From Forest Hills Church in Charlotte, North Carolina: Watch this reminder that we have much to be thankful for.
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Greetings, readers! We’re thankful for the chance to serve you and grateful to our families and colleagues who continue to give us the freedom to keep this thing rolling. Much thanks!
Quick question for you as we head into the last month of 2017:
Source: ECFA ReachGlobal
Need ESL training? Building Bridges with English might be just what you need. This 25-hour course is geared toward missionaries, volunteers in church-based ESL programs in the US, and Christians who have a heart for reaching out by tutoring English. The four-week course (with orientation the week preceding) is facilitated by ESL professionals. Most find the course requires 4-6 hours per week.
The course includes audio, video, interactive lessons, quizzes, PowerPoint presentations, readings, online discussions, and practical application assignments. Participants also have access to a library of ESL resources with hundreds of free tips, ideas, lesson plans, worksheets, templates, and even a number of free, downloadable books and teaching manuals.
The next course offering will be January 15 to February 18, 2018.
» Learn more or register for the course. The cost is US$75.
Source: Peregrini Press
The Advent of Relationship, by T.J. MacLeslie. Peregrini Press, 2017. 66 pages.
“Have you ever been alienated from a loved one? Have you ever been estranged from a friend? Have you experienced separation where you desire connection, distance where you want closeness?
“I have. I have experienced geographic distance, as I have lived across the sea from my family and friends. But I have also known what it is to be physically close but a million miles away in the heart.
“Relationship is the root and trunk of the universe. God designed and created us for life with him. We are hard-wired for relationship. But we messed up. Both corporately and individually we have made mistakes (some of them willful) that have broken our relationship with the Community that is our Trinitarian God.”
T.J. MacLeslie is the author of several books we’ve highlighted here before. This one is a devotional which includes only glancing references to cross-cultural ministry. I think, however, you’ll appreciate its portrayal of many of the dynamics of walking with the God who took on flesh… and living out our faith in relationships.
» Purchase The Advent of Relationship from Amazon for US$5.99 (paperback) or US$2.99 (Kindle) to read and meditate on alone or with others during the Advent season.
» For something a little lighter to do with your kids, download Kate & Mack’s 12 Days of Christmas and learn how 12 different countries celebrate (Wycliffe Bible Translators). It’s free but requires registration.
Source: Global Missions Podcast
Got 25 minutes for a podcast? The November 7 edition of the Global Missions Pocast features Ted Esler of Missio Nexus providing an overview of how the North American church is participating in missions. He highlights three major trends and gives advice about how to respond.
» Listen to the podcast or skim the show notes. See also the North American Mission Handbook (reviewed in our October edition).
Source: UnMissions.net Events Calendar
“So you have always wanted to take the Perspectives on the World Christian Movement class but could never make it work out with your schedule. It always happened to be on a night of the week which wouldn’t work,” write mission advocates Joe Steinitz and Dave Shive of unmissions.net. “How about cramming a semester’s worth of Perspectives into one week?”
“You can still do the reading before and after the class itself, but you’ll have one week exposure to multiple teachers. Definitely worth the investment. Great for pastors, missionaries, and others who can’t make it to a weekly class spread over four months.”
Upcoming intensives will be offered in Pennsylvania (January 7-13), Florida (March 4-10), and Texas (July 22-28).
» Check out these classes. About 160 regular 15-week classes launch across the US in January. Online classes start throughout the year.
» Kairos, too, is offering one-week intensives, this winter in North Carolina (January 3-10) and Kentucky (January 15-19), as well as classes in Spanish and Korean. And don’t forget PathWays to Global Understanding, though their website doesn’t list 2018 courses yet.
Source: Missions Catalyst Events Calendar
December 5-7, Finishing the Task Conference (Lake Forest, CA, USA).
December 7, The Porn Phenomenon and Its Potential Impace on Mission Recruitment and Retention (online). Webinar from Missio Nexus.
December 12-13, Support Raising Bootcamp (Orlando, FL, USA). Provided by Support Raising Solutions.
December 17, Mobilizing the Church for the World (online). Webinar from Missio Nexus.
December 26-29, Chinese Mission Convention (Ontario, CA, USA). An annual gathering.
» View the complete calendar. We’re posting more and more 2018 listings now. Please let us know about mistakes or omissions. For more about a specific event, though, you should contact the event organizers.