The Brigada Brigade

When is a picture worth a trip to Mecca? When you’re that girl with the unforgettable green eyes, staring out at the world from the cover of the June, 1985 cover of _National Geographic_. Photographer Steve McCurry captured her fiery-eyed image back in 1984, but then lost track of her. I guess one might say that she became sort of ‘unreached’ (in more ways than one). When he heard that her refugee camp in Peshawar, Pakistan, was about to close, he decided to try one more time. Through a rare chain of events, he found her again, 17 years later. Her name was Sharbat Gula. As a way of saying thanks, McCurry sponsored education for her 3 children, as well as fulfilling her lifelong dream of making a pilgrimage to Mecca. The photographer had rediscovered his subject. 

As I thought about this story, I considered the fact that we, too, are in the business of face-matching. Except, instead of trying to rediscover someone’s past, we’re usually focused the other way, in an effort to help folks like Sharbat come face to face with their future. And instead of helping them with a pilgrimage to Mecca, our colleagues and we are trying to hook them up with a trip to an eternal hope… one that will provide everlasting fulfillment. 

In McCurry’s case, Sharbat Gula didn’t necessarily want to be found. In fact, she didn’t even know she was lost. Such is the case of most of the 2.72 billion people living among 6,873 unreached people groups living in the world today. Truth is, most of them would consider it an intrusion if they knew why we were seeking them. But seek them we must. It’s a mandate that originates not only with their lostness, but with the creator of their eyes and the originator of their souls - God Himself. Even if they don’t want to be “found”, the maker of all those fiery eyes wants to see them snatched from an eternal fire with much more fierce heat. 

Want to learn more about Sharbat Gula? Check out the NPR interview recap at: 

http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2002/mar/girl/ 

Want to learn more about unreached peoples? Browse to: 

http://www.joshuaproject.net 

And please — don’t give up until you “find” the people group for which you’re searching.

(Want to comment on the above “Backpage” item? It’s easy. Just click “Comment” below.)

Brigada participant, David, is looking for a book in print (one or two) that would do a good job addressing these six topics in a missions context?: *** Learn the biblical basis of world-wide evangelism, including the nature of God, the nature of man, and the biblical requirements of evangelism. 

*** Grasp various principles of cross-cultural evangelism, including methods, principles, and practice from various cultures and countries. *** Become familiar with the advantages of having a Bible in your mother tongue and what is necessary to reach that goal. 

*** Beware of the opposition of Satan and how to have victory.  This includes counterfeit religions and philosophies, persecution, and discouragement and opposition personally. *** Grasp the character and practices necessary for success, including spiritual discipline, biblical study, walking in the Spirit, and prayer. 

*** Determine to have an effective multiplying ministry with training of nationals and outline of the principles of a “people movement.” If you can help with a book or two that might address one or all these topics, please leave a note by clicking on “Comment” below:

I’m facing this question now in my own home church, where I’m an elder and where I serve on the worship team when I’m not traveling. Our congregation of 750 - 800 people has, in partnership with Team Expansion, ‘adopted’ an unreached people group in the Middle East. We set the next 6 months as a period of mobilization and activation, with the hopes that during those six months, God would raise up a team of on-site workers… maybe out of our own church… to go live among the group to become agents of change there and to live out & portray, somehow, the message of Christ. So now comes the question: How do we fire up our church? Say you had 6 months to do so, what would you recommend? Would you give us your time line… give us your slate of ideas? If so, please click “Comment” below and write away. We suggest you do not put your email address in the text if you don’t want it to appear online. Contributions by spammers will be zapped - so no need to try.

