• Our hope-filled future is bound up in sharing the story of Jesus, in discipling others, in bringing those disciples together into communities of believers, and in developing and releasing those believers to create other communities... till Jesus the King comes again!

Reset 2025

Posted on December 11, 2024 by wtdavid

If we were to take a quick glance at what is happening in global missions, we would have to observe the growing presence of many more players, coming from everywhere and desiring to serve anywhere in the world.  

Rather than resources, initiatives, and missional ingenuity coming primarily from only one sector of the world, we can now identify numerous majority world and non-majority world agencies and organisations seeking to multiply disciples and communities of believers.

Lausanne 2024 organisers call this dynamic: a polycentric focus.

So, we would do well to push the ”reset’ button concerning our approach and engagement in what God is doing in the world.

Perhaps we might say that as a tangible demonstration of this polycentric focus, we (the WT community wherever we might be serving around the globe) pledge to serve as a “collective”.

In other words, we would commit ourselves to sharing more widely to learn of what God is doing in different places around the globe through multiple possible partners; to communicating more deeply the “we” of our community rather than the “me” so as to express the unity of Christ; to cooperating and collaborating more with one another and like-minded partners for greater expansion; and working together to provide all the resources needed around each initiative we would jointly hold as a collective.

That is our challenge for 2025! 

Filed under: Collaboration, Communication, Community, Polycentric focus | 4 Comments »

What are you learning?

Posted on March 11, 2024 by wtdavid

We have often said to participants in the Leader cohort or Leader intensive trainings that most cross-cultural workers stop learning at age 40.  J. Robert Clinton insisted in his work on leadership that most leaders, from age 40 on, rely on what they have learned up to that point in their life and ministry.

In the global WT community, we talk a good deal about lifelong learning. However, I would guess that most of us are “sporadic” lifelong learners at best. We lack consistency and direction.

To get us started again towards consistent and regular growth, might I suggest the following ideas?

  1. List 1-3 books, articles, podcasts, or training videos you would like to read, listen to or do in the coming month. Ask some trusted friends for their advice. Then prioritize your list.
  2. Make a plan. Many of us resist this part, yet we do this most days of our lives. We make a plan for how to visit our supporters and supporting churches. We make a plan for our outreach events this coming year. We make a plan for going away on vacation. We should be able to the same with our lifelong learning.
  3. Share with another an insight you gain from any of the materials you read or listen to.  Tell the person what you learned and how you see it applying to your life or ministry. This is an under-rated part of the learning process.  Capturing in your own words what you have learned from a book or a podcast will reinforce the principle or insight you gained.
  4. If the book, article, podcast or training video caused you to grow, share it with another person and tell them why you think it would be helpful to them and their lifelong learning and growth.

If you are looking for an example of how this might look, drop me a note and I’ll share a recent personal example from my read of the book, Insight, by Tasha Eurich.

If you have other thoughts or ideas, feel free to share them by commenting on this post.

Filed under: Community, Lifelong learning, Planning | 3 Comments »

Preparing for the Resurrection

Posted on April 8, 2022 by wtdavid

Easter is the celebration of the amazing news that: “He is risen!” 

In the history of the Church, Easter was an event for which one prepared weeks in advance.  Unfortunately, this time of Lent (the 40 days prior to Easter) has become known primarily as a time to ‘give up something’.  So, my encouragement to you is to use this next week as a time to prepare well to hear again the good news that “He is risen!”

We know that the Gospel is not a series of statements to which we adhere but is the power of salvation (Romans 1) that transforms a hope-less life into one with the firm assurance that nothing will be able to separate us from the love of Christ.

And Easter is the culminating event in the year of all those daily reminders of the price He paid to redeem us and the natural outpouring of our life in service to Him for His gift of grace in saving us. 

So how might we prepare to hear again those incredible words: “He is risen”? There are many helpful Lenten devotionals (see the recent Wellness Wednesday) which would guide you in your preparation.  However, I want to emphasize an element which is sometimes lost in our preparation: community.  Preparing for Easter is both an individual and community activity.  However, when we forget the community aspect, we deprive ourselves of the depth of insight and support that comes from sharing in this preparation for Easter together. This could be in one’s, small group, team, family or local community of believers.

One of the Church Fathers, in his Lenten devotional, wrote: “The Christian, I say, sees all that, and confessing to himself his impossibility to free himself in his own strength from the venom of sin, and to acquire by his own means a virtue so pure and so perfect, he falls in lowliness of heart before the throne of God’s grace and exclaims: Lord and Master of my life, keep from me a spirit of idleness, of listlessness, of ambition, and of idle talking. But grant me, Thy servant, a spirit of temperance, of humility, of patience and of love!”  It is interesting to note that each of the elements he mentions for confession or growth is community related.  In other words, the activity becomes an area of struggle or growth because it involves his/her engagement with others. 

Practically, what might this look like?  Here are a few recommendations.  Feel free to share others by sending a note to me and I’ll post those ideas as a blog post.

  • Share an insight you gained in your recent Lenten devotional or Bible reading with another.  Tell him/her how that insight is helping prepare your heart for the celebration of Easter.
  • Read out loud with others one of the many texts surrounding the crucifixion and resurrection (Matthew 27:32-56; 28:1-10).
  • Take the time to reflect with another on one of the many works of art which depict the resurrection or the events following.  Talk to one another about what this particular work of art tells you about Christ and His resurrection.

Filed under: Community, Remembrance, Resurrection | Leave a comment »

The WE voice

Posted on January 7, 2022 by wtdavid

In the midst of all the voices seeking to be heard in our world today, one voice that often seems predominant is: the “me” voice.  It is not very often that one hears the “we” voice.

