Global Missions
TLC offers many ways to participate in outreach! Globally, opportunities exist to partner with TLC’s career missionaries via prayer support, giving, short term trips, internships and long term mission service.
- Short-Term Mission Trips: Mission trips all over the world with TLC’s missionaries. Each year’s mission trips are announced at our annual World Outreach Week in late January. For more information, contact Robin at robin@tlc.org or 465‑3381.
Preparing for a Mission Trip: How to apply for a passport, application process, trip contract, and sample support letters. - Partnerships: 21 missionary couples, two individuals and several mission agencies all over the globe.
Missions Support Organizations
Local support for foreign missions.
- Change for Change: Donate spare change for missions. Contact Julie & Samantha Perez at 477-1444.
- Santa Cruz Cares: Child sponsorships for African orphans. Contact Claudia Grossi at 831-761-2162
- International Sanctuary: Empowering survivors of human trafficking. Contact Dorene Dawson at 831-901-2857.
- Wheels for the World: Taking donations of wheelchairs, walkers, canes, & crutches. Contact Robin@tlc.org (or drop off at TLC office)
Classes
- 501 Class: The Short Term Mission Orientation is typically offered twice a year. You must take this class before going on an international short term mission. Next 501 Class will be Sunday, March 17, from 4-8 PM. Contact robin@tlc.org to reserve a spot.
- KE101: An online mission class offered through World Venture. Go to www.WorldVenture.com/ke101 for more information.
- Perspectives: a 15-week course to mobilize the community to God's global purposes. In 15 lessons, you'll engage with a range of dynamic speakers. Weekly readings and study will help you dig even deeper. The next Santa Cruz Perspectives will be at Santa Cruz Bible Church, in the fall of 2013. For more information, contact Glenn Davis at 252-7147.
Philosophy of Ministry
Our Vision
To be a church where every believer's life is characterized by habitual and purposeful involvement in outreach & missions, both at home and abroad.
Our Mission
Expose our church to outreach opportunities, Educate believers about the world of missions, Equip Christians to maximize their outreach gifts, and challenge disciples to Export God's purpose for their lives through living the Great Commission.
Isaiah 12:4; Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 12:31; Acts 1:8; Romans 10:14-15; Revelation 5:9 & 7:9
Our Values
- Global perspective in all TLC ministries
- Linking with TLC missionaries in mission endeavors
- Optimal missionary care
- Backing fewer missionaries with more resources
- Alliances with like-minded organizations and nationals
- Led by the Spirit
Global perspective in all TLC ministries: From preschool to seniors, we endeavor to translate our value of making international missions a church-wide priority by encouraging all TLC ministries to incorporate missions education and participation into their ministry.
Linking with TLC missionaries in mission endeavors: We believe that personal relationship and shared ministry experiences between the locally based and internationally based members of our church to be of paramount value! To live out this value, we will minister together as often as possible via Short Term Missions in the missionary's locale. It is a given that not all our missionary's settings and ministries are a natural fit for STM. Due to this fact, some settings will no doubt receive more teams than others; we accept this reality. Nevertheless, teaming up with STM is an expectation of established missionaries and a non-negotiable for all new missionaries seeking to be supported by TLC.
Optimal missionary care: Recognizing the compounded stress and struggles that confront missionaries on a daily basis and, simply because we value and love our missionaries, our perpetual goal will be to continually improve our care of our (God's) missionaries! Some of our goals include: regular contact, free quality housing while on furlough, counseling services and complete relational honesty & safety.
Backing fewer missionaries with more resources: Far too many missionaries, when home on furlough, never receive the "R & R" they need and deserve! We believe the primary reason for this is that they are supported by far too many churches and are thus committed to "visiting overload" while supposedly "home getting rest." Relational depth with the Local Base is therefore quite unrealistic; to believe otherwise is to pretend. Moreover, Local Base motivation to pray and give will rise and fall in direct proportion to relational connection. To counter this, we endeavor to fund our missionary partners as much as we are able. Additionally, we will seek to establish a shared missionary support network with only a handful of geographically proximate churches.
Alliances with like-minded organizations and nationals: We recognize the tremendous value of partnering with like-minded sending agencies. Equal to this 'and perhaps even more so' we recognize and embrace the fact that a Spirit-filled national is the optimal minister to and for the people of his or her country. Therefore our goal will be to partner with nationals--and their local church--in a manner that is welcomed and subservient.
Led by the Spirit: Convinced that "Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain" (Psalm 127:1a), it is our earnest desire to follow the Spirit's leading in the why, when, where, how and who of missions. Believing that missions is empowered by prayer, we will endeavor to build up a praying church so that all ministries 'especially missions' are bathed in prayer!
