant here, connected to the in Boston, and then went to South Asia. And during Covid, several of us trained a pastor there for nearly four years via Zoom.
So, let me encourage you to contact Ray Taw to see about partnering. He is working specifically among Asians. We have a great need in that area and Ray will help you connect. Email him at CABApartnerships@gmail.com.
This Christmas season try to link Cincinnati to International Missions!
--Mark Snowden serves as director for the Cincinnati Area Baptist Association
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