Surprises

by Gary Clow

Have you ever done something you really didn’t want to do, thought would be useless to do, but did it because you were asked to?   You started the job and just after beginning realized that it was not as bad as you thought, in fact, it was great.  Ever had that experience?  I just did.

World Team asked me, and you, to take the new online course, “Evangelism: Abundantly Sowing the Seed.”  I’ve been a missionary for a long time, I have taken so many evangelism courses I can’t even count them, let along remember all of them.  My thought was, “Okay, if I have to, one more.”  I enrolled and prepared for the worst.  Boy, was I surprised.

This evangelism course is not anything like I thought it would be.  To begin with, it is first rate adult learning.  It is an online course, based on forums where you share your thoughts with the small group of people who are part of your class.  There is a little bit of reading each day, a page or two, followed by answering a couple of questions, then a lot of commenting and sharing with one another in the online forum.  It is really, really good, really well done. I loved it.

We had a great cross section of people in our group.  There were new missionaries struggling through language school who needed to know it would get better.  Others, in very challenging  settings, were completely discouraged with so little fruit from their labour and just needed a word of encouragement from someone else.  There were others who had vibrant ministries, some who had been on a field for months, others on a field for decades.  We interacted with one another, helped one another and through the online forum discussed ideas and shared the things that work in our setting. I could not believe the impact of this course.  And, as you can see, it got me excited.   Have you taken the course?  If you haven’t please sign up right away.  E-mail Ginny Crapser to enroll.  You will bless others and they will bless you.  This is too good to miss.

Coaching Through Listening

by Sean Christensen

I am learning to listen.  In December a young man named Rony, one of my students from the Bible College where I teach in Haiti, came to me to seek my advice on some life issues.  Being a pastor as well as a professor, I listened to his problems and sought to understand his questions before I took my turn to give him the answers he needed.  I proceeded to diagnose his situation, explain the tendencies of his personality and how he can resolve his problems.  I thought I had offered him some sound biblical advice and that if he would follow it, he would do well.  He, in turn, was thankful to have an older man listen to him and give him some guidance.  He said that is difficult to find in Haiti.

A month later, at Steve Miller’s invitation, I joined some other World Teamers in Atlanta for a weekend workshop on coaching by Myles Lorenzen and Steve.  I soon realized that what I had considered to be a very successful mentoring session with Rony had more to do with me, the expert, tutoring my pupil than it did truly listening, probing and empowering him to find the best answers.  The main points I took away from that weekend were:

   1.  Ask lots of open-ended questions.
   2.  Find out what the person wants to get out your time together.
   3.  Ask more open-ended questions to help the coachee discover their own
        solutions.

Armed with these new skills, I couldn’t wait to get back to Haiti and meet with Rony again.  A few weeks later he asked if we could meet at my office.  This time it was different, and better.  He came in discouraged about some specific dilemmas he was facing and was looking for guidance.  But for me, instead of trying to draw on my limited experience in Haiti, I just kept asking him questions and probing more about his own questions and the possible solutions and resources that he could think of.  In the end, we traced out the advantages and disadvantages of the two options he faced and I didn’t tell him what he should do!  He had come into my office despondent and he left feeling empowered, with clarity and a sense of value.  After all, he’s the one that evaluated his options and came up with the possible solutions.  Not me!  But like a good coach, I helped him realize his potential.

Rony and I have met once more since then with similar results.  He’s a young man who is learning how to be responsible.  I can see how these coaching techniques are helping him sort through what he already knows and it’s helping him to make better sense of the decisions he is facing.  It’s not that I’m never going to give him advice again or never give him information that he needs.  The difference is that I recognize God has placed a lot in Rony already and that in his life decisions, he knows a whole lot more about his situation than I do.  He doesn’t need an expert, he needs someone who can help him sort through what he already knows, help him to ask good questions and who will cheer him on in his growth as a man of God.

I am finding that coaching is yet another way to apply James 1:19, “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.”  I am learning to listen.

