19950226 Brigada Today

News and Notes about Brigada, Your Gateway to Missions Networking!
Compiled by DLucas@TeamExpansion.org
[Pass this issue to a friend! To subscribe, see instructions at end.]

In this issue….

NAVIGATION MAP

Two Brigada conferences — the top level “Brigada” and “Brigada-Albania-Durres” continued to expand with 26%+ growth this week, bringing their conference size to 58 and 14 respectively. Others came alive with first real activity. For example, if you’d like to subscribe to The Global Prayer Digest Online (which has come alive this week — thanks to Elise at the US Center!!!), the conference name is brigada-pubs-globalprayerdigest. (Tack @xc.org onto the end of any conference name to get the conference address.) So, e.g., to subscribe to The Global Prayer Digest, just send email to hub@xc.org with the message
subscribe brigada-pubs-globalprayerdigest

For more information on this process, see “NEW CONFERENCES BRING NEW GROWING EDGES” below
OR check out the list here on our Web server: List of Current Brigada Conferences

IDEA DEPARTMENT

Why not forward a copy of this update to a friend who might be interested in Brigada! Also, you could start a special subdirectory on your PC called c:\brigada and in it, start a file called “BrigToda.doc” or something similar. Each week, when this message comes in, just call up the file and add the current week’s message onto the end of BrigToda and you’ll always have the latest information on Brigada and know exactly where to find it! Want to start by calling in the previous “Brigada Today” issues? They’re archived in the Brigada file area. (Send email to hub@xc.org with the sole line,
filelist brigada

and in a few minutes, you’ll receive in your ‘in-box’ a list of all the files stored in this area. You can then send email back to hub@xc.org with the line,
get brigada brigada-today.950224

substituting in the name of the file that represents the issue date you’re looking for
OR check out the list here on our Web server: Issues of Brigada Today

NEW CONFERENCES BRING NEW GROWING EDGES

During the past week, seven new conferences were created, though as of this morning, we are still waiting on CrossConnect to complete the associated “hub logistics”. (Note: Creating a new conference consists of two steps: [1] the set of commands that designs the framework and [2] the code that allows the conference to function on the hub. The first step is relatively easy. The Brigada Coordinator performs those commands and it normally takes no more than 30 minutes. The last step requires actual coding by CrossConnect staff people and normally delays the ‘birth’ of the conference by about 2 days. Under particularly heavy work loads however [as in this past week, when CrossConnect staff people were involved in helping launch a new server at MAF headquarters], the delay can be longer.) We’re hoping that the following conferences will be ready for use by next Tuesday or Wednesday:

brigada-colombia-bogota — featuring updates and prayer requests from field workers such as Mark Dempsey regarding new church planting in this city of 8 million people where the number of evangelicals is below 2%. Requested by field workers.
brigada-ecuador-guayaquil — where the number of evangelicals is, again, below 2%. Requested by field workers.
brigada-peoples-arab — to begin general brainstorming and dialogue regarding how to speed along appropriate care and concern to this, the remaining largest block of unreached people. Requested by Bill Kelley on behalf of many others.
brigada-peoples-latam — to provide a forum for discussing missions resources and outreach ideas to the remaining nonChristians in Latin America. Requested [repeatedly] by field workers.
brigada-prayer-requests — specifically for the posting of special prayer requests. Note that this will allow the prayer-mobilizers conference to focus on networking and mobilization ideas for congregations and movements. Requested by Dave Butts.
brigada-projects-brigada — to provide a forum for Brigada volunteers (conference “Moderators”, “Reporters”, “Consultants”) to exchange ideas, report problems, ask questions, and encourage one another. This will be the “Op Center” for the Brigada network. Requested, among others, by our CrossConnect staffer, Jonathan Marsden.
brigada-projects-cells — To allow those who are applying the cell group church planting approach to dialogue and exchange ideas on a more personal level than that allowed by other cell church mailing lists.

These new groups will bring the total number of Brigada conferences to 20 in all! Once these conferences are launched, you’ll see them in the list when you send email to hub@xc.org with the following text in the message body:
conferences

OR check out the list here on our Web server: List of Current Brigada Conferences

In addition, if you’re slated to be Moderator for one of these conferences, you’ll receive email confirming your ‘subscription’, along with the standard “welcome message” for that new conference. So be patient! CrossConnect will come through!

BRIGADA-ALBANIA-DURRES

This conference is set to come alive this week, with input from Albania Field Coordinator, Eric Derry, fresh back from crisscrossing Albania on a strategy/planning trip with on-site personnel. You can write Eric at EricDerry@xc.org

A SAMPLER OF BRIGADA NETWORKING

Having consultants like World Vision’s John Robb online in Brigada can multiply our resources exponentially. As MARC’s Unreached Peoples Researcher, John tries to act as a catalyst for forming relationships that can be beneficial across the board to many in God’s kingdom. For example, this past week, noting Bill Kelley’s interest in Arabic peoples here on Brigada, John sent a note to Bill and Doug Lucas about a certain George Livingston who was trying to facilitate the formation of a network of churches that could launch a project for Turkic people. We contacted George and found him very eager to work together with the Brigada concept. His organization, Global Consulting Group, is at work full-time to draw attention to 10/40 Window opportunities and networking to reach them. George is at Compuserve 73124,2120. Thanks John Robb!

ARLIEN, PORTRAIT OF A PRAYER WARRIOR

Out of the blue this past week, we received a call from a Mrs. Arlien Spring. Turns out that she is the Coordinator of the Mission Frontiers Vision Network. Several years ago, she began making the 100-mile drive to the US Center to do volunteer work there and has become a permanent part of the US Center staff. Someone had faxed her a copy of the ‘vision’ paper on Brigada that we circulated early on. Little did anyone know that she had been praying for the development of Brigada ever since. Why did she call? She wanted to know the name of Doug’s wife and sons because she felt that he would be attacked, along with those who were close to him, specifically because of the potential that Brigada held for reaching unreached people and cities! Right there on the phone, she started reading from Psalm 78, encouraging us to have “Faith, Obedience and Dependence on God”. She said that in the past, when God’s people didn’t trust Him to work out the future, little would happen. But during the times that they were fully dependent on him, amazing things took place. Her encouragement was to fully depend on God — then she broke right into prayer for Brigada. Our sense was, with this lady praying for Brigada like this, what might God do???!!! Thanks Arlien! [She’s getting an email connection specifically to keep in touch with Brigada’s growth so she can pray all the more effectively for the work of God around the world!]

FILE OF THE WEEK

If you’re in a meeting with someone and they happen to mention, “Oh yes — I’ve been meaning to get a copy of those 100 Gateway Cities [which are the target of prayer for the October ’95 “Praying through the Window” prayer Campaign]. Are they available online anywhere?” Look no further. Tell them to send email to hub@xc.org with the following lines in the text typed into the body of the message, exactly as they appear below (Compuserve users will need to send to INTERNET:hub@xc.org, of course). The last line gets a help file with more information:

subscribe brigada
get brigada 100-gateway-cities.txt
get brigada help-detailed

That’s all there is to it. The list of 100 Gateway Cities will come right into the email in-basket!

OR check out the list here on our Web server: List of 100 Gateway Cities

NEXT WEEK — A review of “Light the Window”, the new video on the 100 Gateway Cities!

[Did someone forward this note to you and not give you instructions as to how you can start receiving “Brigada Today”? Simple. Just look above to the item, “FILE OF THE WEEK”. Follow the instructions to get the file and you’re in business. You’ll start receiving “Brigada Today” automatically.]