tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12358180496283799302024-02-20T14:55:16.506-08:00The Mission MomentA thought provoking moment (or two) about missions.Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-44738356057961216162013-11-18T10:46:00.000-08:002013-11-18T10:46:22.580-08:004 Lessons Learned From Natural Disasters<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">In light of Typhoon Haiyan passing through
the Philippines, I want to share a few things I have learned from being
involved with recovery efforts following natural disasters. Now, let me give a
couple of disclaimers. First, I am not the authority but I have been involved
in varying degrees of involvement following Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy and
the earthquake in Haiti.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Second, not
everything that is true following one disaster or in a particular country will
always be true. Nevertheless, let me offer some thoughts. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Spiritual leaders will carry a
heavy burden.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> My
experience in non-western cultures is that spiritual leaders such as
pastors are depended on for much more than the spiritual. The demands on
pastors and missionaries will only become greater following a disaster. </span></li>
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<br /></div>
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<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Communities will take their cue
from churches. </span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">When
everything is destroyed, people wonder if they should rebuild or move
somewhere else. Will my friends and family stay or will they go? When churches
rebuild, communities stay. </span></li>
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<br /></div>
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organizations. </span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the aftermath of a natural disaster, organizations
like The Red Cross will raise millions of dollars more than what can
actually be spent on the immediate needs following a disaster. Giving to a
small, locally connected organization such as a missions organization with
missionaries in the country will improve the chance of your dollars
directly impacting the rebuilding of a home or life rather than fostering
foreign dependency. <a href="http://www.worldventure.com/page.aspx?pid=1447">Click here to give.</a>
</span></li>
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<br /></div>
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<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">It’s more important to do
something later than now.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">
The Philippines is getting lots of attention now but it will fade from the
news. Plan to raise money or do something to help in 6 months when many
people have stopped giving and helping. </span></li>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I’m sure there is more that can be said,
but I hope this will help you respond in prayer and generosity. Post comments
on lessons learned or observations you have made!</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Questions for the author? Need coaching or
consulting? You can contact Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="mailto:toryr@deltaministries.com">toryr@deltaministries.com</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-18386697398266452902013-01-31T12:12:00.000-08:002013-01-31T12:12:30.128-08:00How To Know If Your STM Trip Is Too Risky<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Recently, a short-term mission team from
New Zealand was in a car accident in Kenya and three team members died. It was
nothing short of a tragedy. From an earthly perspective, I can’t imagine why
people who sacrificed to serve God would die what seems a senseless death.
While most trips go off without a hitch, tragedies can happen whether a team is
in a safe place or a dangerous one. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">As
leaders in short-term missions, what do we do with risk and danger?</b> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">This brings up an interesting dilemma. If
God has called us to something, should the risk even matter? The argument can
be made that the very fact that one would consider risk shows that he or she
should not participate in a trip. However, we are also the overseers of
precious lives that trust our leadership. We would not be good stewards of our
team if we took them into risky situations unnecessarily. So how do we go about
managing risk and taking care of our people? Here are some ideas to consider as
you plan and even make policies. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">First, you
have to decide as an organization or church how much risk you are willing to
take on. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">At
DELTA, we classify ministry locations into mild, medium, high, and critical.
Some groups might find they don’t feel comfortable with anything more than a
medium while others might be ok with a high or a critical field location. What
is important is that you have considered this and made a decision on what is
acceptable before you are faced with the specifics of a particular team. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Once you know your risk threshold, develop
a system for gathering information. Consider a service like <a href="http://www.medexglobal.com/newsletter-signup.aspx">Frontier Medex</a> that
sends daily updates of current events so you are informed of new incidents. The
<a href="http://travel.state.gov/travel/travel_1744.html">US State Department</a>
as well as other international state departments can have some good information
too. Make sure you also include local sources of information like local news
outlets, missionary partners, or others who have first-hand knowledge.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Second, develop
a way of quantifying the risk. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I can’t tell you how many times I have heard objections to
mission trips over safety, but the person can’t vocalize what makes the trip
dangerous. The best way to handle generic objections is to have information. I
use a Risk Assessment Tool that allows three people to name the 3 or 4 biggest
dangers and evaluate both the likelihood it would happen and the severity of
the impact if it happened. For example, getting kidnapped might be low on the
likelihood but high on severity. Contracting an intestinal bug might be high on
the likelihood but low on severity of impact. Once the risks are defined, you can
make a plan to mitigate them. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Third, have
a crisis and contingency plan. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Don’t wait for something bad to happen to figure out how you
would react. A good crisis and contingency plan includes an emergency response
team. It should also spell out the duties of the emergency team members,
procedures on notifying families, who will monitor the ongoing situation, who
will be a “spokesperson,” how you will document your action steps, and so on. It
should also include policies on who decides when evacuation is mandatory and
who pays for mandatory and optional evacuation. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Fourth, be
prepared. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Make
sure you <a href="http://www.gninsurance.com/">purchase travel medical and
evacuation insurance</a>. It can cost, literally, less than a couple of dollars
per day. Other ways to be prepared are to ask your host about what plans they
have for emergencies, give your team leader an In Case of Emergency form that
has emergency contact numbers for people in the host country and at home,
include forms for logging injuries and collecting the information required by the
insurance company. You may also want to have the name of a <a href="http://www.cricon.org/">crisis consulting agency</a> handy so you know
who to call in an emergency. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Does this seem overwhelming? Start with the
first step before worrying about the other 3 or <a href="http://www.deltaministries.com/contact">contact DELTA Ministries</a> to
purchase their Crisis and Contingency Plan or to receive coaching on developing
your own. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Questions for the author? Need coaching or
consulting? You can contact Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="mailto:toryr@deltaministries.com">toryr@deltaministries.com</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-32943872947292243802012-11-02T10:25:00.000-07:002012-11-02T10:25:36.562-07:004 Characteristics of Potential STM Leaders<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Many churches are looking for new STM team
leaders. It can be difficult to find the right person, yet the burnout on the
experienced leaders is even harder. Or, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">maybe
you have tried new leaders, but they never work out. </b>Do you know the
necessary characteristics of a STM team leader? Do you know what to look for in
potential leaders? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Let’s see what the
Apostle Paul, a trainer of leaders, has to say. </b></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Is a
leader simply someone who is good at being in charge—who can be a good boss?</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> No! Jesus himself said
in Mark 10:45 that he didn’t come to be the boss but to be the best servant. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Should we
look for the oldest person or the one with the most experience?</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> No! Or the Apostle Paul
would not have told Timothy not to let anyone look down on him because of his
age but to set the example for them (1 Timothy 4:12).</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Do we look
for the person who is a “natural-born leader?”</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> You know, the person
with the charisma; the “it” factor. Again, no! In 1 Corinthians 2:1-4, Paul
reminds the Corinthians that he came not with elegance of speech or fanciness
but in humbleness relying on the message of Christ crucified and the Holy
Spirit. Paul didn’t rely on persuading people through his own gifts but on
letting his message and the Holy Spirit do the work. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Is being
the best a requirement for being a leader?</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> No! Again, Paul tells us that God chooses
the foolish things of the world to shame the wise and the weak to shame the
strong (1 Corinthians 1:27-29). The perfect person glorifies him or herself,
but the chosen of God glorifies Him. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">So what
then is a leader? A leader is the one who sets the example to be followed.</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> Paul tells the
Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 4:16-17 to imitate him and that he is sending
Timothy as his example. Paul says Timothy will remind them of his way of life
in Christ Jesus! What a statement!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">What is the example that leaders should be
setting? What are the character qualifications for being a leader? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">A leader should be a person of prayer, a
person of the Word, a person of love, and a servant.</b> When you are looking
for potential leaders look for people who pray from the heart, pray in the face
of trials, and who pray for others. Look for a person who <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">knows</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">follows</i> God’s
Word. Look for a person who truly loves God and others, and someone who is a
servant of others. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Don’t confuse the characteristics of a
leader with the skills of a leader. We want to put character before skills when
looking for potential team leaders. Once we have selected new leaders, then we
can worry about training them. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Don’t know how to train team leaders? Go to
DELTA’s website to learn more about their <a href="http://www.deltaministries.com/component/content/article/44/95-training">Team
Leader Training</a>. You can also email me for some free resources on the
qualifications and job description for a team leader, a team leader
application, and team leader references. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Questions for the author? Need coaching or
consulting? You can contact Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="mailto:toryr@deltaministries.com">toryr@deltaministries.com</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-2209569114239215032012-09-21T01:00:00.000-07:002012-09-21T01:00:12.992-07:00What do YOU think makes a STM trip a good one?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Last
week I wrote about <a href="http://themissionsmoment.blogspot.com/2012/09/why-youre-probably-evaluating-your-stm.html">how
to evaluate your STM trip</a>. I proposed we should determine success based on
the process of our STM trip rather than the end product. I promised I would
suggest what makes a good process this week, so here it is. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">A STM
trip done well exhibits seven main traits. Several years ago, mission leaders
wiser than myself came up with the </span><a href="http://www.soe.org/"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Standards
of Excellence in Short-term Missions</span></i></a><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> </span></i><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">(SOE). How does your trip
measure up with these standards? Don’t just go with your gut, find a way to
evaluate it. </span><a href="http://www.deltaministries.com/component/content/article/44-slideshow/250-short-term-mission-trip-assessment-tool"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">STM Trip Assessment Tool and Free Supplement</i></span></a><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> is a good way to do that. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Here
are some thoughts that I have had when it comes to changing the way I view a
mission trip:</span></div>
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<ol>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">How was the trip’s leadership? </span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Did we have our own agenda? Did we truly partner with our
hosts? Were we serving our needs, or express a desire to serve them. This is
far different from evaluating the relevancy or the success of what we did.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> </span></b></li>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">How was the group? </span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Were they properly
trained and prepared, not just physically but spiritually, emotionally, and
culturally? A sign of this would be how the group reacts to adversity. Was
there complaining or adapting? If your group was looking for God at work
instead of hung up on what was going wrong, you probably did a good job</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b></li>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Did you follow-through with your participants? </span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Not everyone will become a missionary, but everyone can
become more like Christ. It’s not your responsibility to make a person change,
but it is your responsibility to invite them into change. If you’re not sure
how to practically do that, check out </span><a href="http://www.thenextmile.org/"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The
Next Mile curriculum</span></a><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> for help with
follow-through. Make sure you see the free e-zine and mentor guides.</span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> </span></b></li>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Think percentages not numbers. </span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">This is how I determine a successful day and a successful
trip: What percentage of the time was I faithfully following Jesus? This means