Three Things in the next Three Months…Three Months Later

by Karry

Yesterday I went to the barber shop for a long-delayed haircut.  I always wait longer than I should.  Usually, I finally go when a deadline has arrived that requires it.

Yesterday, I had to get a haircut because today I left for meetings in Pennsylvania.

I went to the same SportsClips I always go to.  If you haven't been to one, they're a guys dream.  Everything is decorated for sports.  Ours has the colors of the local High School team where our three sons played football.  The barbershop stalls are set up like an athletic locker room.  There are TVs everywhere tuned to ESPN Sports Center.  When you sit down, they turn the chair so you can see the screen.  The pain of a haircut disappears.

Typically, I break the ice by asking the girl cutting my hair whether she actually likes sports.  It's always girls at SportsClips.  I haven't met one yet who really likes sports, but they normally do decent haircuts.

Yesterday, however, was not going to be typical.  I could tell when I opened the door and saw Harley.  I saw her at the counter.  The gel-laden hair on top of her head shot straight up, then bent back and vaulted down her back like a frozen waterfall.  The hair on the right side of her head was shaved to the scalp, and on the left side it was combed straight back like it was riding a motorcycle.  She was tattooed all the way up her left arm to her shoulder and beyond that I couldn't tell.  I didn't look closely before I got into the chair but the tattoos were mythical characters.  I noticed that, despite her dramatic appearance, she seemed indecisive, even insecure.

I started thinking about Shema statements.  And I scanned my brain for things I might be able to affirm about her if we got into a conversation about the Lord.  Right away, she said people at her church are always surprised by her name.  I grinned when I heard that.  This was going to be easy.  She goes to church!

"So, what church do you go to?"

"The Mother Earth Church in Escondido."

"Oh."

She was Wiccan.  I won't go into all details, though it would probably be interesting to you if you have never had that kind of conversation.  I learned a lot about their beliefs.  Suffice it to say, I did find something to affirm her for.  She said one of the things she doesn't like about the Bible and Christianity is the way it has oppressed women.  She said their church rejects meanness of every kind.  I read between the lines a story of abuse.

I told her I thought she was onto something there because the Bible teaches us to love others sacrificially, and that especially husbands should love their wives as Christ loves the church, not oppress them.  I also was able to say a Shema saying to her. I said, "I am a follower of Jesus Christ and I believe the Bible is God's word and it is all true.  Do you find it confusing at times trying to figure out which parts to believe?" 

She admitted she was often confused.  To me, she seemed just as confused as her hairdo.  As I paid her, she thanked me and said she had really enjoyed our conversation.  I did get the feeling her spirits had been lifted.

No, not those spirits.  The metaphorical ones.

Anyway.  At the end of LEAD I wrote out three things I was going to try to do in the next three months.  It's been a bit over three months now.  One of the three was, "Ask engaging questions every day looking for God's kingdom value in people."  I find myself doing that frequently, like I did with Harley.  It's actually a lot of fun.

Another action step I wrote was, "Consider church planting options when selecting a new house."  We are planning to move, but we haven't begun the house search yet.  So I haven't started on this one yet.  But when we do, we still are going to look for ways to be involved in a church plant.

The third thing we wrote down was that we wanted to start a DBS with our friends Ken and Shiela.  As it turns out, our other friends Patsy and Craig have been asking for something like that so we have made the offer.  Of course, they want us to teach them.  We are still waiting for them to go for the idea of studying the Bible with a group of their friends.

That is where I am at on my three things I was going to try in the next three months.  I'd like to hear your story.  I'm going to ask a few of you to write up your story in the next few weeks.

By the way, when I got up from my barbershop chair and looked in the mirror,  my hair was standing straight up wildly helter-skelter like hers.   I looked scary crazy and taller.  It was matted into position with gel.  Really.

DBS

DBS.  No, that doesn't stand for "Daily Vacation Bible School" like I at first thought.  But then, we all have moved way beyond that.

Kevin King's explanation of the Discovery Bible Study method at our LEAD meetings was eye-opening for a lot of us.  In fact, on the last day when we all wrote down three things we each committed to try during the next three months, most of us said they were going to try to start a DBS.  I'm excited to see what comes of that.

