Being a Model

I believe that my role as a Western missionary in a non-Western, creative-access location is NOT to be the evangelist who wins all the people to Christ, or the pastor who counsels and comforts all the believers.  My role is not to be the preacher in the church or to be the leader of the Christian community. 

I firmly believe that it is my role to train and equip national believers to do those ministries.  I can disciple, train and teach leaders, but I must be doing it in a way that is equipping them to go out and do it with more people.  I can help mobilize them to do it one way or another that doesn't cause dependency. 

But what I've also found is that I have to model what I want them to do.  If I don't, I have a hard time training them to do it.  I can teach them an evangelistic message to share, but they don't really get trained in evangelism until I take them with me and show them how to do it "live."  If they don't see it in action, chances are they won't really put it into practice.

So, I've been setting aside time lately just to go visit non-believers in a way that I would like to see our disciples do so.  I have a short gospel message and my own testimony ready to go each time, no matter who I visit.  And I also try to take my disciples with me.  Not only can they help, but they get to see it modeled.  I am finding that this makes all the difference. 

Sheep Rustlers

One of the saddest parts about being a missionary is when missionaries fight over nationals.  Now, you would think this would never happen.  You would think, that for all our theological and philosophical differences, we would still all agree not to steal each other's sheep.  You would think that, wouldn't you?

I know that some (most?) missionaries who do "steal sheep" do so unintentionally or without realizing that this is what they are doing.  Sometimes missionaries just feel they are building relationships in the wider national Christian community and then "following opportunities."  Sometimes they offer free financial assistance more readily than others and unwittingly draw nationals to them who feel they can get more from the new guy.  Sometimes they just think what they're doing is better than what you're doing and they are justified in pulling someone away from you. 

But with all the fish in the sea...

There are an ocean of unreached people here in The Location and in most of the Least Reached World (10/40 Window, or whatever you want to call it).  Why do we fight over a few of them? 

I have made it my policy to try to find and work with locals who have no connections with other full-time foreign missionaries.  It's not because I have anything against those who do.  It's just that I want to maximize the effectiveness of ALL of our efforts.  I don't want to be accused by others of stealing their sheep, nor do I want to be guilty of that.

Movement ← Multiplication ← Reproducibility ← Simplicity

No one can make a church multiplication movement happen except God.  We can pray for it and plead with him for it.  But we can't make it happen by the force of our will alone. 

Preventing one is kind of useless, too.  Especially if the movement has already gained a lot of momentum.  Then we would do best to take Gamaliel's advice--"Leave these men alone! Let them go!  For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail.  But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God."

But if a movement has yet to begin, it is possible to do things in a way that prevents it from starting (apart from a sovereign act of God) and hinders its progress.  So, what we must learn is to do things in a way that leave the possibility of a movement happening and to pray that God grants that it is so. 

I like to think of it in reverse order:  A movement only happens when there is multiplication.  Multiplication only happens where there is reproducibility.  Reproducibility happens only if the processes and activities are simple enough for almost anyone in the population to do it.

So there you have it--do things simply so that it will be reproducible and lead to the possibility of being multiplied into a movement.

Trump Card

Just another thought regarding the Location post I just made...

When it comes to our attitudes and actions, the Bible certainly teaches us (look at 1 Corinthians 13) that love is the biggest trump card.

I have seen this to be true in ministry. People who aren't "cool," people who aren't up on all the latest technology, and people who don't know a lot about pop culture or what's on TV are still VERY effective in ministry when they simply, truly and generously love people from the heart.

Love is the big trump card.

Location

In retail business there is one aspect of your enterprise that is not only critically important--it is exclusively important. Meaning, if this aspect isn't good, then it matters very little how well you do in every other aspect. What is it?

Location.

That's right, you've heard it before: Location, location, location.

The axiom is that you want to be located where people already are going by and can easily stop in. You don’t want to be somewhere where you have to try to draw them in with your product—no matter how wonderful that product is.

That is the point about location—A good location beats a good product. A good location beats sub-par service. Bad businesses (with inferior products or substandard service) can do well in good locations. Good businesses (with superior products and services) do poorly in bad locations.

Location is a trump card. A good location beats all the other things you can do (or fail to do) to make your business prosper. It almost seems unfair. Why should a mismanaged and inferior enterprise do better than your own? Because it has a better position. You may be able to sink 65% of your three-pointers, but all they do is make 98% of their lay-ups.

