A long time ago, human arrogance and rebellion brought about a judgement that resulted in the confusing of our languages and the scattering of humanity to the four corners of the Earth. Since that time, our ability to communicate with people of different languages and cultures has been difficult to say the least, and yet Christ’s command in Matthew 28:19 remains, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations…” For many, this is a daunting task, but for Christopher McSweeney it’s a passion. It was my great pleasure to meet Chris this past fall when he joined the Jupiter Christian School family as both a new Spanish teacher and our Director of Development. It only took one or two conversations with Chris for his passion for missions, the Spanish language, and a place called Mexico to become abundantly evident.
Chris has been a short-term missionary to Mexico on several occasions, serving with Indian River Presbyterian Church in his hometown of Fort Pierce, Florida. Primarily, the purpose of each trip has been to construct church buildings and encourage the local Christian body. Typically, Chris and his team serve in Mérida, Mexico, the capital of the Mexican state of Yucatán and a city of more than a million people. Now in his late twenties, Chris has had the opportunity to enjoy the rich cultures of Mérida more than once. However, it was during his very first trip, in his late teens, that he would make a decision that would impact every trip that followed – he would learn Spanish.
At the time of that trip, Chris didn’t speak Spanish, and he was essentially a newborn in the faith. One of the things that particularly impacted him on that first trip was the frustration of having to go through a translator to communicate with the people around him. As he related, “The point of missions is to bring the gospel. The gospel is spoken. You have to be able to tell people we live in a broken world, and that Christ left his throne to come down and die for us.” Chris obviously couldn’t do that his first trip, and so he made it his mission to learn Spanish. Now, over ten years later, his follow through on that commitment is self-evident as he serves as a translator for current teams (and as an excellent Spanish teacher at JCS, I might add).
The fruit of this commitment is also apparent each time he and his team return and are able to reconnect with the people they have previously ministered to. Chris recalled a recent trip when the team returned to the very first church they ever built. He was thrilled to get to see the people again, and they were shocked that he was now actually speaking their language. Many close friendships have also been forged, including one with a man named Ricardo Santana. Ricardo speaks English and had previously served as a translator and host for the team. Chris met him on his first trip, and two years later Chris actually lived with him for a month. Ultimately, Ricardo became the driving force for Chris’s passion for missions. He still sees Ricardo’s family frequently, but now he gets to grow in his relationship with them through their own language. Additionally, thanks in large part to technology and social media, the missionaries of Indian River Presbyterian Church get to continue the relationships they have forged.
It is my prayer that many more years of ministry in Mexico await Chris, his family, and Indian River Presbyterian Church. Given the choice, Chris and his wife would love to be full-time missionaries, but the purposes of God in their lives right now are undeniable, and I am personally very encouraged to get to work alongside someone so passionate about bringing the Gospel to every tongue, tribe and nation. As I closed our interview, I asked a question I ask every missionary I write about, “What would you say to someone considering missions?” His answer was simple, “Go and prepare. Prepare your heart. Seek what it means to go on missions. Know what it looks like to serve, and look at the greatest missionary of all Christ. And learn the language. If you are spending a year praying for an upcoming mission trip, devote half that time to learning some of the language. When you speak another language you get to see the universal church that Jesus created.” I couldn’t agree more, and the only question I have left is where can I sign up for Spanish class?
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Copyright © 2016 David Scott Fields II. All Rights Reserved.