I did what he wanted, the way he wanted me to, when he wanted me to. Did I make
excuses to avoid doing what God asked me to so that I wouldn’t have to leave my
comfort zone, or did I step out in fear and faith and follow Him?</span></li>
</ol>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">I
admit, this way of evaluating an STM trip is a bit subjective. So how do you
know if you should send a team back? Here are some questions to guide you:</span></div>
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<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">What is your philosophy?</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> For example, are you looking for a long-term partner or
trying to visit all your supported missionaries?</span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Were your hosts’ desires
accomplished?</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> If you were beneficial,
then a door is open for you to return. If everything was accomplished, then
there might not be a need to return.</span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Were your godly desires
fulfilled? </span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">If this just wasn’t a good match, then
don’t force it</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Is there room for growth?</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> Can your role with the field grow over time? Can your
partnership grow and become deeper? </span></li>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
hope these ideas help you determine whether or not your last trip</span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">,</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> or even your current
trip is a success. </span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">What do you think? What would you add? Post your thoughts in the
comments below</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Questions for the author? You can contact
Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-90573424094039924012012-09-14T01:00:00.000-07:002012-09-14T01:00:11.370-07:00Why you’re probably evaluating your STM trip the wrong way<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">How
do you know if your mission trip was successful? Is it based on how many people
received Christ? Number of lives rededicated? Impact on the goer? You got the
project done? They invited us back? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Most people determine success based on whether or not
they accomplished their goals</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The problem with this is that we often misunderstand goals</b>. We get
them confused with desires. Here’s a definition I heard for a goal: “Something
I can achieve on my own apart from others.” The definition for a desire, then,
would be: “Something you want that requires cooperation from others.” Do the
questions above sound like expressions of goals or desires? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">You can imagine how far off base we can end
up if we evaluate success based on desires.</b> This nearly always leads to
worshipping numbers, stretching the truth, feelings of depression, or
manipulating others to ensure we get what we want.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">The other difficulty is that we must determine success
in a Kingdom not of this world</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">. God’s Kingdom is far
different from our own. Our kingdom speaks of “return on investment” but Jesus
says the Kingdom of Heaven is like a shepherd who leaves 99 sheep to go after
the single lost sheep. We discriminately assign value to things in order to
prioritize yet God gives humanity just one price—the life of His Son. Our
kingdom tells us that we can do anything we put our mind to if we just work
hard enough. But Jesus says in John 15:5 that we can do nothing apart from Him.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">So what does success look like according to God’s
Kingdom?</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> Hebrews 12:1-3 seems to be telling us
that the manner in which we run is what is most important. In Philippians 3
Paul tells us that he presses on for the prize. Interestingly he does not
elaborate on what the prize is or what specifically will make him a winner. The
emphasis is on persevering! <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Success in
God’s Kingdom is simply based on how closely we follow Jesus! </b></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">So
what does this mean for a short-term mission trip? </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">First, but not necessarily in this order, it does not
mean that we </span></b><a href="http://themissionsmoment.blogspot.com/2011/12/are-you-wasting-time-effort-and-money.html"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">throw
out all accountabilities</span></b></a><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">!</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> Don’t confuse not
putting a human price on a life with being irresponsible. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Second, it means we acknowledge our dependency on the
Holy Spirit by keeping desires as desires and not turning them into goals. </span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">It’s okay to want God to do great things—even specific great
things. We just have to be careful that we don’t ignore what God is doing
because He isn’t doing what <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">we </i>want
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Third, it means we stop using our kingdom’s values to
judge success, and use God’s values</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">. In God’s Kingdom, we
aren’t responsible for the outcome. In fact, the nature of short-term missions
is such that we often don’t even get to see the outcomes. We are, however,
responsible for how we go about them. God values how closely we followed Him on
the journey.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">So
what does a faithful journey for a short-term mission trip look like? How do we
use this new way of evaluating a mission trip to determine future trips? Well,
you’re going to have to wait until next week for that one.</span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">What do you think? Am I totally off base? What does a faithful
journey for a short-term mission trip look like? Post your thoughts in the
comments below!</span></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Questions for the author? You can contact
Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-55622361494135001752012-09-07T01:30:00.000-07:002012-09-07T01:30:01.932-07:00How To Deal With The Post-STM Blues<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Are you feeling a bit off-center since
returning from your short-term mission trip? If you are, you aren’t alone. The
“post short-term mission blues” are not an uncommon feeling. Sure, the first
few weeks after coming home were fun. You got to tell all your stories, share
photos, and live off the spiritual adrenaline of the trip. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Now, however, life has gotten real. Bills
need to be paid, work or school is still there, a strained relationship hasn’t
gotten any better, and many of your friends are no closer to Jesus than when
you left. What’s worse is that you are probably starting to feel like things
haven’t gone the way you expected after coming home. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">There are four common reasons for feeling
down after a short-term mission trip. Read the list and see if any describe
you:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Missing the team. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">This includes both your team from your home country as well as
the national believers with whom you ministered</span><br />
<br /><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Longing for the same spiritual depth and meaning in life. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">This is often felt as a
discontentment with your current life</span><br />
<br /><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Liking the culture you visited more than your own. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Or at least feeling at
odds with your culture or even your own church. </span><br />
<br /><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Returning to difficult situations at home. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">This could be a
situation at home, at work, in school, and so on</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
what do we do with these feelings? How do we overcome them? Here are some ideas
of how you can deal with the blues for each category.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Missing
the team?</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">
</span></div>
<br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Find a way to communicate with team member. But focus your
communication on the future and not on reliving the past.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br /><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Don’t shut out your old friends. They may not understand your
experience but they can still listen.</span><br /><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Start planning for future ministry of some kind</span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Looking
for spiritual depth and meaning?</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
<br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Don’t stop pursuing God with the same spiritual disciplines you
did before and during the trip.</span><br /><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Understand that you have a mission field at home too!</span><br /><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Get involved with a ministry in your church or community</span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Do you
like their culture better than ours?</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
<br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Remember you’re either part of the problem or part of the
solution. Be part of the solution.</span><br /><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Find ways to integrate cultural values from the other culture
into your own daily life.</span><br /><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Find the cultural group in your city and get involved with them.</span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Returning
to difficult situations at home?</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
<br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Depend on God for the solution just as you depended on Him
during the trip.</span><br /><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Look for God-honoring solutions</span><br /><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Don’t get lost in the temporal—remember God’s eternal Kingdom.</span>
<br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">What has
caused your short-term missions blues? How did you “cure” them? Share with us
so we can benefit from your story!</span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Questions for the author?
You can contact Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">toryr@deltaministries.com</span>
Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-91091976239607286452012-08-31T01:30:00.000-07:002012-09-19T09:22:26.973-07:00How To Solve Mission Trip Dilemmas<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">I
remember my first mission trip, November 1998, like it was yesterday. We spent
five days in Ensenada, Mexico working with a church in Colonia 89. It was not
just my first mission trip but my first time out of the country. While I watched
the news and new the world was bigger than my country, I had never come face to
face with a world that was not my own. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">I
can remember sitting by myself on a rock on the second to last day of the trip with a slew
of questions floating in my mind. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">One
series of questions went like this: “Is this pastor sincere? Authentic? He
seems full of faith but he is so poor, how can that be? Doesn’t God bless the
righteous? Is he really not that righteous? Or do I have something wrong?” </b>This
began a time in my life when I, as I call it, had my personal theology turned
upside down. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Somehow
I don’t think I am alone in this experience. Your dilemma might not have been
the exact same issue, but I bet you have struggled with difficult questions at
some point. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">I even have friends who have
walked away from God after a short-term mission trip because the questions are
so difficult. </b>Why is that? Why such deep despair? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">These
dilemmas creep up when <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">our experiences
don’t match our beliefs. </b>In my case, growing up in America, I had the belief
that faithfulness leads to material blessings. This, of course, is not always
true but it is not hard to understand how I came up with this belief. The
tricky thing, though, is that I didn’t even know I held this belief until I
faced an experience that defied it! <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">When
our experiences don’t match our beliefs, we can go into a funk.</b> A common
dilemma is how can a world created and governed by a good, loving, and
all-powerful God be so…for lack of a better word…wrong. What is your dilemma? </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">When our experiences and beliefs conflict, we often
feel the need to choose one as true and the other as false. </span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">What does this look like? Choosing our experience to be
ultimate truth usually results in us walking away from God. Choosing our belief
to be true (especially when it is not) usually leads to us dismissing our
experience and never changing for the positive. I don’t know about you, but
neither of those seem like good options, but<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> what should we do?</b></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">I
tell people all the time, this is an opportunity for integration. Don’t throw
out your experience for there is truth in it. Don’t throw out your core belief
in God for it is true. Instead integrate your experience with the Bible and
come out with a new belief that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is</i>
true! Here’s a simple (but not easy) four step process:</span></div>
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<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Identify what is troubling
you and why</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">. That is to say, identify the specific
belief that is in conflict with your experience.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Share your struggle with
an expert</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">
</b>Don’t struggle alone—you need someone around you. But, you wouldn’t go to a
doctor for advice on how to fix your car or to a mechanic for medical advice.
Don’t talk to just anybody, talk with someone you respect. Someone with knowledge
of the Bible, understands the world, and is spiritually mature. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Read God’s Word</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">! Go right to the source. Learn all you can from Jesus’ life
and teachings. See what God has to say about the world and His values. Ask God
for answers.</span></li>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Redefine your belief</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">. Don’t pick the experience or belief as ultimately true. Work out a new belief that is biblical and true. </span></li>
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<br />
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">In
my case, I didn’t just accept the experience or the belief. I went back to the
Scriptures and considered how God views money, who was wealthy in the Bible,
who wasn’t, and so on. I sought counsel from people who were wiser than me.
