Alumnus Spotlight:
An Interview with Justin Brickey Describe your work on the mission field. My wife Gillian and I have been involved in Spanish language ministry since 1999. As a
young couple, we served as directors of the Hispanic ministry at the church where I grew up. During this season we grew in our love for Spanish speakers, immigrants, and our comfort in working cross-culturally. In 2005, we began serving with a Christian Relief and Development organization, Food for the Hungry, in Lima, Peru. And in 2007 we moved to Lima to join this ministry. While serving there, I realized my need for more training, study, and spiritual maturity. So, we returned to the United States to begin seminary. During seminary I served at a Spanish-speaking ARP mission church in Columbia,
South Carolina, Iglesia Biblica Latinoamericana, first preaching on rotation, then as a stu- dent supply. When my time at seminary ended, we felt that the Lord was calling us to serve overseas again. World Witness told us that there was a need in Spain, so our family moved there in February of 2017 to lead church planting work in the northern province of Asturias. After a couple of years there we then moved south to Alcalá de Henares in the prov-
ince of Madrid. This allowed us to be closer to the rest of our World Witness teammates. There I connected with an English conversation group led by Christians, Gillian began to teach middle school English at the Evangelical Christian Academy, and we both joined a group of believers in street evangelism in the city’s main plaza. But in early March 2020, only six months after settling into our new home, COVID-19
swept through Europe. Due to circumstances, I was in the U.S. as lockdowns began. How- ever, we were able to evacuate Gillian and the boys so that our family could be in the same place as we figured out how the pandemic would affect everything. Six months later we returned to Spain. Eventually, we resumed street evangelism with periodic pauses as the later waves of COVID-19 temporarily kept us from the plaza. Even though our church planting efforts were hindered due to Spain’s restrictions, COVID-19 provided opportu- nities to talk to people about the hope we have in Christ amid fear and uncertainty.
Tell us about your new transition in ministry. At the end of the summer of 2020, I was reading through the ARP Synod packet and
came to the report from World Witness that mentioned the Mobile Theological Training Team’s (MT3) exploration of training pastors in Rwanda and asked for help. While in seminary I had conversations with David Galletta, the current MT3 team leader, about serving with MT3 and the possibility of developing relationships with pastoral training
centers and seminaries in Latin America. At that time, those conversations were just exploratory, now it seemed that there was a real chance that I could join them. So, I asked the World Witness board if I
could be considered to join MT3. After meet- ing with their strategy and personnel com- mittee, I received approval to join the team and began work in the summer of 2021.
Describe the mission of the Mobile Theological Training Team and your role there. The work of MT3 is to build relation-
ships with seminaries, Bible colleges, and pastoral training programs in different parts of the world that need help carrying out the task of biblical, pastoral, and theo- logical training. MT3 is a needed resource because, as the gospel goes forth and the church grows around the globe, it is im- perative that church leaders have access to sound biblical, theological, and pasto- ral training. Our desire is to see the indig- enous leaders of local churches strength- ened, encouraged, and equipped so that they in turn can equip the saints under their care for the work of ministry and for building up the body of Christ. My ministry’s time is divided between
the U.S. and teaching overseas. My time in the U.S. is devoted to studying, les- son preparation, grading, and building relationships with students, institutions, and churches. My time outside the U.S. is spent in teaching, preaching, and growing relationships with the national believers where I serve. All my past ministry experiences men-
tioned here will be brought to bear on this new season of ministry. My prayer is that the Lord will continue to teach me, mold me, and use me to serve Him and strengthen the church both now and in the days to come.?
Rev. Justin Brickey (MDiv., 2015) is a member of World Witness’s Mobile Theological Training Team (MT3). He is studying for a Master of Theology (Th.M.) degree at Erskine Theological Seminary. He and his wife Gillian live with their four sons in West Columbia, S.C.
Erskine Theological Seminary September/October 2021 13
Erskine Seminary
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32
