
A United Mission
January 28, 2025
BMA Bible College in the Philippines Approaches 50th Anniversary
February 11, 2025By Larry Barker, VP of Church Strategy and Training
On December 26, 1979, my wife Shelby and I left central Arkansas headed to Marion, IL, to pastor West Boulevard Baptist Church. This is where a journey of friendship and ministry with men our tribe referred to as interstate missionaries began. These families had moved to the “fringe” areas of our association to reach people far from God and plant churches in states some refer to as unreached people groups. These trailblazers had a huge impact on mentoring me, challenging me, and encouraging me on a journey of formulating a vision to one day plant a church.
It was in 1980 that I met two of these men, Jim Barr and Danny Kirk, as they made the trip from Oswego, IL, to Jacksonville, TX, for Danny to potentially further his training there. West Blvd Baptist and Landmark Baptist in Oswego were church plants started by Homer Gunn, a man whom God used greatly to plant most of the churches in Illinois. His approach had a circuit-riding preacher flavor that found, led to Christ, and discipled 30-40 people in cities all over the state. It was an honor to have him visit us at West Blvd for our 30th church anniversary.
In 1982, as a part of the BMA of Illinois & Indiana advisory team, we drove to Bloomington, IN, to meet James and Jennifer Crews who were planting a BMA church. Our friendship and ongoing partnership infected my soul to the core as I observed what it took to plant a church where you start with nothing, trusting God to give the increase as you plant the seed and water it. We would go and knock doors with the Crewses, lead the singing for meetings, preach revivals, host fellowships, and even participate in the family devotionals. Our association recommended this family and we adopted them as our church planters.
These men and others modeled a love for Jesus, dedication to family, an unashamed willingness to share their faith, hard work and dedication, and a joy of the Lord that impacted my spiritual walk greatly. We became friends and I always wanted to be in their company. That is how I met Jeff Swart who was planting a church in Nevada, MO. By always being in the company of these men at our associational meetings, many thought I already was an interstate missionary. That is how a burden and a vision was birthed that in God’s timing, would have us one day plant a church.
We had no idea that it would be 10 years before that vision would materialize and become a reality. In 1991 Jack Courtney, our North American Church Planting Director, gave me a call and asked me if I would be interested in moving to Sandwich, IL. Danny Kirk had gone to another church plant and they needed a new planter. Without hesitation I said, “No sir,” believing this was not what I had in mind, desiring to go where I knew no one and start from scratch. They refer to that as a parachute drop, and it is one of the least successful approaches…who knew? God would not allow me to sleep, literally, and when I called Bro. Courtney back in early 1992, the journey began.
One man is known for saying, “You’re the average of the five people you spend most of your time with.” Proverbs 13:10 says it this way: “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.” This causes me to praise the Lord for the men God placed in my life who befriended me, mentored me, loved me, became my friends, and showed me what it took to be a church planter. They created a spark and desire in me to do what they were doing–planting churches–and to do it for the right reasons–God’s glory. The virus of the church planting bug had definitely infected me.
These men extended the gospel by living sent. They ensured that the gospel was transmitted from one context to another and from one generation to the next. They were always thinking about the future by establishing new churches in new contexts, by making disciples and developing leaders. These men, and others not mentioned by name, God used to raise up more church planters. Now, I have the privilege of having served the association since 2007 in the role God used Jack Courtney in to recruit me!