May 2018 – Missions Catalyst

Mobilizing Prayer | Missions Catalyst Resource Reviews

Missions Catalyst Resource Reviews 05.23.18

Greetings!

Samuel Zwemer said, “The history of missions is the history of answered prayer.” This video, part of a series on best practices for mission mobilization, makes a case for the priority of mobilizing prayer in our missions mobilization efforts (GlobalCAST Resources). Take a look, then check out some of their other resources.

This was on my mind when I heard from a group of like-minded people in Southeastern Europe—gearing up for focused disciple-making efforts in Bosnia—who are currently seeking at least 10,000 people to join them in prayer. Watch a short video about it or learn more at Pray4Bosnia.com.

Faithfulness in prayer can have a much more local face as well. Watch Drive-Thru Prayers to learn how one group of believers offering a unique ministry to their Texas community (Deidox Austin).

Keep reading for more tools to help you learn, grow, or equip others.

blessings,
Marti

ARTICLE: 30-Day Spiritual Preparation Guide for Your Mission Trip

Source: Sagemont Church, via the Traveling Team

In the midst of getting a passport, raising support, and packing a suitcase for a mission trip, it’s easy to forget the most important form of preparation: spiritual preparation. This 30-day Bible reading guide is designed to help you do just that. Take at least 15 minutes a day to read each passage, meditate on its truths, and pray for your upcoming trip.

» Get the guide. Just a web page; nothing to buy, register for, or download.

» See also these articles about mission trips (ShortTermMissions.com) and/or consider picking up a book like Cindy Judge’s Before You Pack Your Bag, Prepare Your Heart.

PRAYER GUIDE: The 31 Largest Frontier People Groups

Source: Inherit the Nations

A quarter of the world’s people are part of what this booklet calls frontier people groups, those with virtually no believers and no evident movement to Jesus bringing God’s promised blessings to families. Half of that population belongs to these 31 groups… some of which many of us may know nothing about.

Will you pray for them? How about adopting a group to pray for this year? Looks like most of the information in this resource is drawn from the Joshua Project website, but it’s framed with additional commentary.

» Download the booklet for free from Inherit the Nations (or from partner ministries) and watch a short video about their vision for unreached peoples and places and how you can be part of it.

» See also the International Day for the Unreached website where you can watch the IDU 2018 broadcast (90 minutes), download a Great Commission Action Guide, and more.

BOOKS: A Good Missions Intro

Source: Missions Catalyst readers

Recently Brad in Michigan asked, “What book do you recommend to a church when they need a short general intro to missions? Who writes this stuff in a really good way?”

Much depends on what you hope to accomplish and the interests and attention span of your audience, but consider these 15 suggestions. I’ll just list them alphabetically by author.

1. Steve Beirn’s Well Sent: Reimagining the Church’s Missionary Sending Process (read our review)

2. Paul Borthwick’s A Mind for Missions: Ten Ways to Build Your World Vision

3. Paul Borthwick’s How to Be a World-Class Christian: Becoming Part of God’s Global Kingdom

4. Mike Breen’s Building a Discipleship Culture

5. Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert’s When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty without Hurting the Poor… and Yourself

6. Kevin DeYoung’s What Is the Mission of the Church? Making Sense of Social Justice, Shalom, and the Great Commission

7. J.D. Greear’s Gaining by Losing: Why the Future Belongs to Churches that Send

8. David Horner’s When Missions Shapes the Mission: You and Your Church Can Reach the World (read our review)

9. Jason Mandryk’s Operation World: The Definitive Prayer Guide to Every Nation (read our review)

10. Paul McGuiness’ Walk This Way: A Better Path to Global Engagement (read our review)

11. Richard Noble’s On Mission Together: Integrating Missions into the Local Church (due out this fall; we’ll try to review it for you then)

12. John Piper’s Let the Nations Be Glad: The Supremacy of God in Missions

13. Denny Spitters and Matthew Ellison’s When Everything Is Missions (read our review)

14. Richard Stearns’s The Hole in Our Gospel: What Does God Expect of Us?

15. Storyline: Discovering Your Story in God’s Global Mission (read our review)

» See our Google doc for links and comments. What would you add?

BOOK: Engaging the Church to Mobilize Missionaries

Source: William Carey Library

Pipeline: Engaging the Church in Missionary Mobilization, by David and Lorene Wilson. William Carey Library, 2018. 368 pages.

This one just came out May 1. Unlike the volumes mentioned above, it’s built around contributions from some 40 cross-cultural workers and church and agency leaders, many sharing firsthand accounts from their ministry experiences.

This book addresses a wide variety of topics for sending churches, including the call to missions, obstacles to overcome, mobilizing and equipping the church to send missionaries, and partnering with organizations. One disclaimer: I haven’t read it yet. Have you? Let me know what you think.

» Purchase from William Carey for US$15.99 or get the Kindle edition from Amazon for US$9.99. See also the author’s website which includes links to resources mentioned in the book.

EVENTS: What’s Coming up in June

Source: Missions Catalyst Events Calendar

June 1-2, People Raising Conference (Oak Brook, IL, USA). Be equipped for raising personal support.

June 2-3, World Weekend of Prayer for Children at Risk (international). Coordinated by the Viva Network.

June 4-15, Engaging Islam Institute (Beirut, Lebanon). Training event from Horizons International.

