Category: Resource Reviews

Source: Standards of Excellence in Short-Term Mission

As the world thinks about opening up to travel, there will be new expectations of those mobilizing mission teams.

A handy new COVID-19 Preparedness Plan Packet was developed to guide you in the process, when the time comes, to successfully and thoughtfully mobilize missions domestically and abroad.

» Check it out. SOE has also curated other helpful resources for navigating the COVID-19 Pandemic, including some opportunities and suggestions for virtual mission trip.

Source: One World Missions, Global Great Commission Network

A new video series offers insight on some of today’s burning mission questions from those you might not hear from often. The Global Voices Project gathers mission leaders from around the world to discuss important issues. Three episodes are available so far, each of them available in smaller segments exploring specific questions:

Mobilization

• What is needed most right now in this time of crisis for the Church?
• How will this crisis create shifts in mobilization?
• Is it time to rethink how we do church and missions?
• How can we leverage our greatest assets to see a unified Church?

Mission Agencies

• How have priorities changed as you face new realities post-COVID?
• How are agencies rethinking their strategies for training and sending?
• How are agencies facilitating member care during this crisis?
• How is funding impacted, both in terms of receiving and sending?
• How important will partnerships be as we move beyond this crisis?

COVID and the Church

• How is the Church being impacted by COVID?
• How is the role of the Church being redefined?
• How do we ensure that we are being the Church in terms of ministry?
• What opportunities do you see emerging for the Church in mission?

» The series has no website  or webpage, just a YouTube playlist.

» You might also be interested in listening to a new episode on The Mission Matters podcast on Mission Trends in a Post-COVID world (Missio Nexus and Sixteen:Fifteen) or reading TrendReport 2020, on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the future of church and mission (Christian Trendwatcher; donation required).

Source: Asia Harvest Ministries

Tibet: The Roof of the World, by Paul Hattaway. Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2020. 338 pages.

The China Chronicles series is an ambitious project to document the advance of Christianity in each province of China, decade by decade, from the time the gospel was introduced to the present day. This is the fourth volume.

Tibet is vast—three times the land area of the United Kingdom or the US state of Texas, but with only a small fraction of the population. The gospel first reached Tibet some 1,500 years ago. Though their numbers remain small, more Tibetans follow Christ now than in any time in history.

This book tells the story of the courageous believers God has used to expand his kingdom in Tibetan regions (not just today’s autonomous region). As the first attempt to present an overview of all Christian activity in Tibet throughout history, it begins with accounts of Nestorian, Catholic, and Moravian missions and describes some indigenous efforts as well as the work of foreign missionaries. It’s written more as an inspirational book than an academic one but includes thorough documentation, a bibliography, and appendices.

» Learn more or purchase from Asia Harvest for US$18 or get a Kindle edition from Amazon for US$9.59. You can get a good taste of the book through the Amazon Kindle preview.

» Another new missions book promises thrilling stories and just came out this week. Read Do This for Love: Free Burma Rangers in the Battle of Mosul, by David Eubank with Hosannah Valentine (and let me know what you think). The Kindle edition is US$9.99.

Source: Missions Catalyst Events Calendar

August 3-7, ABIDE re-entry debriefing for global workers (Joplin, MO, USA). From TRAIN International; also offered October 18-23 and November 8-13.

August 3 to December 6, Perspectives on the World Christian Movement (online). A second online class starts a week later. More traditional, regionally based classes will also be offered virtually and begin in August. Find a class you can go through with others near you and invite a friend.

August 5-7, Support Raising Bootcamp (online). Virtual training from Support Raising Solutions; also offered September 22-24, October 20-22.

August 6, Reaching Nations in the USA Through Sports (online). Webinar provided by Missio Nexus.

August 7-21, ABIDE re-entry debriefing for global workers (online). From TRAIN International; also offered online September 14-18, September 28 to October 2, and December 7-11.

August 9 to September 4, Equipping for Cross-Cultural Life and Ministry (Union Mills, NC, USA). Provided by the Center for Intercultural Training; next offered October 4-30.

August 11, Can STM Really Be A Gateway to Long-Term Missions? (online). Webinar from the Standards of Excellence in Short-Term Mission.

August 12-13, How to Inspire God’s People for Their Global Destiny (online; two time slots). Webinar on mobilization from GlobalCast Resources and YWAM Frontier Missions.

August 20, A World Without Orphans: Understanding the Movement Away from Orphanages (online). Webinar from Missio Nexus.

August 27-29, Virtual Field Security Seminar (online). From Crisis Consulting International.

August 31 to September 13, ORIENT pre-field training for global workers (Eminence, MO, USA). From TRAIN International.

» View complete calendar. Submissions and corrections welcome. We will continue to make updates about canceled and postponed events.

Greetings!

My boss’s boss grew up as a missionary kid in a remote jungle. At a recent online staff meeting he told us, “My job is to navigate the canoe as effectively as I can in the currents in which we find ourselves.”

