• 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!

What is going to keep you there?

Posted on December 4, 2015 by wtdavid

Once the cultural bridge has been crossed, we might think that the ‘journey’ is over.  However, it has only just started.  Not only do we need ways to ensure a safe and sure passage across the cultural bridge, but we need to discover anchoring points that will keep us on moving forward in ongoing cross cultural learning and living.

It is somewhat like mountain climbers who use screws to secure an anchor for all the climbers in the group to move upward on the rock.  Crossing the cultural bridge calls us to be ‘equipped’ to look for such anchors.Carabiner

What are those anchors?  Several come quickly to mind, but there are certainly others: identity, community and laughter.

Identity.  A firm grasp of our identity and value in Christ is the first anchor we need to secure into the ‘rock’ as we move forward.  It is easier to say this than it is to actually live it out.  When you find yourself in another culture, you want to feel part of that culture. You make an effort to learn the language and the customs.  However, that ‘petit accent’ (that slight accent) always seems to give away the fact that you are not from there.  And when someone says again: ‘Oh, you must not be from here,’ you can easily feel devalued.  Speaking the Gospel to ourselves reminds us that we are not defined by what others think of us, nor by our ‘slight accent’, nor by our work.

Community.  God created us to be in community.  Our communities are a tangible reflection of the community that exists between the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  As one moves through the cross cultural world, all kinds of emotions can rise to the surface of one’s heart.  An arena where honest sharing, mutual support and accountability can occur is vital.  That forum is the place where we can remind one another of the Gospel; where we can speak the Gospel to another.  That community is the place where our ‘strength’ is restored, where our idols are challenged, and where we are sent back out into life and ministry with a greater hold on Him.

Laughter.  This anchor doesn’t seem to fit often with the others.  However, it is just as vital.  The capacity to laugh at oneself in a cross cultural context is a gauge, in one sense, of how well are lives are founded upon Christ.  If we are unable to laugh at ourselves when we confuse again the ‘ou’ sound with the ‘u’ sound, for example, after years of living in a culture, then our value may be based more on my desire for language fluency, or on what others think of me, or on a desire to avoid the shame of just not measuring up.

None of these anchors are ‘for sale’ anywhere, but you will ‘find’ them in authentic relationship with fellow believers (both expat and national).

Filed under: Community, Crossing cultures, Gospel, Grace | 6 Comments »

The cultural bridge

Posted on December 3, 2015 by wtdavid

A friend of ours was over for dinner the other night.  During the meal, he turned to us and said, “It’s really hard to always feel like a foreigner in this country.”  Yes, his home country is far away from here. However, he has lived in Europe now for over ten years.  Yet he still does not feel ‘at home’ here.

He has not yet crossed the cultural bridge.cultural bridge

‘Crossing the cultural bridge’ means that we adopt as our own the culture in which we find ourselves; drawing on all that is good in that new culture, building on all that is good from our home culture.  It is not an easy journey across that bridge and it doesn’t happen overnight.  We benefit from people encouraging us who have already made the ‘crossing’.  We profit from the insight and wisdom of cultural guides from that new culture.

It’s like the proverbial wooden swinging bridge across a ravine.  Your first thought is to back away from the bridge and start thinking of all the reasons why it is not worth crossing the bridge. Then a friend comes along and encourages you onto the bridge.  Things go fine until the bridge starts swaying, and your immediate reaction is to backtrack to the start.  However, the encouraging words and patience of your friend draw you across the bridge.  After what seems like an eternity you find yourself on the other side, sighing a great sigh of relief.

We have that same feeling of relief when we ‘cross the cultural bridge’. However, at times we may find ourselves backpedaling, backtracking to the bridge.  We can find ourselves being pulled back across the bridge, questioning the adopted culture in which we now live.

When you hear yourself regularly criticizing the culture where you now live, you may be backtracking onto the cultural bridge.

When you notice that all of your close friends are people from your home passport country, you may be backtracking onto the cultural bridge.

When you find yourself stumbling for words in a conversation with your neighbor because you haven’t given much time recently to the language, you may be backtracking onto the cultural bridge.

When you hear yourself often saying: “Well, in our culture, that would never happen because …”, you may be backtracking onto the cultural bridge.

A friend helped you get across the bridge. A friend and cultural guide can keep you from backtracking to the bridge, and can help you keep moving forward on the cross cultural path.

 

Filed under: Crossing cultures, Friendship | 6 Comments »

Why?

Posted on December 1, 2015 by wtdavid

It’s been almost two week since the events of November 13th here in Paris.  Many of you are aware of the tragedies that took place.  Many of you have been much in prayer for the people of France since that time.  In the first few hours and days afterwards, one question was often on the lips of people: why?we are paris

The question can come in a variety of forms, but it can be reduced most times to that one simple word: why? The question is not unknown to the biblical writers (read Habakkuk), but my effort here is not to try and tease out reasonable answers to a difficult and complex question.  Rather, I want to focus on how we ‘serve’ others in such times; how to create a safe context, a Gospel context, for those around us to be able ‘get things off their chest’, so to speak, and grapple with the conflicting feelings of their heart.

Several ideas come quickly to mind …

First, tell yourself every 30 seconds into any conversation: “It’s not about me!” Whether we might agree with the following statement or not, most of us enjoy talking about ourselves.  Most of us enjoy talking about ourselves (our pains, our joys, or our struggles) more than we do in listening to others.  However, to facilitate others in addressing the pain and fear they may feel, we cannot be the center; especially if want others to ‘wrestle’ with God.