June 4 to September 2, Encountering the World of Islam (online).

June 5-6, Support Raising Bootcamp (Orlando, FL, USA). Provided by Support Raising Solutions.

June 7-9, Emerge Business Summit (Colorado Springs, CO, USA). Be affirmed, confirmed, and empowered to do missional business in nations.

June 18-22, Christian Community Development Conference (Stuttgart, Germany).

June 20, World Refugee Day (international). Many churches observe this with prayer the Sunday before or after.

June 20-23, Field Security Seminar (Lake George, CO, USA). Prepare to live, work, and travel in high-risk environments.

June 20-30, Breath Conference (Wilderswil, Switzerland). Rest and renewal retreat for cross-cultural workers.

June 21-23, National African-American Missions Conference (McLean, VA, USA).

June 26-28, Amplify Conference (Naperville, IL, USA). Evangelism conference from the Billy Graham Center at Wheaton College.

June 27-30, Illuminate Missions Conference (Greenwood, IN, USA). Sponsored by One Mission Society.

June 27-30, International Conference on Computing and Missions (Hannibal, MO, USA).

» View the complete calendar. Please let us know about mistakes or omissions. For more details, contact the event organizers.

All God’s Children | World News Briefs

Missions Catalyst News Briefs 05.16.18

2018 global christian pop

This edition includes several stories from Africa—now, for the first time, home to more Christians than any other continent. Full infographic from Gordon-Conwell’s Center for the Study of Global Christianity looks at the global status of Christianity in 2018.

WORLD: Celebrate Cultural Diversity Day

Source: Wycliffe Bible Translators, May 10, 2018

Did you know that May 21 is World Day of Cultural Diversity? It’s a day set aside to celebrate and appreciate the beauty of cultural diversity around the world.

God made all of us and he loves us all so much—no matter where we live or what language we speak! Teach your kids the importance of valuing diversity—and all God’s children around the world—with these fun ideas on experiencing another culture right from your own community (PDF).

» Full story. Want to start celebrating cultural diversity in your kitchen? Download Wycliffe’s new international cookbook for kids. When you sign up, you’ll also get their monthly email with free activities and lessons for kids.

» Also read Saying Yes First, the story of one Texas church transformed into a multicultural community (AG News). Encouraging. This issue of News Briefs ends with another story from the Assemblies of God. See below.

PAKISTAN: Top Judge to Hear Asia Bibi’s Appeal

Source: World Watch Monitor, April 26, 2018

Pakistan’s chief justice says he will decide, “soon,” the fate of Aasiya Noreen, a Christian woman whose 2009 conviction on blasphemy charges has fixated world attention on the country’s treatment of religious minorities.

Chief Justice Saqib Nisar told Noreen’s lawyer, Saif-ul-Malook, on April 21 that he would hear the woman’s appeal. Noreen, popularly known as Asia Bibi, has been imprisoned since 2009.

“Be ready, Saif-ul-Malook. I am going to fix your case soon and I myself will preside over the bench,” the Catholic news service UCAN reported Nisar as saying.

“Bibi’s family and everyone else who understands her ordeal [is] ecstatic at the news that her appeal will be heard soon,” Malook told UCAN. According to Pakistan Today, the Chief Justice also said that all criminal appeals before the Supreme Court will be decided by July. The report did not explicitly mention Noreen’s case, but it is a criminal matter.

Noreen, a Catholic mother of five children, was arrested for allegedly making derogatory comments about Islam’s prophet, Muhammad, during an argument with a Muslim woman. She has been in prison ever since and was sentenced to death for blasphemy a year later.

» See full story with links and pictures.

» Grieved about levels of religious conflict in today’s world? Read Four Simple Ways to Love your Muslim Friends this Ramadan (Crescent Project).

INDONESIA: Family Launches Suicide Attacks

Source: Open Doors, May 13, 2018

As we [were celebrating] Mother’s Day in the US, it’s almost unconscionable to think about a mother who would prepare a suicide bomb—alongside her two young daughters (aged 9 and 12)—and detonate the bomb inside a church. And a father who would drive a truck bomb in front of a church and do the same—and direct his young sons to suit up in suicide vests on motorcycles to attack yet another church.

But this is what happened in Indonesia on Sunday.

Three bombs exploded across three churches in Indonesia’s Surabaya, capital of East Java province, on Sunday morning (May 13) while Christians gathered to worship.

At least ten people were killed in the attack—including worshippers, a suicide bomber, and several police officers. Over 40 others were injured.

CNN reported that the attacks were planned and executed by one family—including a husband, wife, and four children. The investigation reported that the family was involved in a terrorist group with ties to ISIS.

The explosions took place at a Catholic church (Santa Maria), a Protestant church (GKI Diponegoro), and a Pentecostal church (GPPS). CNN also reported that the blasts occurred one after another between 7:30 and 8 a.m. Three other explosives were later found at two of the church premises but were successfully defused by the bomb squad.

» Read full story. Note that later reports say the youngest daughter of this family, who survived, was eight years old, not nine.

» For more context and local commentary, see Indonesia on Maximum Security Alert Following a String of Explosions in East Java (Global Voices). Also read a more encouraging story from Indonesia, about a Christian worker now serving there. God began planting seeds for gospel ministry in her heart when she was younger than these children (Weave).