Eventually I recognized my belief was flawed and needed to be redefined. I
didn’t reject God or my experience, instead <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">I used the situation as a catalyst to understand God better and bring
me closer to Him.</b> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">So, how about it? Are you struggling with any mission
trip dilemmas? Have you in the past? Did you find reconciliation? Or maybe you
are ignoring your experience and pretending like it never happened. No matter
what the situation, share it here. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Post
a comment on your dilemma and how you resolved it (if it has been resolved).
Allow all of us to benefit from your journey!</b></span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Questions for the author? You can contact
Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-76852673375598668362012-08-24T01:30:00.000-07:002012-08-24T01:30:00.132-07:005 Ways To Be A Mentor<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Hopefully
you now <a href="http://themissionsmoment.blogspot.com/2012/08/you-cant-argue-ityou-need-mentor.html">have
a mentor</a> and you are ready for the journey to begin. The only problem is,
you don’t know what you and your mentor are supposed to do? Or maybe you came
across this article because you are a mentor and you don’t know what to do. I
have good news—it isn’t that hard! Treat this as an open letter to all mentors.
Feel free to pass it on to your mentor or to others who are mentors.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">As
mentors, you have five basic jobs:</span></div>
<ol>
<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Pray </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Encourage</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Prepare</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Listen </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Report</span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> </span></li>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Pray with your friend. </span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">If they haven’t gone on the trip yet, make regular
appointments to get together and include prayer. Continue to do this even after
your trip. You should share prayer requests and pray about decisions together.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Encourage your friend. </span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Here’s a cool way to encourage your short-term missionary.
Write several letters and collect several encouraging letters from others and
secretly give them to the team leader with instructions to give them to your
missionary throughout the trip. Another way to encourage before the trip is to help
with raising funds. Help with fundraisers or even be an advocate in asking for
donations. After the trip, you can encourage your friend by listening to their
stories and pointing out positive change that’s happened already. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Prepare with your friend. </span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">There are a lot of last minute errands to run when packing.
Help your friend by running errands or even by helping him pack. Don’t forget
about the spiritual preparations also. Do something to stimulate spiritual
growth in each of you before and even after your trip. This could be studying
the Bible together, serving together, or even just getting together and praying
together. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Listen to all your friend’s stories.</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> I mentioned this earlier. Your friend will come home
bubbling with excitement, stories, and enthusiasm but most people won’t take
the time to listen. Show your love by investing your time to attentively
listen. While you are listening, look for how God might be guiding and changing
your friend. Sometimes an outside perspective is what returning short-term
missionaries need. Be on the lookout for the STM blues. Some people become
discouraged by the “real world” when they come home. (Check back in the next
couple of weeks for an article on the STM blues) </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Report your findings.</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> After you have listened and observed your friend following
their short-term mission experience, evaluate what you have seen and heard.
Encourage your friend by sharing the change you have seen—or confront them
about the lack of follow through on change they desire. This will help you be a
catalyst in their life. You can’t make decisions for them and you can’t make
them change, but you can make their change more powerful!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Much
of this information is taken from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Next Mile Mentor Guide</i>. You can download the </span><a href="http://www.thenextmile.org/mentor-guide/"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Mentor
Guide</span></a><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;"> as a free PDF. In it you will find
helpful ideas, timelines for planning, questions to ask after the trip, an
evaluation form, and much more. I know it will be a useful tool as you mentor
your short-term missionary. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Questions for the author?
You can contact Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">.</span>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-34198981782999371952012-08-16T08:00:00.000-07:002012-08-16T08:00:05.092-07:00You can’t argue it…You need a mentor!
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">You’ve come home from your trip, posted
your pictures on Facebook, sent an email out to all your supporters, and
probably blogged a couple of times about your experience. That seems like a
funny line to write — back in my day we came home, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">printed </i>pictures, wrote an update letter that went out in the mail,
and perhaps journaled about our experience. Now, I’m not really that old, </span><span style="color: #404040; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 191;">but I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to point out the
change. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The point
is</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #404040; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 191;">,</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> you’ve come home</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #404040; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 191;">,</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> and </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #404040; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 191;">you’re</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> probably ready to tackle life. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">If you’re a student,
you’ll probably be going back to school in a couple weeks. And nobody needs to
tell you what kind of challenges you will face. If you’re an adult, you’re
probably already back to work</span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">,</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">
and facing the challenges that will keep you from acting on everything God
taught you on your trip. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">What are
you supposed to do? How are you supposed to change when everything about life
here seems to be against you?</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> You know you need to slow down, be less materialistic, be more
generous, care about other people more</span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">,</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">
but everything about your life makes this change impossible. Or maybe you’re
not even sure what you are supposed to do now in light of your recent trip.
This can be one of the loneliest but most important moments in your life. How
do you grab hold of God</span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">, your life,</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> and become a new
person?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Well, you can’t go it alone. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">You need a mentor. Someone who will help
you determine God’s direction for your life</b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">,</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> and then help you stay
on it</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.
You need someone who loves you enough that they aren’t afraid to hurt your
feelings when you are going the wrong direction. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">Hopefully
you’re</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">
thinking, “That sounds great! That’s exactly what I need. I need someone who
will be there for me no matter what.” But </span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">maybe you’re</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> wondering who would be
your mentor? So how do you choose a mentor? Let me break the mold on what is a
mentor. A mentor is not </span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">necessarily</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> an older person with
all the answers. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">A mentor is simply a
fellow follower of Jesus who loves you. But there are some qualities to look
for such as:</b> </span></div>
<ol style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span style="color: #333333;">A person of prayer<span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span style="color: #333333;">A person of integrity</span><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"></span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"></span></span></span><span style="color: #333333;"> A committed servant of the church</span><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"></span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"></span></span></span><span style="color: #333333;">Someone who will commit to you for a </span><span style="color: #262626;">least six</span><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: #333333;">months</span></li>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I recommend getting a mentor when you sign
up for your mission trip</span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">. But,</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> it’s never too late to
get one. If you don’t already have a mentor, find one. And if you’re not sure
what to do with your mentor</span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 217;">, check back next week
for an article on that subject.</span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Questions for the author? You can contact
Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-23227734121780835512012-08-10T09:14:00.001-07:002012-08-10T09:38:11.209-07:003 Myths About Inspiring Your Church to Action<br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Statistics say millions are going on
short-term mission (STM) trips, and I believe it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And this time of year many are returning from
a trip they went on through their home church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">But, if you went through an organization, and
you were the only person from your church, you’re probably feeling pretty
excited about getting your church involved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Maybe leadership is even looking for you to start something. If they
aren’t, when they see your passion and excitement, they will be.</span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Let me give you a warning: you are up
against a difficult task. It’s not impossible, and nothing to shy away from,
but you need to prepare yourself. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Hopefully this article will help prepare
you to fight the three myths that may creep into your life.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Myth #1 –
If I can just get them to go, they will be changed just like me</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">That might happen, but it might not. There
is more to the process than just going. But don’t be surprised if simply
sending teams doesn’t create the change for which you are hoping. There are
people in every church who will go on a STM trip simply because they are
adventurous, and your stories were mysterious and exciting. They will come back
excited like you, but just as the seed that is sown on the rock grows quickly
and then withers, they will also be without root and fade quickly. STM trips
result in life-long change when participants go for the right reasons, have
good training, and have proper follow-through. But don’t be surprised if
simply sending teams doesn’t create the change for which you are hoping. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Myth #2 –
Sending STM teams means we are a mission-minded Church</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">You probably have met, or even went on your
trip with people from really impressive churches. They send out teams every
year and seem to have an awesome program. In fact, you may even be kind of
jealous. You want your church to be like that. The problem is, you don’t see
the whole picture and so you think that sending teams makes a church
missions-minded. Bad things happen when our goal becomes simply to send STM
teams. These teams, in a sense, become our idol. There is so much more to being
involved in missions besides sending people. Life change is represented by more
than just people being willing to go on a trip again next year. Read this </span><a href="http://themissionsmoment.blogspot.com/2011/12/are-you-wasting-time-effort-and-money.html"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">earlier post</span></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">, or </span><a href="http://themissionsmoment.blogspot.com/2011/12/make-your-mission-trip-count.html"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">this one</span></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">, or </span><a href="http://themissionsmoment.blogspot.com/2012/04/how-to-overcome-3-obstacles-to-missions.html"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">this one</span></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> for information about
how to get a complete mission program started. The posts aren’t long and will
really help you. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Myth #3 –
I can inspire my church to action by myself</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I hate to break it to you, but you are just
one person. It doesn’t mean God can’t use “just one person,” but I can tell you
from personal experience that you will need a team of people to help you. Otherwise,
you will get tired, busy, and overwhelmed. So, who should be in this group?
There are four basic layers. First, get the average </span><span style="color: #404040; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 191;">attendee</span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">involved.
The only qualification should be a willingness to serve. Second, get ministry
leaders on board. You will find people like Bible study leaders, Sunday school
teachers, and home group leaders have a special platform to reach people that
you do not. Third, get your pastors (especially the senior pastor) on board.
Your pastor can give you unique support by promoting things from the pulpit. If
your pastor is passionate, it is likely that others will follow his lead.
