Church Planting In Santander, Spain
An update from Norman Pedd, Lead Pastor of Iglesia Evangélica Gracia Soberana de Santander, a Church Plant & SGC Candidate Church in Santander, Spain…
Cantabria is a region in north-central Spain. Its main city is Santander. Santander itself isn't very well-known, but the bank founded there is, which is perhaps why it's more widely recognized. It is in this part of Spain that, by the grace of God, we are currently planting Iglesia Evangélica Gracia Soberana de Santander.
Two years ago, we began meetings in a garage in the town of Renedo de Piélagos, about 20 km from Santander. It was a good time during which we were able to form a small group, which now numbers almost 20 people. However, the owner of that garage didn't want to address some issues we needed to move forward, so we prayed that the Lord would open doors for us, and a door opened in Santander. We have now been holding meetings in this new location for a month. It's quite accessible, as the main bus and train lines pass nearby, and we are across the street from Cantabria's main hospital.
This is a new challenge for us as a church, and we are also seeing new people approach us, asking about the church.
Last Wednesday at the meeting, a man approached us saying that he had learned about the Gospel through a ministry that helped him when he was released from prison, but he hadn't attended church for years. When he passed by and saw the church's brochure in the building, he felt as if God had said to him, "Since you don't go to church, I brought one to you." It was encouraging to hear this, and we pray that it will be so, that we can bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to many more people in Santander. We know and hear of many people that claim themselves believers but don't belong to any local church. We pray the Lord uses us to be a reminder and a church that calls many back to the Lord.
This year we are preaching from the Gospel of Matthew, and we pray that the Holy Spirit will help us grow and mould us more to see and resemble Christ.
We are still finishing preparing the building, but we are taking it little by little as we are able, and we are very grateful to God for the door that has been opened to us. We are also finalizing the church registration with the government. We thank God that we are almost there; apparently, the hardest part is over, we just need a few more documents.
We are very grateful to Sovereign Grace Churches and the friendship we have with the churches in SGC Europe, to receive a message of other pastors and their churches telling us they are praying for us. It is so encouraging. And through the leadership of Ed O’Mara, we have been so blessed by the time and advice he has given us during this time. We know that God, in His Providence, brought about this friendship, and without it, we don't believe this church planting would have been possible.
Please pray for us if you can…
Pray that we may reach more people with the Gospel in this city.
Pray that we may complete the church paperwork.
Pray for growth and maturity in the church members.
Pray for financial provision for the church.
Pray that the Word of God may spread and be glorified.
Pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.
Our desire is to begin offering the Spanish "Bridge" courses this summer, starting on some Saturdays each month.
We also want to distribute leaflets with a Gospel message and invite more people from the surrounding area.
We hope to complete the pastoral ordination process for me this year.
…And we desire that God be glorified in every gathering.
