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News and Notes about Brigada, Your Gateway to Missions Networking!
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Compiled by Doug Lucas, Cincinnati, Ohio
[Pass this issue to a friend! To subscribe, see instructions at end.]
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In this issue….
* HEAR YE, YEAR YE! GET YOUR PRAYER JOURNEY TRAINING THIS SATURDAY!
* ‘IT’S YOUR TURN’ FOR A STEAL OF A DEAL, LUCILLE
* “LIBRARY TO GO” IS GOING!
* ON-SITE WORKERS WILL COME FROM PRAYER
* GLOBAL GLIMPSE OF HOPE
* BOARDING SCHOOL BLUES TURN TO BYTES AND BITS
* BRIGADA ADMINISTRADA, PROBLEMA NADA
* COME EDUCATE THE KIDS IN K’STAN, MAN!
* APOLOGIES TO TWILA PARIS
* SO HOW DO YOU FILE “BRIGADA”?
* CALLING ALL INTERNATIONAL STUDENT WORKERS…
* PESKY COMPUSERVE NAMES
* DO YOU DO MEDS IN THE FORMER SOVIET UNION?
* HOW DO BUSINESS PEOPLE BECOME VITAL PARTICIPANTS IN MISSIONS?
* WHO YA GONNA’ CALL – VOLTAGE-BUSTERS!
* STAMP OUT STAMP-OUTS
* WANT THE LATEST PRAYER NEWS ON GCOWE ’97? YOU GOT IT!
* WORLD’S MOST VALUABLE PIECE OF “LINGUISTIC REAL ESTATE”?
* TO SUBSCRIBE TO BRIGADA TODAY
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HEAR YE, YEAR YE! GET YOUR PRAYER JOURNEY TRAINING THIS SATURDAY!
If you’ve got a prayer journey coming up this summer . . . or this October, then run — don’t walk — to Louisville, KY this Saturday to catch a full day of training from the guy who wrote the book on Exploring the Land, Caleb Project’s standard text on doing research expeditions (which include daily prayer walks). (This book served as primary source material for Life-Changing Encounters, AD2000 & Beyond’s standard training issue for JP2000 trips.) Shane Bennett learned under Steve Hawthorne, author of Prayer Walking. Then he went on to lead prayer journeys to places like India and dozens of least reached cities throughout the world. And get this — mention that you heard about it on Brigada and you’ll receive the entire day’s training (Saturday 9AM – 2:40) for $10 (plus $6 for lunch with dozens of other prayer-journeyors). Shane will help you address questions like, “Why pray there, when God can hear here?”, “Who’s qualified for a prayer journey?” and “How do I maximize the long-term effectiveness of my prayer journey?” One church with a team of 10 prayer journeyors headed to N. Africa in July is sending their entire team. Another team of 7 is headed to an Islamic area for a research expedition — and they’re coming to take the training side by side. Yet another 4-person research team is headed to a Buddhist area and they’re using the weekend as part of their team-building experience.
Plus — get this! The former head of the Zwemmer Institute (Dr. Robert Douglass, now a grad. Prof. at the Chicago Center for Urban Studies and a leader at the Central Asia Study Center) is leading a parallel track on Islam and its strategic implications for church planting in today’s world. So send half your team with Shane, and the other half with Robert!
And bring along your church missions leaders, too! They’ll want to take part in the specialized training for senders, held in yet a third track! You won’t find training at a cheaper price anywhere in the world. And I dare say you probably won’t find any higher quality either. So if you want a top notch experience, write Lisa MiddletonL@aol.com for more info. But you’d better act fast. Saturday’s comin’ soon! (Training co-sponsored by PACE “Pit-Stops,” Caleb Project, Northeast Christian Church, Chicago Center for Urban Studies, and Team Expansion.)