Next, have 3-4 questions always ready at hand; questions that are not the usual ‘yes-no’ questions, but which guide the other person into more self-reflection.  Good questions don’t just come to mind.  Reflective questions that need to be answered by more than just ‘yes’ or ‘no’, take time to formulate.  So, work a few questions prior to any conversation. Bounce them off others for their input.

Next, don’t argue in the place of God.  Gently push people to bring their anger, their resentment, and their pain to God.  He is big enough to handle all that anyone can throw at Him.  Our role is to ensure that people know that God will listen and is sensitive to their call, not necessarily to try and answer all the questions people ask.

Finally, don’t be afraid of silence.  Talking with colleagues recently, they said that sometimes when you ask a person a reflective question, you just need to “leave it there.”  In other words, don’t answer for them, let them grapple with the issue.

Self forgetfulness is never easy. It is hard, very hard to put others needs above our own.  Yet, Jesus will continue to work that into our hearts by the Gospel as we step out and seek to ‘serve others’ in the ways suggested above.

Filed under: Facilitation, Listening | Leave a comment »

A season of renewal

Posted on November 13, 2015 by wtdavid

Some of us have already begun talking about the Christmas season!  That season of the year when our hearts turn to thinking in particular about the birth of our Lord and Savior; a time when individually and collectively as a community of believers we reflect on the deep meaning of the incarnation.renewal

However, that ‘time of renewal’ should not be limited to just one season of the year, and particularly for us a movement of workers committed to seeing disciples and new communities of believers raised up and multiplied.

Read the quote below from Tim K and his book, Center Church, and simply replace the word ‘church’ by World Team.  Then reflect on what it might mean for us as an agency, as a movement of committed workers to Christ:

“A practical key to maintaining an organized organism is experiencing a season of renewal in the church or organization that parallels the way an individual person is spiritually renewed.  There must be times for what the Bible calls “covenant renewal.” Israel was brought into its original covenant relationship with God at Mount Sinai in Exodus 19-20, and the nation was formed as God’s people and called to live in a particular way in the world.  Whenever Israel faced a major new chapter in their journey, however, they were led through a season of covenant renewal – in Joshua 24, before they entered the promised land; in 1 Samuel12, before they received a king; and in Nehemiah 8-9, as they returned from the Babylonian exile.  These times of covenant renewal always had three parts: (1) the people returned to biblical texts in order to remember the things God had called them to do and be; (2) they looked forward to the next chapter; to the new challenges facing them; and (3) they rededicated their lives and resources to God for the next stage of the journey.  This renewal must happened frequently in any church for it to remain an organized organism.  It also prepares the church to be an active and generous participant in the movement dynamics in its city.”

Filed under: Mission, Renewal | 2 Comments »

Learning to align

Posted on November 10, 2015 by wtdavid

Several years ago, Tim A. wrote a blog post with the title: “The Nine Critical Shifts that must take place in missions today”.  It is well worth a read. shift

The first shift that he mentioned was: “Moving from being primarily doers to being primarily equippers of national workers.” Facilitation is one of the core guiding principles of World Team.  However, words on a page do not always translate well into specific changes in our practices by default.  Three changes, at least, ought to happen in our day to day approach to ministry for us to better align ourselves with facilitation.

First, change our often used vocabulary.  I hear myself and many of us say with a sense of overwhelm: “I’m just so busy. There are so many things I need to get done.”  Moving towards facilitation, I would hope to hear myself and others start saying: “To whom could I give this task? Who has capacity to take on this job?”

Next, find our joy not in being platformed, but in platforming others.  It is understandable that our calling to cross cultural ministry often pushes us to centre stage. However, the overwhelming assurance that our calling depends entirely on God should create a deeper humility in our hearts.  We should move more quickly to putting the interests of others above our own (Philippians 2:3) and look to platform them into ministry.

Finally, operate from the principle that less truly is more.  Letting others discover the truths of the Scriptures and their application has more lasting fruit in the life of another.  Facilitating drives us to open ‘spaces’ where people can take limited but solid content shared and work out its impact on their lives, on their own and in small groups.  Maybe that three day training could be shared in two hours with the rest of the time given over to personal and small group discussion and application?

Actually, when we move from being primarily doers to equippers, a movement and the multiplication of disciples is more likely to be nurtured to life.

Filed under: Facilitation, Gospel, Humility | Leave a comment »

A ‘gospel assessment’ grid to consider

Posted on September 24, 2015 by wtdavid

assess yourselfEver thought about how well our words are communicating the Gospel? The quote below might help us better assess whether the focus is more on us or more on Christ:

“The gospel is not ultimately about us and what we can and can’t do or what we will or won’t do. It is all about Christ and what he has done to rescue lost sinners and make them fellow heirs of eternal life. May God give us hearts that join [John] Newton increasingly in celebrating the extravagant and incomparable love of God to us in Christ!

O the comfort! We are not under law but under grace. The gospel is a dispensation for sinners, and we have an Advocate with the Father. There is the unshaken ground of hope. A reconciled Father, a prevailing Advocate, a powerful Shepherd, a compassionate Friend, a Savior who is able and willing to save to the uttermost. He knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust; and has opened for us a new and blood-besprinkled way of access to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in every time of need.”

Filed under: Assessment, Communication, Gospel | Leave a comment »

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