Finally, but most importantly, make sure God is involved. Do this by basing
everything in prayer. Pray about every decision and endeavor you take on. Ask
God about His desire and direction for your church instead of just copying what
other churches are doing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Making other people change is hard—down
right impossible—just ask any pastor. But God does ask us to invite people into
change. Your desire to inspire your church to action is a good one. Go at it
with everything you have, but do it the right way. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Questions for the author? You can contact
Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-47694635208522887632012-07-27T01:00:00.000-07:002012-07-27T01:00:09.600-07:00Can Small Groups Be Used For Follow-Through?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Perhaps one of the loneliest feelings I
have ever felt was upon coming home from a short-term mission trip! </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Sure there are friends and family who
welcome you home, but you are suddenly aware of how little they understand
about your trip. You feel all alone in some of</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">the struggles of American excess in light of your recent
experience. On top of it, you want to continue serving as Jesus served, but
life seems to always get in the way. </span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">So how do we, as mission leaders and
experienced travelers, help those who are coming home from a mission trip with
this "fish out of water" feeling? </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Regardless of the size of your church, it is likely that you
alone cannot be each person's mentor, teacher, and counselor.</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">What if we utilized small groups to see
people along their spiritual journey? You can use your participant's current
small group with a little coaching, or you can organize a small group
specifically for returning short-term missionaries. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">It is not God’s desire for any of us</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">to be alone on our spiritual journey. Unfortunately we
sometimes think no one can relate and so we push others away just when we
should be drawing closer to them.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">I’m a big believer in small groups of believers meeting
together and walking their spiritual journey together for a few reasons:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Accountability</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. When you are living life with others, you
can’t get away with anything. If you tell your small group how you think
God is calling you to change, then you have a group of people to hold you
accountable.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Diversity</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. You probably found out what a great thing
diversity is while on your trip. The same is true of small groups. In any group,
you will find people with different ideas, strengths, and weaknesses. A
good small group emphasizes the strengths and minimizes the weaknesses.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Pool
Resources</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. Small groups are
able to do things an individual can’t.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Synergy</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. A small group working together will keep you
going even when the fire starts to dim.</span></li>
</ol>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Now that we know small groups are a good thing, what do we
do with them? Your focus should be on coaching the group to spend specific time
on prayer, education, and action. Here are some ideas of how to do that:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Pray for the
world</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. Get the book <a href="http://www.operationworld.org/">Operation World</a> and make a
prayer schedule. Pray for the countries of the world in a systematic
order. You can do alphabetically or by region.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Learn a
little about everything and everything about something. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Begin expanding your understanding of the world by
learning something about everywhere, but pick a place and focus in on it
by learning everything about it. The country, region, or people group you
choose to focus on will be the focus of your action. Also look for and
provide opportunities for educating people at your church. This could be
through a weekly bulletin insert that follows your prayer schedule, a
slide during announcements in your church’s powerpoint, or a display
somewhere in the church.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Take Action. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Look for ways to reach and serve people from your
focus group. Don’t just think overseas, but look for those people where
you are. College campuses and refugee relocation offices are good places
to look.</span></li>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Change and growth are rarely easy. As we become dangerous
in the spiritual realm, we can expect Satan to try to stop us, which is all the
more reason for being involved in a strong spiritual community! You can also
find help in </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.thenextmile.org/">The Next Mile</a> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">curriculum or at one of our </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://deltaministries.com/local-churches/our-services">workshops on
debriefing and follow-through</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Questions for the author? You can contact Tory at 520-404-0841 or <a href="mailto:toryr@deltaministries.com">toryr@deltaministries.com</a>.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-36773842674994228272012-07-19T01:00:00.000-07:002012-07-19T01:00:10.703-07:003 Follow-Through Meetings For When You Come Home<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Coming home is always so anticlimactic</span><span style="font-family: Arial;">. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most teams
spend months preparing for two intensive weeks in a foreign country bonding
with team members they barely knew. Then they go home to their normal and
overly busy life in which they rarely see their former team members. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">If you have been involved in short-term mission trips for any length of
time, the story is all too familiar. A team comes home excited to share their
story and influence their community, but they lose their connection and thus
their energy. We all know that we should be doing something for follow-through
with our team, but what works?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Follow-through meetings don’t have to last forever, and don’t have to be
complicated. I recommend pre-planning the dates for three follow through
meetings. Set these up ahead of time so people realize they are important, and
will schedule them well ahead of their calendar filling up. Each of these
meetings should have a theme, and be planned with the intent of moving the team
along a process from debriefing to next steps.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Here are the three meetings I suggest:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Celebration</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. Schedule this meeting to happen within a week to 10
days of returning home. This can be a pizza party, an ice-cream social, a
potluck, or whatever you want. Have everyone bring their pictures, a CD with
pictures, or something else by which to remember the trip. Simply sit around
telling stories, laughing, and reminiscing. You need this time to connect and
remember. You don’t need to get overly spiritual —this meeting is simply to
celebrate the trip and connect. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Reflection</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. This is the meeting where you will get reflective
and misty-eyed. We want people to not just remember the stories, but to
re-experience the impact. And with the perspective that time and distance gives,
to be able to see what God was communicating to them. Here’s the thing though:
you can’t simply sit in a circle and expect everyone to share. You need some
sort of activity to prompt reflective though. If you need help planning a
meeting like this, contact me using the information at the bottom of the
article.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 42.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 42.0pt; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Planning
Next Steps</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. As an individual and as
a team, what are the next steps? “How, then, shall I now live?” should be the
theme of this question. Sometimes we consider this too quickly. It is important
to have celebrated the trip and deeply reflected before considering what’s
next. Hopefully this meeting will lead to next steps for the individual as well
as next steps that will help the team impact their community in light of their
experience. Again, you can’t expect to sit in a circle and brainstorm to a
resolution. Contact me for ideas of how to creatively manage this meeting. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Finishing well can be hard in our fast-paced, high energy world. Our
society is quick to move on to the next big thing before the current big thing
is resolved and our lives often reflect it. Make sure you finish your
short-term mission experience well, for this is how we will see life-long
change in our participants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Questions for the author? Need help planning these
meetings? You can contact Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: Arial;">toryr@deltaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-59338136317803227042012-07-13T01:00:00.000-07:002012-07-13T01:00:10.124-07:00Mission Trip Triage Made Simple In 3 Easily Levels<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Last week we talked about the idea of triage when it comes
to our mission team participants. But what is triage? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Merriam-Webster Dictionary </i>defines
triage as, “</b></span><span class="ssens"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">the sorting of and allocation of treatment to
patients, and especially battle and disaster victims, according to a system of
priorities designed to maximize the number of survivors.”</span></b></span><span class="ssens"><span style="font-family: Arial;"> Now, we don’t expect to treat
injured people, but we should be strategic. Emergency room doctors don’t spend
more time with someone who cut their finger than someone who cut their arm off<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">,</b> and they certainly don’t treat them
the same way. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">So why are we trying to
treat everyone with a one-size-fits-all follow through strategy?</b></span></span></div>
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<span class="ssens"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.thenextmile.org/">The Next Mile</a>
curriculum divides team members up into three categories. Follow-through should
be customized but we have to start somewhere. Here are the three categories:</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Level
One </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">—Those not likely
to do another trip (est. 60%)</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Level Two </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">—Those likely to go on another trip (est. 30%<b>)</b></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Level
Three </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">—Those who may
go onto mid- or long-term ministry (est. 10%)</span><span class="ssens"><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Next week you will see an article about follow-through
meetings. One whole meeting will be dedicated to reflection. By the end of this
meeting, each participant should know where to put themselves. These can
change, of course, but it provides a starting point for follow-through. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">So now that we have
categories identified, what are appropriate actions steps for each category?</span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Level one: </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Become a mentor to a short-term missionary next time,
join the missions committee, pray for missionaries, become a home-country
advocate for a missionary, give to missions, get involved in a ministry at the
church.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Level two:</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;"> All of the above, get involved with the particular
people group in your area, language classes, be trained to lead the team next
time, other classes that may prepare for ministry such as evangelism, Bible, or
other practical skills.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Level three: </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">All of the above, connect with missions pastor or
missions committee about calling, investigate mission organizations that can
help, educational considerations, begin dealing with logistics – pay off debt,
downsize material possessions, etc.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">This, of course, is not an all-inclusive list. I just want to get you
thinking. What else can you come up with? Leave a comment at the bottom of this
post with other ways that you have encouraged short-term missionaries in their
journey to become more like Christ. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Taking the approach of triage will help you determine what life-change
really looks like for each individual. It will also help you know how much time
to invest in each individual. Hopefully this will make you more strategic and
more confident in interactions with returning team members. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Questions for the author? You can contact Tory at 520-404-0841<span style="color: #333333;"> or </span><span style="color: #0000ef;">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333;">.</span></span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-78729380800590640322012-07-06T01:00:00.000-07:002012-07-06T01:00:00.873-07:004 Things Every Team Leader Should Do After a Short-term Mission Trip<br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">July is here and you are probably back from your annual
short-term mission trip. Or maybe the youth group at your church just returned
home. <b>In any case, whether this is your first or 15th trip, you might be
wondering what is next</b>. The group got along so well, and vowed to get together, but you just don’t know how to keep everyone
connected. Or maybe you have already been home for a couple of months and still
haven’t seen everyone.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Here are three things to do:</span></div>
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<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Get them signed up for The Next Mile E-zine.</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;"> This is an e-zine automatically delivered
through email and is free. You only need a name and en email address to
sign up. The e-zine discusses issues associated to returning home and helps
the participant process their experience as well seek God’s next steps for
them. This should not replace follow-through by the church or team leader,
but is meant to enhance it. Click <a href="http://www.thenextmile.org/ezine-signup/">here</a> to sign up. </span></li>
</ol>
<ol start="2" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Mission Trip
Triage</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">—You probably feel
paralyzed by the fact that you are responsible for so many people. The
problem is that we often try to treat everyone the same even though no one
is the same. We use the idea of triage to help team leaders determine what
and how much is appropriate to invest in each participant. Upon returning,
help your team members figure out what level they are and then plan
appropriate next steps for living a more Christ-like life. Check back next
week to find out what the levels are and how to follow through with each
level.</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> </span></li>
</ol>
<ol start="3" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Encourage
your team members to continue praying and reading their Bible</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. We often spend more time than usual praying
and reading our Bibles in anticipation of our mission trip or during our
mission—and most people like it! Push them not to let that practice end
when they come home.</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> </span></li>
</ol>
<ol start="4" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Plan three
follow-through team meetings. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">I
know everyone lives a busy life so don’t overdo it. The meeting could be
for lunch, after church, or dessert one evening. Look for an article in
two weeks with details about these three team meetings. </span></li>
</ol>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Following through with your team members is a big job, and
an important one! It can be easy to let it go because the trip is over, but
God’s work in your team members’ lives is not. For more on following through
with your team members, I recommend <a href="http://www.thenextmile.org/">The
Next Mile curriculum</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Questions for the author? You can contact Tory at
520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: Arial;">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-11220013104421089362012-06-22T01:00:00.000-07:002012-06-22T01:00:08.279-07:00Three Ways For Tying Global to Local<br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Many churches are looking for ways to connect their
overseas ministries with their local ministries. The idea, of course, is to
hook people into ministry through the convenience of their own community and
then provide them the opportunity to minister in similar ways in another
country. This is a good way of preparing people. Conversely, there are some
people who are enticed by travel and will go on a short-term mission trip
before regularly serving in their community. So how do we find connections
between ministries in such different cultures? There are three main ways to do
this:</span></div>
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<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Common Cause</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;"> – This is a common issue. It could be something like homelessness,
AIDS, orphans, or health and hygiene. </span></li>
</ol>
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<ol start="2" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Common Role </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">– This is a common ministry function. This could be something like
children’s ministry, sports ministry, or a medical ministry</span></li>
</ol>
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<ol start="3" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Common People</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;"> – This could be a common culture, country or a people group.