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‘IT’S YOUR TURN’ FOR A STEAL OF A DEAL, LUCILLE
I brought home a copy of It’s My Turn and, no doubt about it, it’s a powerful mobilization tool for GenXers and for others too!!! It challenges individuals to evaluate their involvement in world evangelization and introduces some of Christianity’s greatest mentors, such as Hudson Taylor and Amy Carmichael. Put that together with devotional questions and a journal response page and all of a sudden, you’ve got a blockbuster success like Steve Moore’s It’s My Turn. This Steve Moore guy is the one who wrote the script for the now well known “Amdo Video” (he also led the prayer journey). Get the book through Kingdom Building Ministries by calling toll free 1-800-873-8957 (if you’re in the USA or if you downloaded the free Net2Phone product we mentioned previously), or email Laborers@KBM.org fax 303-745-4196, or write 14140 East Evans Avenue, Denver, CO 80014. And get this! Normal retail cost is $8.00 plus shipping, but the folks at KBM are actually avid Brigada Today readers! They said to tell you to just mention you saw It’s My Turn on Brigada and you’ll get it for $6.00, plus $3 shipping in the US, Mexico or Canada, $5 shipping elsewhere. They’ve also got a great little debriefing manual to help short-termers turn what could have been “gospel getaways” into “meaningful messages” from the Lord. I don’t know what they’ll charge . . . but maybe they’ll wrap up a packet of 5 of them for $5 or whatever. Better ask. :-) They’re great little guides… and you’ll need one per traveler. Also contains helps for preparing that slide program — You know the type, the “[Click]-Here’s-the-toilet-we had to use; [click] Here’s where we had to eat lunch. [Click]….” Won’t cut it anymore. And who should know better than the Amdo Video guy!?! :-)
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“LIBRARY TO GO” IS GOING!
We’ve been getting a great response to our request for CD-ROMs that on-site workers can take abroad (in place of barrels of books). Responses already in include dozens of works by Tozer, Calvin, Luther, Wesley, The Early Church Fathers, Adam Clarke, and many other writers. Reference works, Bibles, commentaries, inspirational, language learning helps… they’re building up one at a time. If you have a favorite CD-ROM resource that you figure some missionary could use in the field, just email the title, order information, and a brief paragraph description to DLucas@TeamExpansion.org with the subject line reading:
LIBRARY TO GO
(Only items with those exact words in the subject line will be included in a new source file in the Brigada file archive beginning next week!) Let’s put together a list of top notch CD-ROM resources for on-site workers! Don’t forget to include price and source!
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ON-SITE WORKERS WILL COME FROM PRAYER
Maybe you read the item in last week’s Brigada Today, SO WHERE WILL ALL THE ON-SITE WORKERS COME FROM? and thought, “Lucas is nuts! Why would he mention that one reader wrote in asking whether or not it was time to convince a few of the intercessors to become on-site workers? The intercessors are needed too!” One reader was brave enough to write and complain. (Except he didn’t say I was nuts. :-) ) I thanked him for speaking his mind. :-) Truth is, he’s probably right. If people are truly interceding for the least reached and if they’re truly asking God to raise up teams of evangelists and church planters to reach them, then their ministry is every bit as valuable as that of the on-site workers. Trouble is, those are the very people God ends up calling to the field anyway! :-) If you don’t believe me, just read the prayer Jesus told the disciples to pray at the end of Matt. 9, then see where it got them at the opening of chap. 10! :-)
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GLOBAL GLIMPSE OF HOPE
More than 100 people came to Christ after seeing the hardships believers in Laohutai, China, endured to erect a building. Church members cleared the site by hauling more than 100 tons of garbage down a mountain in baskets, then hand-carried building materials back up… Also, North Korea has granted permission for cooperating mission agencies to start the first independent Christian church in the country — in an area where the three organizations are providing agriculture assistance to the famine-stricken nation.
(Source: Advance! April, 1997. Copyright © 1997, Kainos Press. To subscribe, send the following message to HUB@XC.ORG
subscribe Advance-newsletter
Global Glimpse is compiled by John Hanna, Caleb Project, Littleton, CO.
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BOARDING SCHOOL BLUES TURN TO BYTES AND BITS
Hey – how ’bout that CyberHigh “boarding school via the Internet” stuff from last week ALTERNATIVE TO BOARDING SCHOOL — SEND YOUR MK TO SCHOOL ON THE NET. Those guys received over 30 immediate inquiries. What does that tell you about Moms and Dads overseas who don’t want to have to part with their kids!?! Write brett@cyberhigh.org for more info.