That is why it is much more important to spend more time and energy (and resources) on securing a good location for your business than spending it on logos, advertising, or even employee training. If location is a trump card for all these other things, businesses are wise to go after the best locations, first, before investing in so many other things.

So… what does this mean for ministry? Are there “locations” in our society we can try to “secure” in order to make it almost impossible to fail?

I’m mulling this one over… I could see “locations” for ministry in three ways:

1. Physical location of our services. And I don’t just mean “services” in terms of meetings (although, that is a part of it, too), but of any kind of service/ministry we would offer to the public who needs it. If we are in places where people are at already, it will make it much easier to serve them. We will have more people who accept the service we have to offer. Even though I’ve listed this first, it just might be the most important.
   
2. Cultural location. This just means doing things according to the “culture” of where people are at. Call it being culturally relevant, if you like.
   
3. Mental location. This means we are dealing with the exact issues that are in people’s minds as to why they are where they are with God. Now, this doesn’t mean the “real” issues. Sometimes real issues are subconscious. These are the conscious issues in people’s minds—what they think about God, about others who believe in God, about organized religion and about where they fit in the eternal scheme of things. These are the kinds of things Paul was talking about when he made the “take every thought captive” comment. (No, he actually wasn’t talking about lust.)

Securing a good location is “getting a corner on the market.” It is positioning ourselves right under the basket so that we can make the highest percentage shots possible. The question is—how do we get to that location in the communities we are trying to reach?

With Or Without God's Help

I am all for excellence in ministry.

I am all for planning and preparation.

I am all for trying to make a difference.

I am all for social research and the understanding of human dynamics.

I am all for using technology in ministry.

I am all for using money and resources in ministry.

I am all for purposing for results rather than relying on wishful thinking.

I am all for organization, programs and systems.

I think all of the above are a matter of good stewardship with the opportunities, time and resources we are given.

But there is one thing that makes me uncomfortable when I've been a part of such ministries or ministry planning--It's almost like we're saying to God when we purpose to serve him: We will build your kingdom with or without your help.

And something about that just isn't right.

I think it's the difference between praying and saying a prayer. You know what I mean? We spend an hour in planning relying on all of our human powers, resources and wisdom, and then we say a 30 second prayer to "bless" it all. Then we claim that this was God's will.

What if God would not have us use our own wisdom but would have us simply do one thing: Every day spend an hour in prayer and his Word. Listen to his voice. Then obey what he wants us to do. What would happen? How can this be done as a group/team rather than just as an individual?

Missionary Material 4

I used to think that everyone who majored in business majored in greed. In fact I had a roommate once who was a business major and on one occasion I commented to him that he and all the other business students are majoring in greed. He kind of smirked and said, "For most people--that's about right!"

For many people business and ministry cannot mix. Business exists to make money. Ministry exists to save souls. And money is what those of us in ministry are often fighting against in trying to save all those souls from loving it more than God. So, in many ways, business and ministry are enemies.

Many Christians think the Bible says something to the effect of "Money is the root of all evil."

It does, doesn't it?

Well, no, it doesn't.

Here's the verse you're thinking of:

"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." 1 Timothy 6:10

Money in and of itself is neutral. The sin is to LOVE money. The sin is to SEEK money before God. The sin is to HOARD money that we have when we could use it to help people in need.

So, business, like money, is neutral. It is no more sinful to do business than it is to have money.

But for many of us... we reject anything from the realm of business because we assume that if your purpose is to make a profit then you must not have pure motives. At the end of the day... we assume... you're in it for the money!

I've written elsewhere about ways we can do business and shield ourselves from the temptations of profits. But as I read through much of the Bible and as I learn more about business I am starting to see that business, in a lot of ways, is a lot like good stewardship. It's a lot like trying to make smart financial decisions. And, if you look at it one way, anyone who has and uses any amount of money is already doing business.

You work at a job and get paid. That is how you make money. You then use this money to buy food and clothes and also pay for your car and your house. When you buy a house, you have to be careful not to spend too much or your salary will not be able to keep up with it. Sometimes things get tight and you have to plan your purchases carefully. At the end of the day, you are selling your services (by doing your job) and then you are managing your expenses the best you can so that you will hopefully end up with a little to save each month. Hey, don't look now, but--You're doing business!