My son leaves for the US Army this coming summer. Last night I read through a journal kept by a soldier involved in the same training program that my son will experience. The trainee was recouting the values of the army… “Leadership, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, personal courage.” As I read them — sure enough — there’s an amazing parallel to the Bible, in many cases, and what’s more, I realized that they actually would also fit with any missionary, mission agency rep., and local church missions leader. So, with this edition of the Back Page, we’re starting a series on each value, asking for the best of the best thinking about each value. Click “Comment” right below this item. For the first week, let’s pick apart the concept of Leadership. Please jot a note about your favorite leadership training resource, the best book you’ve found, your best thought on leadership in missions, a note about someone who is ‘getting it right’, a report on an agency or missionary with great leadership traits (use first-name only if you’re afraid of revealing sensitive information), or — write about the *need* for leadership. Tell why and how leadership could make the difference. And, in light of the dissertation for my Ph.D. (the 1st revision of which I *finally* turned in to my university this past week ), please jot down any feelings about “followership” too. We all lead sometimes and follow sometimes. Mention the need for great followers… and tell about someone who has mastered followership in your own group. Again, this week, the emphasis is Leadership. We’ll pick on the others later. Thanks for taking time to create a great resource block for all 10,000 Brigada participants! 

Doug

That’s what Earnest would like to know. He wrote recently, “Who would have course materials on African Tradition Religions. We are seeing the younger generation responding to the call of Missions and are looking for practical materials that will help them as they ‘launch out’ into their calling.” Good question. Where can Earnest find help? If you know of a source, just click “Comment” below and leave your legacy here today!

Last week during our “Launch” week (the week during which we train our newest mission recruits with Team Expansion), one of the participants was recounting the story that convicted him to enter missions as a career. He mentioned that he was serving on a summer internship in Asia. In talking with a couple of nationals he had just met, in an effort to learn more about the culture three, he asked them what the typical local might think of Jesus. As the answer came back, he came face to face with how desperately some people still need the redeemer. When they answered, they said, shaking their head, “Jesus? Who is he?” 

With all of today’s communication systems, media, and the Internet, perhaps it’s hard for us to digest the fact that there might still be some 2 billion people who still, for the most part, remain in that same situation. Yet it’s true. And from that moment on, this new recruit made up his mind that he would live his life, God willing, to reduce the number of people in that situation the best he could. 

Interested in learning more about that need? There are a number of great media sources listed in the response comments to a recent BackPage request on our Brigada “Brigade” site at: 

http://brigada.org/brigade/?p=61 

As you scan down the page, please take a moment to give thanks for all the folks that have worked to produce these and other resources so we can “get the word out” about the remaining need. As for me, I ended up using a resource at 

http://www.FaithVisuals.com 

called “Lost People.” It was quick, easy-to-download, generic enough, yet specific enough, quick enough, and people-oriented enough to try to get my point across. 

I’ll also mention that one Brigada participant (only one) questioned my desire to find such a video. His basic tenant was that I must be out of touch with the need if I don’t understand that it can’t be reduced to a 3-minute video. I understood his criticism and thanked him for it. Still I need to provide this particular church with a resource, so … something tells me that maybe he didn’t understand the context. The truth is, many of us, when we come in contact with a deep heartfelt need, probably react similarly. How would we ever show that desperate situation on a video? And if we did, would it be manipulative? … crass? … or somehow dishonest? I guess for me, I go back to Jesus’ response in Matthew 9, where he saw “sheep without a shepherd,” wept, then immediately told the disciples to pray to the Lord of the harvest that He would send workers. That’s exactly what I was hoping to do — in effect, transport the congregation to truly *see* that scene of sheep without a shepherd. 

By the way, the church decided to study the world and adopt an unreached people group somewhere. With the Lord’s help, there will someday be a handful (or maybe *tons*) of previously untold people who stand with white robes on judgment day — because that church decided to try to make a difference. Huh. What’s not to like about that?  

Comments on this “BackPage” editorial? Just click “Comment” below and write away!