Perhaps you have a large immigrant population near your church; you could
develop a missions sending program that goes to their homeland. </span></li>
</ol>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">In order to coordinate these, the church needs to begin by
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">praying</b>. Seek God’s will for your
church—both in the context of the community and the world. Second, evaluate the
church’s <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">gifts and passions</b>. How has
God uniquely positioned you to reach others for Jesus? Are there common
passions that God has placed in many individuals in your congregation? Finally,
look to see <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">if your church has a
significant number of people from a specific group</b>. Maybe your church has a
large number of attendees who are from a specific country. You may consider
adopting that place or people group as your focus. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">You may even consider participating in a “Tying global to
local” seminar. <a href="mailto:toryr@deltaministries.com?subject=Tying%20Global%20to%20Local">Click
here</a> to request more information on the seminar or to see about bringing it
to you. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Questions for the author? Need coaching or consulting? You
can contact Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: Arial;">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-48260247852711028632012-06-14T02:00:00.000-07:002012-06-14T02:00:08.520-07:004 Things Every Friend of a Short-term Missionary Needs to Know<br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Normally I write an article to short-term mission (STM)
participants or pastors. This one is going to be different. This one should be <b>SENT
</b>to anyone who has or had a friend or family member go on a short-term
mission trip. That might mean you are going to have to forward this email—just make
sure you delete the FW at the beginning of the subject! We don't want to be
confused for one of those annoying forwards your coworkers always send you!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Have you thought about what coming home might be like for
your friend or family member? Maybe you have been on a trip and know, but if
you are reading this article, maybe you haven't. <b>Coming home from a STM trip
can be an exhilarating and scary thing. </b>It is exciting to come home and
tell stories and show pictures. Often we have a new purpose in life. But it can
be a scary, depressing time as well.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">I want to give you an idea of what to expect when your STM
trip participant comes home. There is typically a four-stage process:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Excitement--</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">coming home is exciting. The participant can't wait
to share stories, show pictures, and live "a new way."</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Hostility</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">--the air is let out. Life is harder than
imagined, change seems impossible, and no one seems to care. Sometimes we treat
others with disdain, judgment, and superiority.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Adjustment</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">--we gradually adjust back to life as it was. We
give up trying to "change the world" and just accept life as it
is and was before the trip.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Integration--</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">taking lessons learned and applying them to a transformed,
more Christ-like life. Most people never get to this stage--they stop at
#3.</span></li>
</ol>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">So what should you do?<b> How
can you help your friend or family member through the coming home process? </b></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Here are some suggestions:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Listen to
their stories and look at their pictures</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">--I mean all of them. It may take one whole evening. Put in the
time. They need to express themselves.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Listen for
heart change</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. Listen for how
God is calling them to change. This may come across as contempt for their
current life--don't take it personally. They may be processing our affluence
in comparison with deep poverty. Listen for the heart change and encourage
them.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Encourage
them to stay in contact with the team. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">They have a shared bond and shared understanding. Their interaction
and desire to be together will eventually fade, but for now they are a good
support for each other.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Journey
together. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">You may not have gone
on the STM together, but that doesn't mean you can't journey together. Listen
for the heart change and pray about what God is calling both of you to do
or become. I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Sometimes the
people who appear the least affected on the outside are the ones
struggling the most on the inside. All STM trip participants need their
friends, family, and church to love them well when they come home. I hope
this article helps you know where to start.</span></li>
</ol>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Coming home is hard. Follow-through with a returning STM
trip participant can be even harder. But as their friend, you are perfectly
placed to walk the journey with them!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Questions for the author? You can contact Tory at
520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: Arial;">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-28834702010240909832012-06-08T01:00:00.000-07:002012-06-08T01:00:03.787-07:00How To Avoid Donor Fatigue In Your Short-term Mission Program<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Does your church send out multiple mission teams every
year? Do your church members become fatigued opening all the support letters
that come to them? Or maybe you have a hard time deciding which people from
your church to support. You don’t want to pick and choose, but you can’t afford
to support them all. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">A little bit of strategic planning can alleviate the
stress. Here is a process that I would recommend trying: </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Get the church on some sort of cycle</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. I would recommend six to nine months or even
one year. </span></li>
</ol>
<ol start="2" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Discourage
or even forbid support letters to be sent to members of the church</b>.
Instead encourage the team members to send support letters to friends and
family in other places, hold fundraisers, and even save some of their own
money to pay for the trip.</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> </span></li>
</ol>
<ol start="3" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Promote the trips or individuals going on a
short-term mission trip in the next six months to one year</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. Make sure people know that they are going and
what they will be doing and assure them they will have a chance to
contribute towards the project.</span></li>
</ol>
<ol start="4" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Take up an offering sometime during the cycle and
split it amongst all the team members evenly. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">If you don’t want to collect a special offering,
have a pastor write one letter to the congregation outlining the trips and
asking for donations. All donations will then be split amongst all the
team members.</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> </span></li>
</ol>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">I think you will find that this removes the “first come,
first serve” environment as well as keeps generous donors from being
overwhelmed. After a cycle or two, your members will begin to budget and expect
the annual or biannual donation to the mission teams. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Questions for the author? You can contact Tory at
520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: Arial;">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-65367474344949497682012-06-01T01:00:00.000-07:002012-06-01T01:00:02.811-07:003 Crucial Reminders about Remembering God on a STM<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">As a goer on a short-term
mission (STM), a lot is going on in your mind when you arrive on location – did
my shampoo explode in my suitcase; the sites are breath taking; excitement and
nervousness; or even frustration from the journey it took to get there. There
is an endless list of possible thoughts and emotions. The point is, in the
hustle and bustle of traveling and doing, are you focused on the fact that you
are on a STM?</span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">First, upon
arrival, pause and take a moment to focus your heart on the Lord</span></strong><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">. Being intimately connected in your
heart and mind to God in each moment is vital when doing His work.
Unfortunately one overwhelming reality of a STM is the issue of time, and the
possibility of its distraction. The problem is that when a schedule is in place<strong><span style="font-family: Arial;">,</span></strong> people are then constantly thinking
of what the next task is, but God meets us in the moments we are in. He meets
us in the present tense – in the here and now. This means, that while time is
active and moving<strong><span style="font-family: Arial;">,</span></strong> and
the schedule ticks on, we must be aware we need to be fixed upon the presence
of the Lord<strong><span style="font-family: Arial;">,</span></strong> praying
and conversing with him continually.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">When we seek Him in
continual prayer, we are abiding in Him by giving Him the entirety of our
situations. We offer Him the space to work freely, acknowledging His greatness
and the power and control of His hand. We ask for our daily bread and the
essentials, putting faith in His provision, and praise Him when our needs are
met or when glory is deserved. Essentially, we are surrendering to God, and
humbly seeking Him and worshiping Him for all He is and what He can do, for He
is the center of all.</span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Second, remember
you are in an ongoing spiritual battle. </span></strong><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">A STM means going and fulfilling the work he
commissioned to us, make disciples of all nations. A STM is sent forward
because of that call and the motivation to advance the kingdom for his glory.
By responding to this call, we are declaring that God is our master. Remember
that by doing such, we are stepping forth into a battle; into the thick of all
that is of the world.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Realize the severity of the
spiritual move we’ve made, disrupting the darkness, and bringing forth the
light of God to the unreached, we go forth into enemy territory. Be prepared
for spiritual warfare, and in faith, and with prayer, rely upon God for the
protection we need with steadfast dedication. If our hearts harden, and become
prideful or overconfident while serving Him, maybe even distracted, Satan is
gaining ground because our hearts are being consumed with ourselves, and not
relying on God for our needs, which are many.</span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Third and finally,
take the time daily to meet with God while on your STM.</span></strong><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;"> In fact, meet with Him multiple
times a day – as you transition from event to event, before travel, before
speaking with people, while speaking, or any chance that you have. Keep the
conversation going, inviting God to be part of your time. Also, try not to
constantly be asking for things, but worshipping Him for His power and might,
for His plan, for His greatness and mystery. Thank Him for Jesus and the gift
of salvation, and be praying for hearts to soften, for safety while you’re
involved in physical activity in that place, and for focus. Be praying for
spiritual protection because Satan can come into your work to tempt and
distract. Be on your guard, and ask specifically. Our God is a God who hears
and acts – He is omnipotent and powerful.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Often we are inclined to
think that God’s presence will be close at hand on a STM, but like regular
life, we know we can’t make any assumptions about His closeness to us if it’s
something we are not pursuing ourselves. So, focus your heart on the Lord when
you arrive. Remember you’re in the midst of a spiritual battle, and take time
to meet with him daily. You’ll find Him and discover what His will is for you
and your involvement in the advancement of His kingdom.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Article by Crystal Mann</span><br />Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-24830131969731958752012-05-25T01:00:00.000-07:002012-05-25T01:00:04.639-07:004 Steps For Designing Your Own Team Training<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">“Help, I have to train my church’s short-term
mission team!” </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Have you ever been in a
similar situation? If so, questions
probably started whirling through your mind… What should I teach? How much time
will it take? Where do I start? What makes me qualified to do this?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Here are four steps to help
you design a preparation program for your church’s short-term mission team. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">The first step is to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>pray continually.</u> </b>Ask God for wisdom and discernment in
your planning and preparation.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">The next step is start with
the end in mind. In other words, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>plan
backwards</u></b>. Think about what you want your team to know/understand, be
able to do, and to be like before they leave for the field. This is the hard part. If you have never been
on a short-term mission, chat with some people who have and ask them what they
wish they had known that would have better prepared them. Take time on this step. If you prayerfully
plan, your purpose for teaching will become clear and targeted.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Though some things will vary
from church to church based on the ministry in which the team will be involved,
there will be a few constants that should be addressed. For example, at the
beginning of each training I ask people what will make training worthwhile for
them. Most responses revolve around
building positive relationships on the team and being able to work together,
learning how to adapt to the culture, and knowing how to serve Christ
wholeheartedly. You will be heading in
a good direction if you prepare your team in the areas of community (teambuilding,
getting along with one another), culture, and Christ-like character. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Once you determine the major
areas you want to address, decide under each area what you want people to know
and be able to do. For example, when
teaching about culture, you might want people to know and/or understand the
following:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<br /></div>
<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">Why it is
important to increase one’s awareness of culture</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">How culture
affects our behavior</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">How Americans
are often perceived </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">How practices
differ from one country to another (for example: communication, hospitality,
relationships)</span></li>
</ol>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">When considering “be able to
do,” you might consider the following:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">Uncover personal
deeply held beliefs that might serve as a barrier for serving cross-culturally</span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">The ultimate “be like” is to
be like Christ.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Step three is to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>design the instruction</u></b> based on
what you want the team to know/understand, be able to do, and to be like. Use a variety of instructional strategies
such as lecture for general knowledge and active learning for strengthening
team dynamics, communication, trust, cooperation, and problem solving. For example, effectively used, scenarios can challenge
people’s thinking and move them out of their comfort zone. By engaging participants in experiential
learning, they will be forced to engage with concepts being studied rather than
merely thinking about them. Problem solving is another tool used to help
participants understand new learning deeply and personally apply these
principles. When designing instruction, it is also important to focus on
positive interdependence. Each member of the group is important for the group’s
success. Be sure to involve everyone. Whenever possible, require your team to
apply what has been learned. This will reinforce their new knowledge. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Step four is to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>determine and communicate the logistics</u></b>.
