Spain/Betel Trip Q&As

The team will spend ten days in Betel centers near Madrid, Spain.

• People with a vision to reach out to people in postmodern Spain who are trying to break free from substance abuse
• People who are willing, in practical humble ways, to serve people in need
• People willing to go far outside of their comfort zone
• It is preferable to have some working knowledge of Spanish

• Help rebuild the lives of men and women broken through substance abuse
• Serve in a 24/7 ministry where Betel staff and residents live, work and worship with each other
• Help in very practical ways such as working in Betel's second-hand shops, cooking or doing housework
• Possibly help a new friend in Betel walk through detox
• Possibly some construction if those skills are present in the team
• Possibly minister in evangelistic outreaches to addicts at the drug camps near to the Betel facility
• Participate in lively worship in churches with people whose lives have been radically transformed
• Take an excursion across the Gibraltar Strait and visit a Betel facility in North Africa

• What it’s like to be immersed in the dynamic mix of culture and language in postmodern Europe
• Ministry to drug addicts in Spanish
• How the gospel can radically transform people out of hopeless situations
• How to serve with a wildly international missions team
• The highs and lows of ministry to drug addicts
• The joys and frustrations of cross-cultural relationships
• How you respond to it all, a long way from home and well out of your comfort zone

Spain's transformation since 1978 is astonishing, from dictatorship to liberty, poverty to wealth, isolation to integration into Europe and religious discrimination to religious liberty. However, this transformation is not all positive. Secular materialism brought religious freedom and economic advancement, but it also struck a crushing blow to traditional foundations of society and created a spiritual vacuum that is being filled with many dangerous elements. Spain is quickly becoming a secular-dominated, multicultural and multi-religious society; only one percent of its population is evangelical.

Consequently, drugs are a blight on Spain, which is one of the world’s heaviest users of cocaine, heroin and marijuana. Around two million take drugs, most of them young people. As yet, There are no signs of drug abuse or addiction abating.

(Most of this section quoted from Operation World (2010 ed.), p 764-8)

WEC mission coach, Loretta Jackson will lead the team. Loretta has led short-term teams for over ten years all over the world, including last year’s Discovery Team to Betel.

Loretta will coach you through a comprehensive pre-trip preparation. There will be an extensive two-day orientation time at the WEC USA Headquarters near Philadelphia. Your debrief will also be held at WEC’s USA headquarters.