How one, crazy congregation developed a coffee cooperative

In 2005, Heber Alvarez belonged to a “weird” church. It began a coffee cooperative to teach farmers in poor communities how to better grow their coffee and to rise out of poverty. That cooperative, called Cultivadores Del Reino or “Kingdom Growers,” sought to meet the needs of entire villages while also preaching the Gospel.Not everyone, however, liked the church’s methods. Below, Heber talks about helping the poor when other Christians simply wanted to sit in their pews.“It has been somewhat difficult. In fact, our church was seen as weird because all the other churches focus on preaching the Gospel inside the church, waiting for the people to come to them to hear the message, and that is where the invitation is made to repent and start their new relationship with God.However, we understood that God doesn’t want us to wait for them to come, but we have to go. Jesus Himself sent His disciples to preach. That is how we decided to get out and share the Gospel with the people in communities that didn’t have access to a church or were not close to a church. In fact, as we started this activity and then began the process of the civil association “Kingdom Growers” to help the people, we were not well seen by other churches. They thought we were doing something that didn’t pertain to the church.We understand that is in fact the mission of the church, to share the Gospel, but also seek to provide for the needs of the neighbors and members. Some churches believe that is not correct. Even some of the leaders in our church used to think that was not important, but in studying the Word of God, we see that the teaching is clear. Jesus preached a complete Gospel and cared for the physical needs of the people as well.We cannot go to them and tell them “God loves you” [while] seeing them in need and not help in any way. That is what helps us stand our position. Here lately, some of the people who were against, some of the churches at least, see us as an example to follow and want to implement some activities in their own churches.”