People need to know in advance that there is training and why they should
attend. Training should be far more than communicating details about the
trip. Here are some questions to
consider:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">1.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">Should it be
required for all team members? (If so, what happens if someone does not attend?
If not, what is the purpose for the training?)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">2.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">How much time do
I need and who will teach? (Don’t feel compelled to be the expert in all areas.
Prayerfully recruit people who can work alongside you.)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">3.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">Where should the
training be conducted that will create an environment that is conducive to
learning and support the activities that you have designed? (If you plan to use
church facilities, check the calendar and process for scheduling an event.
Don’t assume it will be available.)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">4.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">What materials
will I need and will I have access on the day of the training? (Be sure to have
a back-up plan for technology.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">5.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">Clearly communicate
the expectations for the training to participants.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">The steps above should get
you started in designing a short-term mission training. Remember to pray, plan
backwards, design instruction and determine logistics.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Article by Kathy Mort Ed.D</span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Kathy Mort joined
DELTA Ministries after spending over thirty years in public education. In the
early eighties she took a leave of absence from teaching to attend Columbia
Graduate School of Bible and Missions (now Columbia International University)
so she could go on the mission field. After doing adult literacy work in a
village and teaching at ELWA Academy in Liberia, West Africa on a one year,
short-term assignment, she returned to public education, but her desire was
still to serve the Lord in the area of missions in some capacity. She is currently
actively involved in her church and has led a number of church-based mission
trips.</span></i></div>
</div>
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<br /></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-74589492445675400792012-05-18T01:00:00.000-07:002012-05-18T01:00:00.660-07:00You’re Prepared To Go, But Are You Prepared To Come Home?<br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Many of you are getting ready to go out on your short-term
mission (STM) trip in the next few weeks. <b>I'm sure you have done a lot to prepare
for your departure, but how much have you planned for your coming home? </b>If
you are like most people, the thought of preparing to come home hasn't crossed
your mind. That's ok, that's why we're here! <b>What is there to prepare for
and how can we prepare? </b>As always, I don't have all the answers, but I do
have some ideas. Hopefully this will get you thinking:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">The final
impression</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">--I always say the
only thing more important than a first impression is a final impression.
Saying good-bye and doing it the right way is important! Do say goodbye, but
resist urges to make promises to write, return, or send help. Broken
promises break relationships. Email me or leave a comment at the end of
this post and I will tell you how I handle situations like this.</span></li>
</ol>
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<br /></div>
<ol start="2" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Knowing is
half the battle</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">. Or so that is
what GI Joe taught me when I was growing up. Prepare your team for the
challenges of going home. Make sure they know what kind of reception to expect
from people. Also, make sure they know of some of the pitfalls of going
home. </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: Arial;">The Next Mile </span><span style="font-family: Arial;">goer guide is a great resource that has a section
to read specifically about this topic!</span></li>
</ol>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<ol start="3" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Ask the team
some questions. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Before you
leave, give people a chance to journal their answers to some strategic
questions. Questions like, "what am I most/least looking forward to
about going home? What am I most/least looking forward to leaving behind?
What from this culture do I want to make a part of my life and how?"
Again, The Next Mile goer guide includes these questions and more for
reflection.</span></li>
</ol>
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<br /></div>
<ol start="4" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Plan 2-3 team
meetings after your trip. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">Make
sure you plan these meetings before you leave. If you wait until you get home,
schedules will be too difficult. The time together will be both energizing
and therapeutic for team members. I recommend planning three meetings that
will focus on celebration, reflection, and next steps. </span></li>
</ol>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Coming home can be hard and it requires some preparation
to do it right. Don’t neglect this area of your short-term mission trip as it
is the key to life long change in your participants and not simply a mountain
top experience that fades with time. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Questions for the author? Do you need help knowing what to
expect, or how to prepare your team? You can contact Tory at 520-404-0841 or </span><span style="color: #0000ef; font-family: Arial;">toryr@delaministries.com</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">.</span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-38460901893278123112012-05-15T09:08:00.000-07:002012-05-15T09:08:58.118-07:003 Ways for a short-term mission team to bless Missionary Kids<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Many churches send teams to countries
where they know, love, and support missionaries. Sending people from the
congregation can be a huge blessing for missionaries, as it communicates a
commitment and support in their work. However, many churches forget that this
is an opportunity to bless the children of their missionaries as well.
Missionary kids have unique lives; they have usually seen more of the world
than most children, often speak foreign languages (sometimes better than their
parents), and live adventures that we only dream about. Yet missionary kids can
sometimes feel like they are playing a great game of capture the flag—only
there’s no home base. There’s no anchor. There’s nobody with whom they really
connect. They aren’t really a citizen of the country where they are
ministering, but they don’t really belong in their home culture. Short-term
mission teams are uniquely equipped to bless missionary children—but do you
know how? </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Americans will always be somewhat of a
curiosity to missionary kids. At least they were to me growing up in Italy as a
missionary kid. Many missionary kids are known in their schools and communities
as the Americans, yet they don’t feel like it. There are several misconceptions
about missionary kids. Many see them as just another average American kid. This
assumption can get short-term missionaries into trouble, as missionary kids are
not normal American kids. Others think of missionary kids as somewhat of a
peculiarity, and wonder on what level one can connect with this kind of person.
But no one likes to be treated like an oddity. So here are a few ways you can
bless missionary kids:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Take
a sincere interest in missionary kids</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">.
Like most missionaries, my parents welcomed short-term mission teams to help
them in their ministry. I always looked forward to spending time with the
teams. They would often stay in our home, so our interaction was up-close and
personal. I sought to glean from them anything I could about what it meant to
be an American. It was important exposure for me, especially since the only
other thing I had to teach me about America was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">MTV</i>--which was probably not the most healthy for me! Developing relationship
with our American visitors allowed me to have a connection with a part of me
that I did not understand.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Bring
gifts that are uniquely American. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">In
my younger years, I anticipated the arrival of the American teams mostly to
enjoy the gifts they would bring us. The bulk of it was various kinds of food
we requested because we could not find in Italy. Of course, my sister and I
only knew of what our parents would describe for us, but we would ask for
things like peanut butter, marshmallows, and jell-o. Occasionally, a team would
surprise us with items we did not know to ask for like Skittles, Root Beer, or
Hershey’s Kisses. Perhaps the teams did not think that commodities like these
could be terribly exciting for kids our age--especially in a land known for its
culinary delicacies--but these gifts blessed us more than anyone could know.
They were more than just food and candy; they were small connections to America that
made us feel like we belonged. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Include
missionary kids as much as and whenever possible. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">When short-term teams came to participate in my
parents’ ministry, I was often recruited by the team to be an interpreter. I
loved participating with the teams in their ministry and felt honored that they
would include me. But beware! Do not assume missionary kids will understand all
your slang and cultural references. We may speak English and appear to be
American, but we do not have the same shared experiences. Sometimes the most
lonely feeling is when a short-term team is hanging out, having fun, and
laughing about things you just don’t understand. Be sure to include missionary
kids not just in the ministry activities but in your fun, relaxing times too. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">So, before you go on your next
short-term mission trip, find out if you will be interfacing with missionary
kids. Know that you will have an affect on them, and you can choose to
influence them positively or negatively. You are what they know of the states.
You are their connection to what they haven’t experienced for themselves yet.
Take an interest in them, treat them special, and include them as part of your
team!</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Article by Liz Thompson</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">Liz Thompson is a short-term mission assistant for DELTA
Ministries International. She grew up on the mission field as a missionary kid
in Italy.