OK… (It’s actually Feb. 19th when this item was released to the public.) Now, I’ve got 48 hours to find the very best video in the world to mobilize a church of 1500 to raise the bar for missions in their congregation. The video should be short — maybe 3 minutes is perfect. It should be snappy and fast-paced. It should not be a “branded” appeal. (In other words, it shouldn’t be seeking to raise money or recruits for any one specific agency, project, or people.) Instead, it should prompt a church to want to do more for missions. It should inspire them to believe that the task is *doable*. It should help them get a glimpse, though, of just how much yet there is to do. When viewers finish watching the feature, they should *gulp* because of the tremendous “task remaining”, they should be sobered by the depth of the challenge, but they should be excited to get involved in what their church is doing to change the world… starting with one people group or city. All that in 3 minutes. Can it be done? Do you know of such a video? We need it by noon Friday… so that means ordering it Thursday if we have to express mail it into Louisville… or better yet, downloading it on Thursday, end of the day. Is it doable? Does one exist? Don’t be humble if you’re the producer… we need this baby ASAP. Thanks for any help you can give!!! 

If you know of any such resource … or anything *close* to it… please leave click on “Comment” below this item and leave your best resource and how to buy it — quick-like. Thanks!!!

Doug

Life is complex. Did you ever think about that? Just think of all the relationships. If you’re married, then you have a relationship with your spouse. If you also have kids, then you have your relationship with your spouse plus your relationship with your kids plus your *spouse’s* relationship with the kids. Add in the relationship that each sub-group has with each other, overlay that with relationships with the Lord… then sprinkle in relationships with close friends, in-laws and colleagues… Shew. No *wonder* life is complex. Makes me tired just thinking about it!  

So how can we make it easier? Well, perhaps there are no easy answers. But here are some lessons I’m starting to draw on half a century of life.  

*** Treat others like you want to be treated — Golden rule. Duh. *** Never, never, never give up on any relationship.*** Assume the best; grant grace before it is requested.*** Avoid ever bringing up past failures (sins?) committed by those you love.*** And in all your relationships, walk in Jesus’ steps. 

There are other important conclusions, but if we could just master those, we’d be well on our way to eliminating some officially high percentage points of all stressful exchanges we would ever have had. 

So what are we waiting for!? Let’s get started. 

Want to give input on this “Backpage” editorial? Just click “comment” below and write away! 

Well anyone who saw last night’s SuperBowl (a championship game for American football) can relate to the header that “underdogs *can* triumph.” In what had to be one of the most unlikely outcomes of all time, Eli and his troops pulled it off. I’ll quickly admit that I was rooting for him. (What’s not to like about two brothers winning back-to-back superbowls two years in a row!)  

In this case, though, rather than key in on big catches (there were those) or individual performances (there were those too), I’d just like to draw a general lesson from the overall outcome. In the opinions of many pundits, the game was hardly worth playing. It was to have been a game of destiny for quarterback, Tom Brady, in the opinion of some. Eli Manning believed otherwise, and as is often the case, *belief* gave way to *reality*. 

And that brings us to our point: Perhaps there are those nay-sayers who cast cold water on the cause of global missions these days, with comments like, “What’s the use?” or “They’ve ignored the message this long; what’s going to change them now?” My thought is, thank goodness Eli didn’t give in to polls. Instead, he just worked his plan and, what, 250 yards later, he was thrusting celebrating arms in the air as the game’s MVP. 

What big challenge are you or your team facing? Tempting to give up and call it a day. My advice: don’t. You just might be missing out on a tremendous blessing, not only for you and/or your team, but also for the people who benefit because of your efforts. Hang in there. Keep passing. Keep running. Flee troublesome tackles. Don’t give up. Victory could be only one play away. 

Got a comment on this ‘Back page editorial’? Just click on “Comment” to give your feedback or story.

It’s free, and you don’t even have to go out in the cold. The question is, “What do supporting churches need to know about member care?” Please post a brief story (that illustrates a “do” or a “don’t”), general recommendations, or a scripture that stands out to you. A few months from now we’ll share some of the best posts in the form a booklet for everyone’s benefit! Thanks! Just click on “Comment” below and add your two cents. There’s nothing to buy, no ads, and you never are spammed. You have our word on it. These questions come from a Team Expansion worker in North Africa, along with the Team Expansion Member Care point person. (Thanks Dana!)