If we manage our expenses poorly we go into debt, are forced to sell assets or we have to live without for a period of time. We probably all have experience at this. So...

Why not learn to do business right? Could learning about good business practices be a matter of good stewardship?

I am reading a very good book now that I think every high-school student should study. That's right--high school! I have gone all of these years (after having majored in science and theology) and have never been taught these things that I believe would be a good idea to include as required high-school or college general education curriculum. The book?

The Complete Idiot's Guide to MBA Basics

It's not rocket science and don't let the "MBA" part fool you--it doesn't take a business whiz to grasp the concepts. Also, don't let the "Idiot" part fool you, either--that just means this book assumes no prior knowledge in the business discipline. Good for guys like me.

So, how about that young missionary wannabe who wants to know how to become an effective missionary in a very unreached part of the world? Well, I'm not saying you HAVE to do BAM, but I think it is a very good option that will allow you to get to and involved in so many places that would never accept someone who just has a Missions degree from a Bible college. And, depending upon the kind of business you do, you will likely need to get training in something else, too, besides missiology.

Missionary Material 3

A young high-school or college-aged student has recently become a Christian and is "on fire" for Christ. While this fire is still burning brightly he goes on a mission trip (to Mexico or Haiti, of course) and then it hits him: He wants to be a missionary! This is indeed what God is calling him to do.

Now what?

Seriously, now what? What does someone do to become a missionary? Where does someone go to find out what it takes to become a missionary?

Perhaps it is his youth pastor? Or maybe his church's senior minister? Maybe he should just google "missionary" online and see what he gets. (Yeah, maybe not!) Or would someone down at the Bible college know about how someone becomes a missionary?

It is frightening the kinds of advice this young man is going to get from all of these different quarters. Many will smile real big and say, "Great!" while inside they are saying, "You'll never make it!" Others will overtly try to talk him out of the idea or question God's calling of him. Some with try to psychoanalyze him and say he is being eccentric because of pent-up angst stemming from being bullied or neglected as a child. There will always be the multitude of people saying that you don't have to be a missionary to be a Christian and that good works do not earn us salvation. (When did that become the issue?) A few will be impressed. Most will assume it is just a phase.

Then some will point this young man to the traditional means by which many people have become missionaries for centuries: Theological training institutions. The young man visits such an institution and meets people who indeed advise him on how he can become a missionary if he's really committed. This includes theological training and graduating with a theological degree, ordination to missionary service and then commissioning to the field through a missionary or denominational agency.

So... what's the problem with all of this, you might ask?

Our world has changed. Traditional ways of doing missions only works in places that allow traditional missions. And you know what? The vast majority of people who are unreached and have never been given the opportunity to follow Christ live in places where traditional missionaries are not welcome.

What's a young missionary wannabe to do?

I'll share some of my thoughts in my next post.

The Approach

In regards to my thoughts from the Jesus' Discipleship series, the Dependency Mission series, What is BAM?, Go Inter, National Tentmakers and the Blessings of Restricted Access, I wanted to write a little more in summary of our approach here at The Location...

1. Business as Missions--using business to (1) gain access to the country and unreached peoples, (2) have a way to associate with people as non-clergy and in an understandable fashion, thus building relationship where the good news can be shared, (3) have a positive economic and physical effect on the lives of the poorest peoples, and (4) create a sustainable model that doesn't continually depend on outside sources of funds to operate.

2. Discipleship Training--training young interns in a discipleship fashion similar to how Jesus trained his 12 disciples (community living, doing ministry together in the community, responding to events/issues, giving them opportunities) along with an intensive Bible study program and agricultural (or vocational) courses. Training them to beware of the Christian ministry "ruts" that too many young passionate believers fall into: Using Christianity as a way to get rich and move away from the needy, or to get respect, titles, authority, etc. Instead, training them to work with their own hands and gain the respect of outsiders.

3. National Tentmaking--Setting up qualified disciples of Christ in unreached places where they can do business to support themselves and do ministry as well, planting communities of Christ-followers wherever they go.

All three of these things have to work together. Without one of the three, there would be some major gaps.

Now, I want to do this on a larger scale and for a longer time before I really start promoting this model. I know there are some lessons still to learn. But I really believe in this approach for The Location.

Actually, I am also asking myself... Why wouldn't this approach work in America or elsewhere? Your thoughts?