I don't remember if I mentioned it, but in October when I visited CityTeam headquarters in San Jose, Calif. I met a guy named Ricardo Pineda.  I am a Ricardo Pineda fan.  A few years ago, Ricardo started his first house church using the DBS method.  He is Hondureño if I remember right, though that detail probably isn't important.  He started his DBS among Spanish speaking immigrants in the San Jose area.  In just a few years, that first house church grew from one to more than 300 in at least four countries.  Chris Wassell took this photo of Ricardo and me with the graphic of his burgeoning house-church network on the wall behind us.

 One thing that strikes me about Ricardo's ministry, and about Kevin's explanation of the DBS method, is the focus on developing leaders.  The key role of the Christian worker, of the missionary in our way of thinking, is facilitating and developing leaders.  Ricardo doesn't lead very many of the 300+ house churches that have been started.  But he spends lots of time mentoring and developing and facilitating leaders.

Let me know how things are going with your efforts to start a DBS.  I'm excited to hear what happens next.

I'm attaching a copy of one of the documents Kevin shared with us.  It's a short outline on facilitating a DBS.  And remember, Kevin and Chris have more resources for us.  Don't hesitate to ask them for help as your DBS gets going.

Karry

Discovery Bible Study Facilitation.doc

Disciplemaking and the Kingdom of Heaven

What is the kingdom of heaven like right now for those of us living on this earth?  That question comes up regularly in Jesus' teaching in the book of Matthew.  I'm reading through Matthew and I'm taking note of what He says about the kingdom of heaven.   What does it mean to church planting missionaries like myself and church planting organizations like World Team?

What is the Kingdom of God like?

In Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus describes an aspect of the final judgment.  First, the context around it is like a bright flashlight zeroing in on the real point.  In verses 1-13 Jesus tells the parable of the Ten Virgins.  The point of that story is stated in verse 13: "Watch."  It's similar to 24:42's "stay awake" and 24:44's "be ready."  This vigilance and persistent action is called for because we do not know when we will meet Jesus face-to-face.  And we really want to be ready for that moment.  Jesus is saying, "Take this seriously.  When I come back to judge the world, you really want to be ready and diligently persevering at my work."

Then in 14-30 Jesus tells the Parable of the Talents.  The point seems to be that we are entrusted with Jesus' "property" during this time we are alive and we are responsible to work diligently to make the most of his resources in light of his purposes.  His "talents" are entrusted to us.  The talent in view, of course, is a unit of monetary value in Roman times equal to about 200 years wages. 

God has given us his resources: life, relationships, opportunities, possessions, labor, and wits.  We are expected to use them for His purposes while we live.  God's purpose for us until Christ comes is most succinctly summarized in the Great Commission a few chapters later.  "Make disciples."  Implicit in that is "Be my disciples."

So what is a church planter supposed to do?  Make disciples!

Now here is where it gets tricky.  Jesus says in this passage that we will be judged based on whether or not we feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome strangers, clothe the naked, care for the sick, and minister to the imprisoned.

This is what the kingdom of God is like.  This is what Christ's disciples do.

The “sheep” are commended for their great compassion for those in need—for the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger; for those who are naked, sick, or in prison. The righteous will inherit the kingdom not because of the compassionate works that they have done but because their righteousness comes from their transformed hearts in response to Jesus' proclamation of the kingdom, as evidenced by their compassion for the “least of these.” In caring for those in need, the righteous discover that their acts of compassion for the needy are the same as if done for Jesus himself.  --ESV

As we go about being and making disciples and multiplying communities of believers, our lives and our ministries will be characterized by compassionate works as a result of the transforming power of Christ in our lives and ministries.  We will act like Jesus as we do Jesus' work.  As we seek to obey his commission, his compassion will overflow from us and the disciples we make and the communities of believers that are formed.