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BRIGADA ADMINISTRADA, PROBLEMA NADA
!Que’ pensas’ vos! Dios es poderoso. Solamente mencione’ la idea de hacer una edicio’n de “Brigada Today” por espanol (la semana pasada), y !Pero ya! Respondieron 3 hermanos que van a hacerlo! Ahora estamos orando que todo este’ listo para la semana que viene. Y despue’s de esto, jama’s de los jamases, nunca tendra’n que leer Brigada Today por ingle’s! Vive Brigada Hoy!
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COME EDUCATE THE KIDS IN K’STAN, MAN!
Been looking for a great opportunity for the Almighty in Almaty? You got it. :-) The Tien Shan School in Almaty, Kazakstan is looking for teachers for the 1997-98 school year. The leadership there is especially desperate for a teacher for grade 3/4 and for high school science. The school serves the international community of Almaty and uses English as the medium of instruction. Teachers would need to be certified and would need to raise their own support. For more information please contact SGrandi@xc.org.
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APOLOGIES TO TWILA PARIS
Kathy Trocoli, Twila Paris, Amy Grant, . . . they all get mixed around in my head — and my ears. Can you tell I’m not a connoisseur of contemporary Christian music? :-) Anyway… “God is in Control” is by Twila, not Kathy. Thanks to all those who filled me in! :-) (See “GOD IS IN CONTROL” from last week’s edition.)
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SO HOW DO YOU FILE “BRIGADA”?
Susan wrote in to explain her approach on saving Brigada Todays. She basically deletes the items that aren’t relevant to her and places the rest in a word processing file. What do you do? Please send your favorite indexing/saving/filing procedures to DLucas@TeamExpansion.org with the Subject: line,
FILING BRIGADA
and we’ll make the idea file available to all.
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CALLING ALL INTERNATIONAL STUDENT WORKERS…
The “International Student Worker and Volunteer Training Conference” is set-up for Jul 31-Aug 2, in Columbia, SC. Cosponsored by HIS International (Columbia), InterFACE Ministries (Atlanta), First Baptist Church Atlanta and the SE Center for World Missions, the conference features speakers Robertson McQuilken, past president of Columbia Intl Univ, Lisa Chinn, author of “Think Home,” Muslim Apologist Jay Smith, John Eaves and Sam Elisha. For more information or to register, contact David Cook 102227.2626@compuserve.com.
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PESKY COMPUSERVE NAMES
It’s like an Internet virus! All of a sudden, 2 million people want to change their address from 11111,9999 to and when they do, they forget to unsubscribe the 11111.9999@compuserve.com first. Moments later, they can resubscribe with . But if they forget to unsub’ first, then our noble conference administrator and Brigada Customer Relations Specialist (Revis Ann Massey) has a rough day. There’s nothing like waking up to 250 bouncing addresses and half of them want you to change their old address to new! Don’t get me wrong! She’s not complaining. In fact, she’s got a wonderful servant heart. I just want us to try to help keep it that way! So before you switch to letters, please unsubscribe first! Afterward, it’ll be too late! :-)
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DO YOU DO MEDS IN THE FORMER SOVIET UNION?
A bunch of people do. Help us find them. You see, Wheaton’s Billy Graham Center has gone out and gotten this big grant from the Christian Medical and Dental Society. And with it, they’re planning a “Consultation on Christian Medical, Dental, and Health Ministries in the Former Soviet Union and East Central Europe.” (Now that’s a mouthful!) It’s coming Nov. 7-8, ’97. Participants will learn about clearing customs with med. supplies, public health, relief, dental and church-based clinic ministries; published and on-line sources of info. of use in med. and health ministries. For more info., write Mark Elliott at medical.conference@wheaton.edu. Looks like $50 would do it. This is one to watch.
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HOW DO BUSINESS PEOPLE BECOME VITAL PARTICIPANTS IN MISSIONS?
One answer is when their church designs and carries out a strategic mission initiative. The 1997 Antioch Network Annual Gathering of Churches will again this year feature tracks or break out sessions focused on specific unreached peoples like the Kurds or the Turks or the Kazakhs or the Peoples of China (and others). But there will also be a track entitled “Mission Business Ventures and Church Planting Teams: The Moravians Ride Again” led by a businessman who has developed a multi-million dollar business. (There will also be a track dealing with issues concerning women on church planting teams among unreached peoples.)