She graduated from Moody Bible Institute in 2010 with a Bachelor’s in
Educational Ministries. She has been blessed to live in three different
countries and visit two others on short-term mission trips. These experiences
have widened her view of the world as well as cultivated a passion for cultures
and peoples. She desires to see people understand what it means to know God who
calls Himself Love, and to help people grow in their calling to become children
of God.</span></i><br />
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-5157913627481709082012-04-26T23:30:00.000-07:002012-04-26T23:30:00.356-07:00Raising Support for Short-Term Missions<br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">A proven and tested approach</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;"></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">With so many books, resources,
techniques and ideas out there, it can be hard to know where to begin when
raising support to serve on a short-term mission. We can lose balance
with information overload and feel completely overwhelmed or go to the other
extreme and do nothing and hope it works out.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">In addition to this lack of balance,
most times raising support is viewed as a necessary evil to get on with the <i>real</i>
ministry. Oftentimes, what most do is simply send out a letter announcing
their plans with a request for support. While prayer is a key component
of this approach, we can miss the heart of discipleship that God intends for
the short-termer and those who will take part as senders.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Is
asking for financial support biblical?</span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">"Until now you have asked for
nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made
full.” John 16:24 (NAS)</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">If you have been charged with the
responsibility of raising support for your short-term mission you can’t do it
without establishing the conviction that asking is biblical. Now, I
didn't say it was <i>necessary</i> for God to provide for your ministry, but it
is clearly <i>one</i> of the methods by which He chooses to provide. Here
are examples from the Old and New Testament:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">“Then the
heads of households of the Levites <i>approached Eleazar</i> the priest, and
Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of households of the tribes of the sons of
Israel.
They spoke to them at Shiloh in the land
of Canaan, saying, “The
LORD commanded through Moses to give us cities to live in, with their pasture
lands for our cattle.” So the sons of Israel gave the Levites from their
inheritance these cities with their pasture lands, according to the command of
the LORD.” Joshua 21:1-3 (NAS, emphasis mine)</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Here we see the heads of the Levites
verbally reminding Eleazar, Joshua, and the heads of the other tribes of Israel
of God’s command to provide for their needs. Even though it had
previously been commanded it didn't happen automatically. It took this
verbal reminder for them to respond obediently.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Let’s take a quick look at this New
Testament example:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">“And
whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at
his house until you leave that city.”<i> </i>Matthew 10:11 (NAS)</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">To <i>inquire</i> or “ask” required
verbal communication with the believers in a particular city for their support
and provision while ministering. While there are other verses we could
examine, these two make it clear that asking for resources has been, and always
will be, a part of growing ourselves and others to be more like Christ and a
biblical way to accomplish ministry.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Go and
Make Disciples of <i>all </i>Nations</span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">If you’ve committed to serve on a
short-term mission, most likely you are aware of the Lord’s mandate to go and
make disciple of all nations provided in Matthew 28:19. In fact, your
participation on a short-term mission may be one of the practical ways you are
carrying out that mandate in your life! Yet, we must remember that the
call to make disciples is not just an overseas call but also one we must live
out in the U.S.
and within our own communities. This is by no means a new concept, but
oftentimes it’s a value we ascribe to as important but never fully live
out. In fact most believers agree with this strategy laid out quite
nicely in Acts 1:8 (to be witnesses in Jerusalem,
Judea, Samaria
and the ends of the earth) but they struggle with truly living a missional
life.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Have you ever thought of “asking”
others for financial support for your short-term mission as a viable part of
making disciples? Have you seriously considered that God might have plans
to challenge and mature others in their faith journey as a result of your
short-term mission? After all, isn’t giving just as much a <a href="http://christianpf.com/how-giving-is-a-spiritual-discipline/">spiritual
discipline</a> as praying or reading the Bible? Most of us are very
comfortable challenging others to pray, to read the Word or to serve but are
genuinely intimidated at the thought of asking for financial resources.
As a short-termer we have a tremendous opportunity to help others become “more
complete in Christ<i>” </i>(Col
1:28-29) through their giving and an opportunity to be co-laborers in the
short-term mission. We also have a tremendous opportunity to grow as we
step out in faith, ask, and trust the Lord for His provision. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">How do
I ask for financial support for my short-term mission?</span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Without love<i> “it profits me
nothing”</i> (1 Cor 13:3). Authentic loving relationships are the bedrock
of asking for financial support. Our relationship with the Lord is our first
priority followed by our relationships with those we intend to ask for
support. Oftentimes, the support raising process is a good indicator of
the quality of loving relationships we have in our life. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">1. Pray</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;"> – Begin by acknowledging and
adoring God for who He is. Psalm 50: 10-12 states, <i>"the world is
Mine, and all it contains.”</i> These and many other Scriptures make it
clear that everything belongs to God. We can love and worship God by
acknowledgin<i>g</i> and resting in this truth through prayer. There’s no
single vision or need He can’t provide for.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Share your fears and concerns for
His guidance, and ask for the right words. Also, pray for the
individual(s) you intend to contact. Pray that you will be able to
connect with them, that their hearts would be open and ready for your request,
and for God to lead them in their response. This is not a “pray and pay”
approach. God knows our hearts and our prayers need to be rooted in
love. If we sincerely care about each person, our motivation is that all
would be obedient to the Lord’s leading -- however that may turn out.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">2. It starts with you</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;"> (Luke 6:40): If we are not
personally invested in the short-term mission, it can be difficult to encourage
and ask others for financial support. Jesus Christ set the ultimate
example of generosity and challenges each one of us to conform to His image. As
individuals seeking to serve on a short-term mission, we cannot attempt to develop
other spiritual disciplines in our life yet neglect generosity, nor can we take
others on a journey toward generosity or expect others to give if we are not
personally committed ourselves. A model often recommended for short-term
mission fundraising is the 1/3 – 1/3 – 1/3 approach, where the first one-third
comes from the short-termer, the second from the church and the last one-third
from family, friends and others who want to partner financially with your
short-term mission. This is not a hard and fast rule but only a
recommended breakdown. The key here is that you personally invested at
any amount and were generous towards what you are asking others to be generous
towards. Your portion can come from a monthly gift that you set aside
prior to your trip through <a href="http://christianpf.com/how-to-make-a-budget/">budgeting</a>, out of your
personal <a href="http://christianpf.com/16-ways-to-save-money-by-not-being-normal/">savings</a>,
or by creative ways to generate <a href="http://christianpf.com/make-extra-money-factors-that-will-make-or-break-your-goals/">additional
income</a> such as taking on odd jobs or having a yard sale.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">3. Involve your local
church: </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Acts
6:6<b> </b>provides an example of the early New Testament church commissioning
and sending missionaries to share God’s Word and make disciples.
Involving the local church is biblical and critical for success. Most
likely your short-term mission is taking place through your local church, but
that is not always the case. Either way, it’s important early in the
process to schedule a time to meet with your church’s mission team/pastor and
to share a bit of your testimony and journey, why you want to participate on
the short-term mission and what you hope God will accomplish. This is
also a great time to determine if there are any scholarships or funds that
would be available to help you along your way. Most churches have a line
item for short-term missions and plan for scholarship opportunities, but if
they don’t have funds set aside, determine if there are any plans for members
of the team to work together to raise additional funds. This could be a
number of things such as a fundraising dinner/dessert, silent auction, food
sales, etc. Be prepared to step in and help with events like this any way
you can.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">4. Share the Vision/Need</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;"> – Consider who you are contacting
and what their passions are before making contact with them. Because you
are in relationship, you will know if what you are going to ask for is in
alignment with their passions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Seek first to meet face-to-face to
share about your short-term mission and the opportunity to help with financial
support. If you cannot share face-to-face, the next best approach is by
phone. As you share, be clear and concise with your request. Start
with the vision or need of the short-term mission, and then work your way into
the critical details such as the timing, overall budget and how specifically
they can help. Be sure to express how your role on the short-term mission
can help meet the need. After sharing, ask them if they will pray about
supporting you financially. If the answer is “no” or they make it clear
it’s not a possibility, thank them for their consideration and ask if they
would be a part of your prayer team. If the answer is, “yes,” to joining
your financial support team then always follow-up with the question, <i>“When
can I contact you to determine how the Lord leads you?”</i> All too
often, this is where the “disconnect” takes place in the discipleship
process. We ask them to “pray about it,” and fail to identify what the
next step will be. Good discipleship requires good follow-through!
