Planting 100 new churches: FIEIDE’s mission goal for Spain, Evangelical Focus

Around 270 representatives from over a hundred congregations and mission points of the Federation of Independent Evangelical Churches of Spain (FIEIDE) discussed church planting at their annual congress.

During the national assembly on 23 and 24 April, pastors and other leaders from almost all Spanish regions analysed the current state and hopes for the future of this fellowship of free evangelical churches, a denomination that will celebrate its 70th anniversary in 2027.

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FIEIDE has a particularly strong presence in Catalonia, the Canary Islands, the Levante region and Andalusia. One of the key focuses was on how to contribute to God’s mission by planting churches in more sparsely populated areas in northern and inland Spain, where entire towns or even counties have no evangelical presence.

 Francisco Mira, president of FIEIDE, presenting the Antioquia Fund at the 2026 Assembly. / Photo: Arminda Kanku  

In this spirit, the assembly approved the creation of the Antioch Fund, which aims to provide financial support for joint efforts over the coming decade.

Among the projects of FIEIDE churches, the Evangelical School of Theology stands out (with its theoretical-practical “Dual Programme” to train young pastors), as does Misión Posible (which a month ago encouraged 500 young people to deepen their understanding of discipleship and evangelism) and the Home for the Elderly in Reus.

 Opening session of the Fieide 2026 Congress. / Photo: Arminda Kanku   

On Friday, the annual conference (24–26 April) began by focusing on the New Testament church in Jerusalem to identify principles of multiplication from the Early Church, with expository Bible studies that were later followed by Antioch and Thessalonica.

The theme “Moving Forward Together. Multiplying Churches” was put into practice through sessions and round-table discussions centred, on the one hand, on the importance of small groups as spaces of trust and witness that connect with non-believers in multiple places simultaneously (with Marcos Zapata, via video); and, on the other hand, the need to develop a joint national vision that facilitates collaboration between churches (with Thomas Schech from Germany, director of Allianz Mission).

It was on Saturday evening that Pedro Arbalat, evangelist and former coordinator of the Department of Evangelism and Missions (DEM), presented the church planting strategy. After analysing the sociological and religious profile of modern-day Spain and reviewing the work done in the past, he proposed the resources and structures needed for the decade ahead.

 Eva Vera, coordinator of the Department of Evangelism and Missions, praying after signing a partnership agreement with a Canadian mission agency. / Photo: Arminda Kaku.  

The motto of this strategy to double the number of FIEIDE local churches by 2036 is: “One hundred churches, one mission”.

“Our mission is clear and achievable, if we work in unity”, summarises one of the resources provided to the pastors. The stories of Benahadux, Salamanca, Sant Cugat del Vallès and Sant Boi de Llobregat, with very different expressions of church life but all focused on building personal relationships and serving the needs of people in their local communities, demonstrated how a “church without frills, based on faith and love” (as Noé Aguiar put it in the sermon that closed the congress) has a real impact, with real conversions of people to a God who has the power to save.

 Discussion groups at tables during the Fieide 2026 Conference. / Photo: Arminda Kaku.   

Small group discussions, times of prayer, a joint Lord’s Supper, musical worship… Everything celebrated the “unstoppable advance” of the Kingdom of God, which Francisco Mira, president of FIEIDE, called to consolidate around the centrality of the Word.

The children’s programme, a prayer trail, and stands with resources from various evangelical organisations also provided refreshing ideas.

“We greatly enjoyed the fellowship among pastors, missionaries and church representatives; that fellowship brings us joy”, explained Rubén Miyar, FIEIDE’s coordinating secretary, at the close of the conference.

 Resources explaining the vision and projects of FIEIDE.    

Learning about “how to use small groups in evangelism” and “hearing from our brothers and sisters in Germany about how they do it” were elements of the programme that were particularly encouraging, he told Evangelical Focus.

“We have once again challenged ourselves regarding the mission focus we wish to prioritise as a Federation.” When it comes to establishing a project for Spain, the “testimonies of new initiatives have been a great source of encouragement to press on”, he concluded.

Published in: Evangelical Focus – europe
– Planting 100 new churches: FIEIDE’s mission goal for Spain