Make Disciples

In 1977 we began our ministry in a little outpost town in western Kenya called Makutano, which in Swahili means intersection or meeting place.  It was a town that had no electricity or running water.  The tribal people of Pokot would come to Makutano to sell their chickens, goats or vegetables for cash. 

Makutano is about 106 kilometers from where we lived and the roads were bad so it took us usually three hours or more to get there.  We would leave our house on Sunday mornings about 7 a.m. and not get back home until late Sunday evening.

Our first services were held in a mud schoolhouse.  My Swahili wasn’t very good, I wrote and read out my sermons the first several months of our work.  One of the earlier attendees told me, “Your Swahili is so bad no one is going to keep coming to these meetings.  You need a translator.”  My reply was that I will never use an interpreter and my Swahili would get better.  It did, though I must admit it is just good “upcountry” Swahili.

Our Lord’s great command to His church was, “Go into all the world, and make disciples” Matthew 28:19.  Because of the distance between our home and W. Pokot I spent three days in nights in a mud hut teaching our first converts.  Having only a kerosene lantern, cook stove and sleeping on the ground in the hut with chickens, that’s how we implemented Matthew 28:19. 

The picture below is the men who completed our training course a couple of years later.  Left to right, Paul Gichuki who was the first pastor of the Makutano church, and 40 years later is still the pastor.  Fred Mugoya pastored a small church in W. Poktot for a while and today is pastoring in Uganda.  Markio Lumria was our first pastor in Turkana.  Mark is in heaven now, but his ministry in Kalemenyang lives on.  David Gagula, also from Uganda and cousin to Mugoya, pastored as well in Kenya for many years and now leads a fellowship of pastors in Uganda and Bible school.

They tell me that there are now over 300 churches established in Kenya, Uganda and Sudan out of this initial effort of disciple making.  To God be the glory.  Make disciples.

Just In Time Learning

JUST IN TIME TRAINING KC - AUGUST 23 - 25, 2016

CLICK HERE FOR INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION

Why Pre-Field Training?

It’s a hard sell.  Missionaries are trying to get to the field.  They’ve been approved by their denomination or sending agency, they’re raising support and to stop in the middle to attend a three-day, one or two week training session seems to be a waste of time and money.  But is it?

The Long Road Less Travelled

What is the process for getting to the mission field for a career missionary?  Consider the chart below, an arbitrary time scale to be sure, but a guide nevertheless.

1.     Discovery could be an introduction to missionaries in Sunday School to a mission conference where one is introduced to everything from Hudson Taylor to orphanages in Haiti.

2.     Interest is the dipping the toe into the water by attending an Urbana conference, a short-term mission trip or taking a Perspectives course.

3.     Commitment is answering “the call.”  It’s that defining moment when one says, “Here am I Lord, send me.”  But how do I get there?

4.     Preparation may include going to seminary, an internship in a local church as well as filling out application to a missionary sending agency.  This period time could easily be five years or more.

5.     If one perseveres to the point they are approved to be a missionary, they begin the funding process, which is between six months (rare) to three years (sadly, not unusual).

How prepared is a missionary really for cross-cultural service? Their cultural anthropology class was six years ago and they have no clue why the study of kinship has anything to do with being a witness to a Hindu.  True, they did spend two weeks in the Dominican Republic participating in vacation Bible school, but did they learn what it takes to set up residence in Serbia?  They may feel called to serve in the Philippines, but exactly what is the need in that country, which has had the Gospel four times longer than they have been alive?

JUST IN TIME LEARNING

Just in time (JIT) training is that period of time, about six months to one year before being fielded, which can make all the difference in the life of a missionary family.

First, it sharpens their focus.  If a missionary is 50% into fund raising , JIT will actually help the missionary raise the most difficult period of support raising because their focus will be on what they are going to do and who they will be working with.  A clear focus not only motivates the missionary, but also those who listen to their plea for support.  Hazy goals will produce hazy results.  Clear goals will produce realistic and attainable results.

Second, JIT means that when a missionary does get on the field six months later they will have a head start on what needs to be done and the process on how to achieve their goals.  The missionary will actually understand that contextualization isn’t just a word they learned ten years ago in an obscure classroom, but a reality in the context they now find themselves.

The reality is, many missionaries are woefully ill equipped before launching out in cross-cultural work.  Just-in-time training is not only practical, it could very well be the defining moment in the life of that missionary.

To learn more about JIT in KC August 23 - 25 go to this link.

Training Nationals

I have been asked to give lessons on how to teach/train cross-cultural workers in Bulgaria next year.  The classes will be to North Americans serving in Eastern Europe as well as national leaders.  Here are just ten tips in training cross-culturally.

1. It’s All New – Most nationals (and many N. Americans) have never been introduced to cross-cultural concepts.  Don’t overwhelm the student.  Keep it simple.  Define your terms.

2. Time is Relative -  In some cultures time is a suggested concept.  Don’t become unhinged if class doesn’t begin on time.  If the class is habitually late, inform the students that the sessions will overrun to make up for time lost.

3. Holistic Versus Linear – People get lost with,

Section I

   Heading A

        Subheading (a)

           

            For analytical thinkers, it might seem to make the lessons flow.  But for holistic thinkers if the subject doesn’t have meaning they get confused on how the segmented parts fit.

4. Make Applications Relevant -  Contextualization is a word, a concept.  Applying the concept within the context is key.  Example:  Functionalism is theory on how cultures work.  Bride price is an economic function for the father of the daughter.  Dowry is an economic function of for the father of the son.

5. Interaction is Slow -  Many students in other countries are to be seen, not heard.  Don’t expect many questions or comments in the class sessions until you have been with them at least two weeks.

6. Don’t Give Essay Exams -  In many parts of the world students learn through rote memory.  If you give essay questions you are likely to get three pages of quotes from the notes, which may or may not be close to the answer.  I prefer to give multiple choice, true/false and fill in the blank questions.

7. Quizzes -  The student may say she understands the class subject, but does she really?  Give a ten question quiz after one week to make sure the students really do understand the class.

8. Post-Class – Another way to make sure students understand the class and concepts, give half-hour for group discussion on the lesson.  Those students who understand the class will help those who miss some of the concepts.

9. Kinesics -  Learn the rules of culture  as it relates to eye contact (in some places the answer is, you don’t do it), standing (no hands in the pocket) and hand gestures.  A respectful greeting in Korea is an obscene gesture in Russia.

10. Titles – Don’t refer to yourself as Bob or Mary.  It’s either Mr./Mrs., professor, teacher or doctor.  At the same time don’t be obnoxious about your title.

Do you have other suggestions?  Let me know.