There is no more strategic mission initiative than to plant churches among an unreached people, and church planting will be the theme of this year’s Gathering. Church planter par excellence Ralph Moore will be a featured speaker. Gregg Parris, senior pastor of Union Chapel in Muncie, IN, will update the group on his church’s church planting team in Central Asia. Sandy Mason, senior pastor of Grace Fellowship Church in Baltimore will share of his church’s experience partnering with a mission agency. And Bill Thrall, founding pastor of Open Door Fellowship in Phoenix, will address the issue of developing leaders who are Godly in character. The Gathering will take place August 21-24 in Phoenix. For registration materials write:
Antioch Network
5060 North 19th Avenue, Suite 312,
Phoenix, AZ 85015
or phone 1-602-242-4414
or email 74552.2423@compuserve.com. I attended the ’96 Gathering and it was great. George Miley and the entire Antioch Network crew are doing a super job with these meetings. When I grow up, or if I’m reincarnated as a different person, I want to be George Miley. :-)
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WHO YA GONNA’ CALL – VOLTAGE-BUSTERS!
Suppose you want to show the Jesus Film in a local North African Dialect of Arabic that has just been completed. Where ya gonna’ buy a multi speed TV/VCR units that run under 220 AC power with the option of connecting to a car battery? I mean, those things don’t exactly pop up in your local Radio Shack, do they. And then you’re gonna’ need a projector that’s small enough to not draw attention to itself. Then … well… you need to go show the thing. But joylmart@aol.com can do that. As long as you supply him with the leads on the suppliers. And then, Joe, can you fill us in? I mean, . . . maybe we’ll have to buy something like that someday too! :-)
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STAMP OUT STAMP-OUTS
Remember those guys looking for missionary stamps? ( STAMP OUT MISSIONS from last week’s Brigada Today). Well turns out that they aren’t looking just for precious stamps but for just normal snail mail stamps from any country but the USA. They’ve dedicated themselves to using 100% of the money for missions.
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WANT THE LATEST PRAYER NEWS ON GCOWE ’97? YOU GOT IT!
The South Africa Prayer Track, headed by Bennie Mostert, has put together a 44-day prayer guide available for GCOWE ’97. It starts on 1 June and follows through to 14 June. According to Bennie, “This conference is of utmost and strategic importance and will probably the last of this kind of conference this century. In South Africa we have between 120,000 and 150,000 intercessors who will focus for the next 44 days on praying for GCOWE ’97.” Let’s join ’em! Just write nupsa@global.co.za and they’ll email it. They’re also willing to fax it (fax them at 27-12-8070164).
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WORLD’S MOST VALUABLE PIECE OF “LINGUISTIC REAL ESTATE”?
It just might be, at least according to Ken Warwick EFCM_I_Net@compuserve.com, of EFCM International Network. Ken says, “English is the world’s most valuable piece of linguistic real estate. A statement of cultural pride? No, just a statement of today’s global situation.” Ken believes that in almost every area of education, science, diplomacy and business, English has become the defacto universal language. “By recognizing the ever increasing demand for knowledge of the English language, missionaries and national churches have discovered a gold mine rich with mission opportunities. Want to find out how you can leverage the interest in conversational English for your ministry? Check out the Adventures in English materials the EFCM International Network has put together. With a focus on developing conversational English in a small group setting, these materials have been developed through 5 years of actual cross-cultural use by short-term teams of non-professional ESL teachers, having been written up in a 1997 monograph from the Institute for Cross-cultural Training at Wheaton College. For more information or a sample of the material visit the EFCM web site at http://www.efcm.org .” Sounds very interesting.
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At https://brigada.org on the web, you can see tons more.
(This issue of Brigada Today is Copyrighted © 1997. However, permission is granted to freely redistribute provided that such redistribution is to those who will help the Good News of Christianity to reach the unreached. But please tell your readers where you learned about the item, and if it’s not asking too much, include the 3 lines on how to subscribe — see above.
IMPORTANT: To copy or reproduce Brigada Today for any other reason is illegal and is not permitted.)
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BRIGADA TODAY IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE FOLLOWING TEAM OF REGULAR VOLUNTEERS:
*Global Glimpses: John Hanna, Caleb Project, jhanna@cproject.com
*ADVANCE: Mark A. