By Mark Maynard
Kentucky Today
Hebron Baptist Church is not only going to the nations — the nations are coming to the church.
“Our church has been blessed the last few years,” said pastor Shawn Dobbins. “It seems like the nations are here in Northern Kentucky. We have some Congolese, Ukrainian, Jordian, Chinese, and even Canadians. The Lord has sort of brought all these people here as regulars in our worship service.”
Hebron also is sponsoring a Congolese church plant being led by pastor Patrick Mandee. That church, Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church, has shown growth over the past year and baptized six last month.
“Pastor Patrick Mandee started attending our church,” Dobbins said. “He was looking for a church in the area that preaches the word. He shared with us he had been licensed in Africa as a pastor and wanted to consider reaching the Congolese here. We slowly walked through this process with them and tried to learn more. It is a solid biblical ministry. We’re happy to work with them and support them.”
It is that kind of collaboration that benefits the kingdom, said Rob Patterson, the evangelism team leader of the Kentucky Baptist Convention.
“We all sense that the Lord is bringing the nations to our neighborhoods,” Patterson said. “We rejoice over the opportunities to engage some of the least reached people groups locally, but the average KBC church often doesn’t know where to start.”
Dobbins said Hebron Baptist has embraced the French-speaking Congolese church it is supporting. Many in his congregation have fallen in love with the church plant, the pastor said.
“Hebron Baptist is just a welcoming place that all these international people found it to be welcome,” the pastor said. “When the Mandees aren’t here, people are asking about them. They have four kids.”
Mandee is a bivocational pastor with a big family. But he is determined to preach the gospel to the church where God has planted him. He has four or five other families that help him to evangelize the area and invite other French-speaking Congolese to join them for worship. He said the church has about 65 in services.
“I admire how the pastors of Hebron Baptist Church were open to get to know Patrick Mandee and his family,” Patterson said. “They created an environment for relationships to develop over time. They are applying partnership principles learned through international mission trips to their local field and it is having an impact in the lives of their Congolese neighbors.”
“It’s a big opportunity and we see it here in northern Kentucky. The NKBA has a long history of trying to help Hispanic churches start and that has been harder than we thought it would be. The Lord brought us the right partner in Patrick Mandee.”
The pastor said the Lord opened a door for a woman in the community who had a housing problem and other needs. Dobbins bought her groceries and found out she was Congolese who spoke French.
“I connected her to pastor Patrick and ministered to her,” Dobbins said. “We see all these awesome opportunities.”
Mandee said he was appreciative of Dobbins and Hebron Baptist’s support.
“They have been a good partner,” he said. “Here there is a large (Congolese) community and people from Haiti. We are working to bring more to the church. We teach some people and train some people (in evangelism). I do all the preaching.”
Mandee also leads in worship. The church has a prayer service and choir practice on Saturday and regular services on Sunday at Hebron.
He said the baptismal service was a blessing to everyone and looks forward to seeing God grow the church.
Dobbins said what is happening at Hebron Baptist Church comes from God.
“A pastor asked me, ‘How did you do that?’ and I said, ‘God did it.’ We preach the Bible, preach the gospel and God is bringing the nations to us. This is one of those things God has been a part of from the beginning.”