Dan Lembeck (right) is a Biblical Studies major who would one day like be part of a church ministering to Hispanics. David Chadwick is a Biology major who would like to be part of a medical ministry in a Latin country someday.
They are two young men with different directions for future ministry, but a heart for the same people. That was the driving force for Lembeck and Chadwick to joinSpanish professor Dr. Manuel Morales in Phoenix during the summer of 2009, the Hispanic Summer Institute program organized by Mission Gospel Ministries International (formerly Mexican Gospel Mission).
“There were 18 hours a day for two weeks in which we weren’t allowed to speak English,” said Chadwick, a sophomore from Shawano, Wisconsin. “It really gave me a good taste of what might be my future ministry. I will be able to work in places that may not be as open to traditional missionaries but need people with medical skills.”
Lembeck, a sophomore from Salisbury, Maryland, said the program included both practical classroom workshops in grammar and Hispanic culture and outreach and door-to-door witnessing activities.
“We learned about everything from how to set up soccer tournaments to how to begin an ESL program in a church,” Lembeck said.
Lembeck and Chadwick said they grew close to the Hispanic family that housed them during the program that lasted from June 26 to July 5. Most of the host families were members of La Iglesia Evangelica Fundamental Bautista Independiente of Phoenix. Lembeck and Chadwick spent some of their time working with the church youth group.
“The people in Phoenix were open,” Lembeck said. “They were willing to come to church. It’s a very ripe field.”