When I use the phrase: the “we” voice, I am referring to that heart response that longs to seek the good of others.  Paul put it this way in Galatians 5:13: ‘It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows.” [The Message]

The “me” voice is focused on doing “whatever it wants to do”; it shuts off its heart from the needs of others and from the need for others.  Rather than serving one another, the “me” voice pushes one to serve self and self only.

Honestly, none of us would say that the “me” voice is a primary voice of our heart and of our actions.  And yet …

The Psalmist tells us to ask God “to search our hearts and see if there is any hurtful (or grievous) way in me” (139.23-24). So, that “me” voice must lurk somewhere in our hearts and seek ways to assert its will.  For example …

— Hoping for a free Saturday for once, our small group proposes to have an outside picnic together on that very Saturday.  The “me” voice comes up with at least twenty reasons why this would not be a good idea.  With most reasons coming from my wanting a free Saturday.

— I have a new idea for our CP team. I bring it to the team, but when pushback comes, I choose to listen to the “me” voice and not profit from the insights found in the feedback from others.

— A fellow worker sits down to talk with me. During the conversation, this worker shares their disappointment with me and the way that I responded in a recent group discussion. The “me” voice goes into overdrive wanting nothing more than to defend myself.

Turning more to the “we” voice is not the simple answer.  Our need is far greater.  The “we” voice should drive us back to Christ where our true identity and acceptance is found; where our only hope for true and complete forgiveness can be received.

Listening more for the “we” voice will help us help one another to go back to the cross and receive again all that we need from the One who came to give His life for us, and to give us the freedom to love and serve one another.

Filed under: Community, One another, Serving | 2 Comments »

Global Leader Gathering Recap

Posted on May 19, 2021 by wtdavid

Earlier this month, we held Global Leader Gatherings to assess our current ministry progress and discuss global ministry priorities for the coming year.  These meetings were held virtually, and as a result were able to invite a number of others to join in our discussions. We are grateful for all of those who took the time to participate, make presentations and join in discussion together.

Let me highlight four main “take-aways” from this time. [If you would like more information and detail, I would encourage you to connect directly with your Area Director.]

First take-away: the WT Ministry Framework is “one of the best things we have going in WT”.  This was the thought that one of the participants shared.  The Framework summarizes well, and in one graphic, who we are and what we do.  Pat (WT Asia) led us through a “WT Framework Assessment” where we considered how we could use the Framework to assess ministry progress, our relationships, our team culture, and even how we might use the Framework to mobilise others to cross cultural ministry.

Second take-away: our critical areas for growth are setting priorities and mobilisation.  It is never easy to prioritise, but without prioritization our efforts will become greatly dispersed and have limited fruit.  Time was spent identifying our global ministry priorities for the coming years.  “500 in 5” was the mobilisation challenge we launched several years ago to respond to our people resource needs for several new global ministry projects.  Our goal was clearly not reached.  The question we were left with (and which we will be asking many of you in the coming days) was: What could we do together in the future to discover the people resources we need to launch these new global ministry projects?

Third take-away: life-long learning is more than just a nice sounding phrase.  We spent the final day of our Global Leader Gatherings in two different workshops.  One on design thinking and the other on situational leadership.  Each of us needs regular retooling in ministry skills and further growth in character. If you would like more information on either of these workshops, contact myself, your AD or one of the people from your Area that participated in these meetings.  We would be happy to share with you the material presented.

Fourth take-away: we have an incredible group of people working with us.  I was amazed by the quality of the presentations, the depth of the discussions, and the gospel attitude of wanting to serve the larger community in any way one could. 

Scott, Jeanne, Sam, Meagan, Tom, Chris, Dan, Ryan … and I know there were many other ‘new faces’ … thank you!  Thank you for participating and serving your team, your Area and the larger WT Global community in this way.

A huge thanks to many of you who prayed with us during these days!

Filed under: Community, Global outcomes, Priorities | 5 Comments »

We live in community

Posted on March 16, 2021 by wtdavid

In Philippians 2, we read these words: “Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.” 

It’s a description of what transformed relationships within the community of Christ should look like, and what they should not look like.  It’s a picture of how the Gospel works itself out in practical ways in our community with one another.

Grumbling, murmuring or disputing are not to be characteristics of our relationships with one another. It’s what got the people of Israel in numerous difficulties, undermining their witness to the surrounding peoples and nations. 

We might contextualize grumbling, murmuring and disputing today as disagreeing constantly, seeking to be right in any discussion, or just plain ornery with others.

What strikes one in this text is that the apostle Paul tells only us the negative elements to put off.  Paul implies that by putting off, we would recognize, in Christ, what needs to be put on.

That pushes us a bit deeper to consider what is really at the root of grumbling, murmuring and disputing.  The biblical writers put their fingers on one of two possibilities: pride or unbelief.  It’s either our desire to be the master of our destiny as well as that of others or it’s our inability, our lack of assurance in God’s love for us, despite what often drives us.

One writer put it this way: “We cannot present a reason for Christ to finally close off his heart to his own sheep.  No such reason exists.  Every human friend has a limit.  If we offend enough, if the relationship gets damaged enough, if we betray enough times, we are cast out. The walls go up. With Christ, our sins and weaknesses are the very resumé items that qualify us to approach him.  Nothing but coming to him is required – first at conversion and a thousand times thereafter until we are with him upon death.”

As Christ works in our hearts through the Gospel, we should become more and more sensitive to the impact of our words on others.  He will open our eyes for us to see more clearly the needs of others and how we, by our words and actions, can minister to other members of the community.

Filed under: Community, Gospel | 4 Comments »

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