The ebb and flow of church planting in Madeira

After three years settled on Madeira, Jason Murfitt reflects on God’s faithfulness through a stormy year for their house church.

Many waves have broken upon the shores of this ‘Pearl of the Atlantic’ since Andrea and I first landed, in July 2016, to test a call to serve as missionaries here. And many more as I sat with my Bible beneath a tree in Santa Catarina Park, overlooking the capital, Funchal, during twelve subsequent visits—praying to the Lord for the privilege of pastoring his flock that I believed to be scattered around the island. Then under that same tree on 13 June 2021, with the Farinha family (our co-workers) and a few others I had met while evangelizing, Christ’s Church Funchal officially began.

From the start we were determined to evangelize all 250,000 of the island’s inhabitants—setting out every Thursday, speaking to whomever the Lord brought across our path. We trusted him to draw to our little house-church those whom he wanted us to disciple. The Lord’s choices have constantly surprised us! From film-stars to dark-stars, once on the wrong side of the law; from those whose countries are fighting, to those whose doctrines are at war.

Enjoying growth

By the end of that first year, we were around a dozen in number. Throughout 2022 we gradually increased to a constant twenty. Toward the end of 2023 we were peaking around the fifty mark—including a few who joined on Zoom due to travel or health limitations—and we were fast outgrowing our living room.

At one time folk represented fifteen nationalities and came from nearly as many different church backgrounds. This is why, early on, we began our ‘Church-Life’ series after the Sunday morning service and fellowship lunch. In it, we explore different biblical doctrines and topics in a discussion format, testing our traditions and presuppositions.

We also enjoy Church Family Away Days every six weeks or so. These may be up the mountain for a barbeque or a hike, or a beach day to play volleyball and have a swim, or to enjoy other activities like golf. Away Days always start with a gospel presentation and include lots of food that we all share. We love spending time together as a church family, investing in each other’s Christian lives, making disciples.

Battered by waves

Despite all this, we suffered two devastating tsunami waves, metaphorically speaking—the first in the autumn of 2023 and the second the following autumn of 2024. What happened? Our church family came under spiritual attack. In the build up to the first wave, around the summer, slander was cast upon the eldership. We investigated the matter and it was resolved: one denied their own words and the other repented of the lies. Regardless, that family left. As autumn arrived, so the dreadful wave could be seen approaching on the horizon. It took the form of a spiritual restlessness and an increasing disregard for the truth of God’s word. Some members became obsessed with their own felt needs, while others began to put misplaced trust in sensationalizing YouTube preachers. A third of our twenty members left. Some silently; some very hurtfully.

The following spring this sad story began to repeat itself, although with a calm doldrum respite in the summer, there was even greater violence than the year before in the autumn. During the year we had received some new members, now numbering around thirty: then fifty percent of them left! Again, some over doctrine, while others who were spiritual island-hoppers, were just swept away, lacking spiritual maturity to stand firm on biblical ground. More slander was tossed around, this time the accusation was of mismanaging church discipline—but only because confidential information had necessarily been withheld from them. And while the Book of Galatians was being taught to a group, some evolved into Galatians before our very eyes!

Grieving

But these people were not critics of the cross, but friends of the fellowship; our brothers and sisters in Christ who we love profoundly. It saddened us to see personalities distorting, and actions—unimaginable just weeks before—now unfolding without restraint in spiritually self-harming ways. Though Satan cannot destroy any for whom Christ has died, yet he can take some captive for a season—if they allow him. Almost none of those who have left are fully committed to any church now. We have grieved much for them, and still do. Even so, our Father has been wiping away the tears with the comforting knowledge that he will disciple those he loves among them, while pruning us to be ever more fruitful—both individually and corporately. These trials have been sanctifying us all, preparing us for glory one day.

Storms of the past

Almost 180 years ago, as the church of Christ was flourishing on Madeira, a devilish typhoon struck in the form of hard-line Romanism and around three thousand Christians were given no choice but to escape the island. Many went to Brazil, but that’s another story. It now seems that—after 50,000 tracts and 5000 Bibles and portions of Scripture have been distributed, after tens of thousands of gospel conversations, after much consistent discipleship through faithful preaching, teaching and personal witnessing—the dozing dragon has been disturbed.

Stemming the tide

So which course of action are we to pursue? We will be led off the island by the Lord, if he so wills—but we will not be driven off by the devil! Instead, we have doubled down with our prayerfulness as a church, with a ‘prayer partner’ initiative. Every man prays once a week with a man, and every woman with a woman; after a month a new prayer partner is allotted until everyone has prayed with everyone of the same sex—then we will repeat the process. This is helping us to take a greater loving interest in each other’s lives, and to stem the tide of demonic activity in our church family.

We had been told by some former members what not to preach, and how long to preach for, one even attempted to manipulate their way onto the rota. But we are ever more convinced of the efficacy of preaching the whole counsel of God. We trust the Holy Spirit to anoint it with his power—if sinners are to be persuaded to repent of their sin, and saints convinced to relent of self-centredness. And we are determined to be more zealous in reaching the lost, who are otherwise blown this way and that by whatever popular social under-current afflicts this island.

Storm-tossed

Although we have been reduced to a skeleton crew, and our ship is storm-tossed, we delight in reminding each other that Jesus really is building his church in Madeira; even through the Murfitt’s and the Farinha’s gospel partnership. We are weak, but he is strong. The task ahead is enormous. There are still 200,000 inhabitants un-evangelized, plus up to a million visitors each year from around the world who also need the gospel. And we anticipate that the saved will need discipling, with access to an ecclesiastical port-of-call in which to gather: house-churches! For this we cry out to the Lord of the harvest to raise up more workers for the field. More soldiers to join us in the trenches. More preachers of the Word. More witnesses to God’s saving grace received through faith alone in the Jesus of the Bible. Please pray!