Are you feeling the currents? Trying to stay on mission? Seeking to adapt to crises and calls for change? Or maybe you’re grieving some losses. This month’s resources may help. I hope you know you’re not alone.

Blessings,
Marti

In This Issue:

1. BOOK: Practicing Hope—Missions and Global Crises
2. WEB SERVICE: The Missions App
3. BIBLE STUDY: Step In Small Group Curriculum
4. PODCASTS: Mission Leaders Speak to Current Events
5. ARTICLE: Biblical Lament
6. EVENTS: Happening in July, Mostly Online

Practicing Hope: Missions and Global Crises, edited by Jerry Ireland and Michelle Raven. William Carey Publishing and the Evangelical Missiological Society, 2020. 216 pages.

This new book brings together global scholars and practitioners who share and think broadly about the Church’s mission in a world rife with crises. Rather than harmonizing the voices of the contributors to provide general guidelines for generic crisis response, Practicing Hope allows the reader to hear multiple perspectives on complex issues such as sustainability, empowerment, human rights, biblical principles, and the mission of God.

The 12 essays were written for the Evangelical Missiological Society (EMS) before the struggles we’ve faced in 2020, as the introduction acknowledges, but their release now is certainly timely.

» Learn more or purchase the Kindle edition for US$9.99 or less. A paperback edition will come out July 20 and sell for US$14.99.

» Are missiologists your tribe? Consider attending this year’s EMS national conference coming up October 9-10. It will be online and inexpensive. I’m planning to attend.

Are you or someone you know trying to find a mission agency that fits? The Mission App is a new service that allows users to fill out a single initial application and be matched with appropriate agencies based on criteria the user defines. Twenty agencies are participating at this point.

» Learn more. While you’re there, check out their blog with helpful articles for aspiring missionaries.

» Speaking of mission agencies—if you lead one, the publishers of the North American Mission Handbook could use your help. Fill out a questionnaire to have information about your organization included in the next edition.

Source: Global Frontier Missions

Step In is a free, five-week, small-group study designed to provide Christ-centered education and missional exposure to believers of all ages.

• Step One: Discover Your Purpose (God’s heart for his glory)
• Step Two: Develop Your Perspective (the mission of God)
• Step Three: Assess Your Place (the task remaining)
• Step Four: Shift Your Paradigm (the gospel and culture)
• Step Five: Modify Your Position (everyone is a disciple maker)

Each lesson is pithy, practical, and can be taught via Zoom.

Registration required to access materials. Looks like they’re also trying to build up and equip a network of regional facilitators, so you can indicate your interest in that there, too.

» Learn more. You might also want to look at a new video series from GFM making a case for pre-field ministry training.

Like to learn by listening? Here are two interesting episodes from podcasts we’ve highlighted before, plus two podcasts that are relatively new.

Leaving Your Host Country During a Pandemic

Source: Taking Route Podcast

Alicia Boyce describes her family’s decision to leave Indonesia and evacuate to US, how they came to that decision, and the lessons she’s learning through it. Alicia’s story will help those who stayed abroad to better understand the realities of friends who left and will encourage fellow evacuees facing the ups and downs of repatriating during a pandemic.

» Listen to the episode and others.

How COVID-19 Is Impacting Global Missions

Source: Global Missions Podcast

Ted Esler of Missio Nexus shares a high-level view of how COVID-19 is affecting evangelism, discipleship, and church-planting—and how those areas might be affected in the future. Episode also includes discussion of the death of George Floyd and diversity in missions.

» Listen to the episode and others.

Fundraising in a COVID-19 Era

Source: The Mission Matters Podcast, Missio Nexus and Sixteen:Fifteen

This new podcast was launched May 1 to engage church and agency mission leaders. The podcast is also available in video format (YouTube). The first episode includes three guests from the worlds of finance and foundations looking at giving patterns in this season.

» Listen to the episode or episode two, in which All Nations’ Pam Arlund shares about martyrdom and risk. Very thought provoking.

What to Do When the World Is Unraveling

Source: Brand New Day Podcast, One Way Ministries

Are you overwhelmed by all that’s happening in the world right now? Are you depressed, immobilized, or fatigued? God promises us we can stay rooted even when the world feels like it’s unraveling. Host Michael Thompson of OneWay Ministries—the creators of PrayerCast—gives us a simple answer in this episode of the (brand new) Brand New Day podcast.

» Listen to the episode (and others).

Source: SEND International

SEND asked all their missionaries to summarize the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of the responses reflected distress: Exhausting, overwhelming, frustrating, stressful, lonely. Can you relate? If so, perhaps it’s time to open your heart before the Lord in lament. Unrecognized grief can come out in many ways, and we don’t realize all our losses until we start to list them out.

» Read Biblical Lament: An Appropriate and Necessary Practice in a Season of Turmoil and Loss.