TMINZ

The team of Christian workers in Porirua is made up of every single member of the body of Christ in the Wellington Region. Some of us are blessed to have evangelism as our full-time jobs. Our family is very blessed to have many people around the world sacrificing for us to be able to teach the Bible full time. But our work would not be possible without all of the seen and unseen hands busy in the field of Porirua.

The Wellington church has been interested in planting or helping a team plant a congregation in Porirua since the 1980s. They are excited about this work, and they are helping as much as possible. 

Kevin L. Moore has accomplished over sixteen years of evangelistic work in New Zealand. He worked for seven years with the church in Wellington, seven years with the church in Wanganui, and two years with the church in Porirua. In January 2011, he and his family, Lynne, Loren, and Kaitlyn, began their two-year commitment to plant and work with the church in Porirua. Completing their two-year commitment to the work, the Moore family left New Zealand in December 2012. We are extremely thankful for the effort of the Moore family, which has paved the way of eternity for many souls in Porirua. Kevin has now resumed his teaching position as a Bible and Missions professor at Freed-Hardeman University.

Soon after we were married, we realised that there is nothing better in life than the blood of Jesus and sharing the good news of His saving grace. We made the commitment to dedicate our lives to the work of the Lord's army. At that point, we knew that we wanted to go and preach the gospel (Mark 16:15–16), but we still asked the question, "Where?" While we were doing some research, We were approached by a team of Christians planning to plant the church in Porirua, New Zealand. They were encouraged by our enthusiasm, and the team needed a young, dedicated couple. After much prayer and research, we decided to join the team. We have been in Porirua since June 2012. We have committed to at least five years to this work, though we have recently committed to work longer. 

The Chalmette, LA, church oversees our family's work. We are extremely appreciative for their example, guidance, support, and leadership. We could not be in New Zealand labouring for the Lord if they had not sent us.

John and Erin Jones arrived in Porirua in August 2013. We all labored together in Porirua until May 2019, when the Joneses moved back to the USA. They had many ministries and were involved in the conversion of many souls of New Zealand to Jesus. 

When Jesus sent His disciples out on the Great Commission, He told them, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you..." (Matthew 28:18-20a). Jesus' workers surely do have a Great Commission on our hands! There is comfort in this astonishing task. Jesus also told His disciples, "and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20b). Jesus promises to be with His workers. Christ is the head of His church, and He is the head of this team. Never because of human efforts, but only because of this fact, we are convinced that our efforts will be successful. To God be all the glory!

​In August 2016, we began the ambitious task of planting and directing a new extension of the Bear Valley Bible Institute. Bear Valley Bible Institute-New Zealand (BVBINZ) is now in place to train local men and women in teaching the gospel. Men are being trained for public preaching, and both men and women are being trained in many areas of ministry and personalevangelism. We hope this is a major step toward "working ourselves out of the job." We hope by training these men and women, our full-time work can be shifted to somewhere else in the world. Two of the first graduates of BVBINZ, Jay Pahetogia and Dora Lavea now work full-time with the church in Porirua.

In 2019, Todd Latham and the Chris Rich family arrived in the Wellington Region to work side-by-side with the Hutt Valley church. They have also helped much of the work in Porirua. 

Last updated: May 2021

We lived and worked in Porirua from June 2012 to June 2021. We have New Zealand Permanent Residency and hope to return longterm sometime in the future. The saints in the Wellington Region continue to labour for the gospel of Jesus Christ.

—The Moshers