Our Plan: GLOBAL PEACE
TLC's global outreach strategic plan is a version of Rick Warren's 'P.E.A.C.E. Plan' approach to global outreach & missions. Warren is author of The Purpose Driven Life. The PEACE Plan is an acronym that is not only a Biblical manner to conduct outreach & missions, it is also a simple and memorable way to articulate our philosophy of, and strategy for, global outreach/missions. PEACE endeavors to address what Warren has identified as the "Global Giants" that work contra the Kingdom of God and hence the well-being of humanity. The "Giants," and their corresponding 'PEACE' antidotes TLC will endeavor to realize are:
| Global Giants | PEACE Antidote | |
|---|---|---|
| Spiritual darkness & emptiness | → | Plant & grow churches |
| Lack of servant leaders | → | Equip servant leaders |
| Poverty & injustice | → | Assist the poor & victimized |
| Disease | → | Care for the sick |
| Ignorance | → | Educate the next generation |
Examples of PEACE from TLC missionaries
Plant & grow churches: Alongside French nationals, Jonathan & Karen Finley have planted three churches in the suburbs of Paris (these suburbs have less than 1% evangelical witness). The Finley's also work with immigrants from French speaking West Africa in mission efforts back in Africa. Doug & Melody Penny serve as church planters in Taiwan, working closely with a national leaders. Steve & Laura Reed have helped plant over 20 churches in Central America and in Cambodia. Ken & Bola Taylor endeavor to reach out to Japanese non-believers via Black Gospel "seminars" (an outreach service since the origin and "Author" of the lyrics derived from the Bible are "studied." The Taylors also help plant churches and disciple new believers via a small Bible school they began. Doug & Dee Valenzuela have planted two thriving churches in Naples, unlike any else in all Italy (due to size, one church has 450 members! The Valenzuelas continue to successfully employ large biannual evangelistic outreach "Festivals" that have provided the converts that make up the two respective churches they have helped plant.
Equip servant leaders: Dennis & Denise Ahern travel the world to support and equip both churches and missionaries. Dennis' gift of helping missionaries in the midst of crises has also been of great service to TLC. Johan & Christa Combrinck have trained hundreds of African pastors, most of whom come to him with only a Bible and very little understanding of it. Marty & Carol Pelton serve as trainers of future missionaries with Wycliffe. Steve & Laura Reed are now equipping Cambodian leaders' with the help of a Guatemalan woman who has been trained to be a missionary herself! John & Janie Stark have been equipping three language groups in Nigeria for over 20 years! (via Wycliffe Bible translation into indigenous languages). They now have been asked by Wycliffe to apply their expertise in a new role: training others at a Missouri Wycliffe base to do similar work! Also with Wycliffe, David & Mitzi Shinen have helped thousands of Eskimo (Yupik) believers from Siberia to Alaska & Canada possess the Scriptures in their native language and hence assist in equipping national leaders. Robert & Nancy Webber accomplish the same on Easter Island, translating the Scriptures into Rapa Nui! One couple, whose names cannot appear for security reasons, serve as their mission agency's Asia & Oceania directors, and head equipping efforts in fourteen nations!
Assist the poor & victimized: John & Beth Aldax lead several missions teams each year to the resource-poor Navajo of Arizona; they've also initiated teams that provide hands-on training in life skills such as personal finance. Mark & Brenda Hall serve & minister to the resource-poor indigenous Mayans of Guatemala, a people-group most simply ignore. George & Stacy Palau direct Grace Children's Home in Mexico, which takes in orphaned children. The Palaus then grow them up in the Lord! TLC also partners with Little Flock Children's Homes, led by Viji Cammauf, a holistic orphanage in Chennai, India (for over half a decade now, TLC has been sending annual dental/medical teams to conduct clinics). Raoul & Karen Armbrister head up Karazim Ministries, a vital, multi-faceted ministry on Grand Bahama Island! The ministry feeds, evangelizes and trains hundreds. Tarak & Eileen Khan serve at Frisdro Children's Center in Sri Lanka. There the Khans's apply their expertise in social work in child abuse prevention and recovery. TLC also partners with International Sanctuary in order to assist the very poor in a way that helps prevent human trafficking.
Care for the sick: Johan & Christa Combrinck, in cooperation with TLC members who created Santa Cruz Cares, have raised enough funds for two orphanages for children who have lost their parents to AIDS and/or are HIV positive themselves. Many of TLC's short term missions (especially to India), provide dental and medical clinics each year to those who have never received any kind of professional treatment. TLC has provided funding and emergency assistance in response to major disasters, including Indonesia and Japan tsunami relief, Pakistan and Haiti earthquake relief & rebuilding efforts.
Educate the next generation: Gene & Linda Fisher (Grace International School - Thailand) and Ken & Julie Vaughan (Dakar Academy - Senegal) faithfully serve in missionary schools! The existence of these (boarding) schools allows for the missionaries to serve in extra-challenging and even dangerous settings not suitable for children. Linking with national churches and Music Camp International, Connie Fortunato employs pioneering, innovative music camps for children that make outreach to the children & their families possible in countries where traditional mission work is resisted. Prakash Institute, led by Loren & Sylvia Eckhardt, is comprised of two connected institutes, one for boys & one for girls, both of which provide basic education, vocational training and spiritual guidance to needy children who would have virtually no hope for a better life without Prakash! One more couple whose names we cannot cite (they are based in the Middle East), offer theological education for Egyptian, Iranian, Iraqi and Palestinian pastors!