By asking them for a follow-up date, you are essentially getting their
permission for follow-up. This allows them to have ownership of their
decision made between them and the Lord as well as to your follow-up contact
with them.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">5. Follow-Through (Obtain
“yes” or “no”) - </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Once
you identify a date and time, be sure you make that follow-up call or
contact. Your chances of connecting are very favorable because they will
be expecting you to contact them. Once you connect, greet them, and
briefly remind them of the reason you are calling again and that you are
following up on the day/time they had indicated would work for them. You
have an opportunity to demonstrate a genuine sensitivity to their life
situations by asking them if this is a good time to determine what decision
they have made. The goal here is to get a “yes” or “no” answer not
provide a “sales pitch.” If you are unable to determine their decision be sure
to ask them for permission to connect again. Continue this process until
they have responded with a “yes” or “no” answer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">This is most often where the support
raising process breaks down due to a lack of persistence, fear or
forgetfulness. In Luke 18, Jesus shares about a persistent widow who was
finally granted her request from a judge. Verse 5 hilariously states, <i>“because
this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she
won’t eventually wear me out with her coming!’”</i> The context of this
verse is persistent prayer to God, yet I also believe God works and honors
those who are persistent to fulfill their various ministries. We don’t
want to be a pest, but it is biblical to receive a “yes” or “no” answer from
those who said they would pray and get back to us.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">6. Thank Supporters – </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Regardless of how individual(s)
respond to your request always express your gratitude and appreciation for
their time and consideration. Saying “thank you” is another key component
of an authentic loving relationship. Take the opportunity to do this
verbally during the follow-up meeting. This may sound odd, but I have had
the opportunity to thank individuals for saying “no” to a financial
request. I typically do this when I realize later how God intended to
provide for a specific need. Remember that a “no” can be an obedient
answer and that God can use a “no” to reveal His pathway of provision.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">When individuals do choose to
support your short-term mission, set a personal goal to thank them a minimum of
five times. These “thank you’s” can come verbally, through written
cards, emails, a final report, or by sending a thank you gift. You can
never say thank you enough.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Article by
Chris McDaniel</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Chris McDaniel
is the Chief Business Development Officer for <a href="http://www.deltaministries.com/">DELTA Ministries International</a>
(DELTA) and author of <a href="http://blog.ignitingalifeofgenerosity.com/">Igniting
a Life of Generosity</a>. Chris loves to spend time with this wife, bumping the
volleyball with his daughter, playing catch with his son, serving the “least of
these”, pizza, snowboarding, running half marathons, and seeing followers of
Christ become generous givers.<span style="color: black;"></span></span></i></div>
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<br /></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-36004883092673139532012-04-19T09:49:00.000-07:002012-04-23T08:15:01.687-07:00Can A Small Church Have A Robust Missions Program?<br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">If you’re involved in missions at a small church you are probably all too familiar with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">the “Big 3” obstacles: 1) limited pool from which to draw volunteers, 2) much smaller financial resources, and 3) limited time to dedicate.</b> I’m guessing if you are reading this you are likely either a pastor of a smaller church where missions is just one of your many responsibilities, or you are a volunteer member of your church’s missions committee. It is likely that you had an amazing short-term mission experience that changed your life, and you want to see everyone at your church impacted the way you were. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">I know that’s my story. God got a hold of me in college through short-term missions and never let go. I eventually settled at a small church, and began my quest to turn my small church into a mission’s powerhouse. My pastor and I had a great vision. We had a great location. We were eager. Yet things didn’t work out. We did a couple of small trips early on, but then things fizzled out. This was a source of great anguish to me. How could I fail in something so eternally important? But God brought me upon a realization — <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">I was chasing a cool vision and idea instead of chasing after God. </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Full disclosure? There is no sure fire way to start a missions program, or 12 steps to success for the small church. My church is hardly involved in missions to the extent I hope to be one day, but we’ve got a start. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">I’ve learned a lot from failing and from seeing success. All I can do is share with you what I have learned, and pray that God will use it for His glory. So let’s take a journey together.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">First, YOU can’t be the missions PERSON. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">You can’t do it alone. Whether you are a pastor with other responsibilities, or a layperson from you church with a full-time job, you have limited time to dedicate. You need a group to share the responsibility with you. Begin asking around to see who might be interested in forming a mission group with you. I’d try to stay away from the word “committee” if I were you, though. That tends to scare people off. Simply start a mission group for people who have a heart for the world, want to help people, and see others meet Jesus for the first time. What will this group do? We’ll handle that a little later.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Second, lay a foundation. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Rome</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> wasn’t built in a day, and neither will your church’s mission program. You can’t expect people to go from being uninformed about missions, to signing up for a trip to Africa over night. You don’t have a big pool to draw from. You can’t just put out a call and have a team come together simply by pure statistics. One in a hundred signing up for a mission trip works at a big church, but not in a small church. We have to lay a foundation first. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">People typically respond to world missions in the following process: apathy, awareness, awakening, action, and finally advocacy. Unfortunately many of us try to jump in at the action and advocacy stage instead of the beginning. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Make getting missions into your church’s budget the first step. Put your money where your mouth is. The reality is, we tend to care about where the money is going. If money is going to missions, then people are a lot more likely to care about it. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">As a mission group, begin making other people aware of the world around them. This can be done through a monthly prayer time for the nations. You can include prayer for the nations in your church service. Another idea would be to create PowerPoint slides that can scroll before or after church with facts on a different country each week as well as ways to pray for that country. The book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://www.operationworld.org/">Operation World</a></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial;"> is a great resource for this. You could even plan a “Missions Sunday,” or have a month where you focus on missions at the church. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> Then comes awakening, the linchpin to a strong missions program. This is perhaps the hardest and least under your control. Awakening is all about God awakening someone’s heart. In my experience, awakening happens most often when we personally see or experience something. You might want to hold a special showing of a movie like, “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">End of the Spear,” “Kony 2012”, </i>or another missions related film. You may also consider a small, introductory weekend mission trip or local service day just to expose people. But make sure it is not intimidating, and that you have laid the foundation of awareness before jumping in here. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Finally you will be ready for the action stage. Hopefully by this point, you have a strong missions group, and a whole spiritual community that is aware of, and passionate about the world around them. Before you plan mission’s trips, however, be strategic about where you will go. Focus on partnerships rather than a shotgun approach of going wherever people suggest. You may even consider mission fields that are closer and less expensive rather than destinations that require lots of travel time and money.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Finally, don’t be afraid to partner with other churches in your community. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Many of us who are a part of small churches don’t have large amounts of money in our general budget, but we would have some. Partner up with other small churches, or even with a larger church. Not only can you combine financial resources, but also you may even be able to collaborate on trips. This relieves some of the leadership and recruiting stresses on your church. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">I have to be honest; my church isn’t nearly where I hope God takes us someday. I’m guessing yours might not be either. Don’t get discouraged. Continue to pray for your church and seek God’s direction. Rally people around you to pray. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Above all else, we know one thing: that everything significant in God’s Kingdom is preceded by prayer</b>. I pray that God would use our small churches for great things!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Questions for the author? Contact Tory at <a href="mailto:toryr@deltaministries.com">toryr@deltaministries.com</a> or 520-404-0841. </span><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-81471343845469512652012-04-13T01:27:00.001-07:002012-04-13T01:27:00.185-07:005 Things To Know About Sharing Your Short-term Mission Experience<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><img src="http://img2.blogblog.com/img/video_object.png" style="background-color: #b2b2b2; " class="BLOGGER-object-element tr_noresize tr_placeholder" id="ieooui" data-original-id="ieooui" /> <style>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">This week marks the end of the “spring break season.” Many people have gone on mission trips during spring break and are returning home. Are you one of them? Or maybe you went over Christmas break or maybe even last summer? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Have you been home from your mission trip for a while now, but still haven't figured out how to talk about your experience?</b> You may not even know where to start--especially if this was your first trip. You want to explain how amazing and even miraculous your experience was but just can't do it justice. What was supposed to be you telling someone about how God is working around the world and in your life turns out to be a jumbled string of stories about seeing a lion, hoping to see a tiger, and breaking down on the side of the road that leaves your friends confused about what you did. Maybe worse yet, you are left feeling isolated and not understood.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Talking about a mission trip with someone who wasn't with you can be a very difficult thing. The experiences are literally indescribable. How do we talk about such an extraordinary experience? I certainly don't own the answers to these questions, but let me give you some advice and some ways that have worked for me:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><br />
</div><ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1"><li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">You do have to talk about it--but not too much! </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Don't incessantly talk about your trip, but don't act like it didn't happen. Not dealing with the hard questions that the experience brought up can lead to stagnation at the least and crippling depression at worst. </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Don't bore people with details</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">. Instead of recounting your trip for people by giving them the hour by hour schedule, pick a few stories to tell. Choose 2-4 stories about significant events or people that explain your trip in a snapshot. These stories can and should describe living conditions, the spiritual atmosphere of the country, and anything that God revealed to you or taught you. </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Have an impression answer. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">There are going to be people who ask about your trip but are doing it out of obligation more than true curiosity. Have a 15 second answer ready about something that left a big impression on you. For example, you may say something like, "I didn’t realize the unemployment rate was over 70% where we served. They already knew money wasn’t the answer to their problems so when we brought clothes for the children and shared the hope of Jesus Christ, they received it with great eagerness. Much different than what I’ve experienced here in America.” This might just be the hook that draws people into wanting to know more. </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Choose a few people close to you to lean on. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">This could be a spouse, a friend, or a Bible study group but it needs to be someone with whom you can be vulnerable and transparent. Even though you can't tell all the stories and every little detail to everyone, you need to be able to tell someone. It is simply part of processing your experience. </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-autospace: none;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Report back to your prayer and financial supporters. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">These people were and are heavily invested in your experience. When you report back, ask them to continue to pray for you in a few specific ways.</span></li>
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Telling your story can be a powerful thing for you and for others. It can be healing and liberating for you. But it can also help spread your new vision and involve others in what God is doing. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">For more on coming home from a trip, what to expect, and how to share your experience—especially in a church service—I recommend </b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;"><a href="http://www.thenextmile.org/">The Next Mile</a> </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">curriculum</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">. Telling your story is not easy but it is key to continuing on the path that God has put you. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Questions for the author? Need help with debriefing and reentry? Contact Tory at <a href="mailto:toryr@deltaministries.com">toryr@deltaministries.com</a> or 520-404-0841. </span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1235818049628379930.post-28906715149229621262012-04-06T12:17:00.000-07:002012-04-06T12:17:18.685-07:003 Ways To Train STM Teams That Are Scattered<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style>
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<div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">How do you prepare your team when they are coming from all over the country and maybe even the world?</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;"> Preparation is easy when we can all be in the same room, but how do you do it when your team is made of individuals from many different places? Many groups send a manual and meet up in an airport hoping everyone will feel prepared. This, however, can be frustrating to team members who have never traveled or those who may have unanswered questions and keeps the team from getting to know each other ahead of time. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Flying everyone to one location for a weekend of training can be a great way to deal with this issue, but it is probably out of your budget. There are other options and ways to prepare your team. Here are some ideas:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1"><li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Find creative ways to meet virtually. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Meet on the phone using a <a href="http://www.freeconferencecall.com/">Free Conference Call</a> service. You can even find <a href="http://vsee.com/">free video conferencing</a> solutions. I have held weekly team meetings the six weeks prior to a trip using <a href="http://www.thenextmile.org/">The Next Mile</a> curriculum over the phone. It’s a little different than in person, but we get to know each others’ voices, names, where we are from, and get to pray together. </span></li>
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</div><ol start="2" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1"><li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Schedule a forced layover. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Often there is one major hub out of your country to your international destination. Talk to your travel agent about an overnight layover so you can meet and do some training at an airport hotel. Most hotels would have a meeting space you could use for a nominal fee. </span></li>
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</div><ol start="3" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1"><li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Arrive a couple days early. </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Plan to arrive at your destination a day or two early. Spend the first couple of days orienting your team; training, and adjusting to the new culture. Your in-country costs are usually very minimal so an extra day or two is not a big cost. </span></li>
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Are you wondering what you should cover in your training? If so, check out the post <a href="http://themissionsmoment.blogspot.com/2012/03/four-areas-to-train-for-life-change.html">“4 Areas To Train For Life Change.”</a> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">Questions for the author? Contact Tory at <a href="mailto:toryr@deltaministries.com">toryr@deltaministries.com</a> or 520-404-0841. </span></div>Tory Ruarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15205799581642091993noreply@blogger.com1