How to START people in Life and Ministry Skills

The essence of OJT – On the Job Training

by Myles Lorenzen

✓  Show them how to do it –modeling for them the process

✓  Tell them how to do it – explanation while showing them

✓  Allow them to try it – it’s now their turn to try their hand while you observe

✓  Review the results – encourage their progress and give feedback for improvements – repeat this AR cycle until they have ‘got it’

✓  Turn them lose to do it on their own, in their own setting

Note: This START approach is core to training our children;  e.g. how to tie their shoelaces or drive a car. But it is not limited merely to the family.

During my 11 years in the Navy, this was also fundamental to an intensive ongoing training process used in a submarine setting; even for something as complex as running a nuclear power plant on that sub. Theory and content were important but it was generally limited to just what a watch stander really needed to know. The START approach then was used to qualify the person on how to do the all the jobs required on any particular watch station.

Adult educations experts also remind us that another key component is needed in order to obtain maximum ‘sticking’ power from any training setting – namely on-site follow-up and mentoring. In fact, this additional step will double the retention and ongoing application of any training event.

So whereas, we in World Team have used the START acronym for years, we may want to consider making it STARTS by adding this additional step:

✓  Show up on site to follow-up, encourage and mentor them in what they are doing!

It is interesting that this sixth step was very much in play on the subs. A newly qualified watch stander, who was standing the watch for the first few times alone, was carefully monitored, encouraged and tested (with emergency drills) to ensure that he could in fact carry out the requirements of the watch on his own.

January 21 / John 21

When it comes to apostolic temperament, I’m more of a Peter than a Paul and I’m so glad that John saw fit to wrap up his account with 3 quick stories about my man:

    •  The Second Massive Catch Of Fish,
    •  The “Do You Love Me?” Story,  and
    •  The “What About Him?” Story.  

None of these appear in any of the other Gospels. 

The Second Massive Catch Of Fish, vv.1-14:  The First Massive Catch Of Fish occurs in Luke 5.1-11 when Peter first heard the call to follow Jesus.  In both cases, the focus is on Peter and his reaction when he recognizes Jesus.  What is fascinating is how Peter the Disciple has grown in the 3 years he’s walked with Jesus. 

At the First Massive Catch in Luke 5, Jesus was a stranger to Peter.  Yet, as he hauled in that ripping net of fish, he was filled with a sudden terror in Jesus’ presence. He didn’t know Jesus yet, but for some reason, in His presence, he felt an an excruciating conscious of his own sinfulness. His only thought: put as much distance as possible between himself and the Lord. He cries out, “Go away from me Lord! I’m a sinful man!”    Jesus halted his flight, saying  “Don’t be afraid. Peter. I will make something of you that you are not. From now on you will catch men.”

At the Second Massive Catch, the one in this chapter, there was no terror.  On the contrary, there was eager recognition and haste to get as close as possible to Jesus.  The boat was 100 yards from shore, but Peter threw himself into the water and swam to shore, leaving John and the others to wrestle the net into the boat.  (apparently he had learned to swim since that time he tried to walk on the water.)

“Do You Love Me?” vv.15-17:  The first time Peter had met Jesus, he was overwhelmed by his own sinfulness.  This time, sin is still an issue.   It had to weigh heavy on Peter’s mind that he’d not yet had an opportunity to make right that matter of his denial the night of Jesus’ trial.  In spite of the bitter taste of failure, Peter had learned something: the right response in failure is not to flee, but to face it.  He had become willing to let the Lord confront it, and confront it he did.  Hurt?  Oh my, how it hurt!  But Peter was willing to let Jesus probe his weakness because he had learned that failure need never be terminal for a disciple.  He no longer needed to flee.

“What About Him?” vv.18-23: In the final scene, Jesus gives Peter a  glimpse of what the future holds for him and it sounds scary.  “Well, how ‘bout John?” he asks.  Jesus answers, “That’s classified information.”  I think the point of this story is simply that even though they’ve both had 3 years with Jesus , and they’ve both been turned into fishers-of men, as promised,  this is not the graduation ceremony.  This is only the jumping-off point. They will be disciple-makers, their days of  being disciples themselves are not over.  Come what may, their discipleship will never be complete until they either go to be with him, or he comes back to be with them. 

Duane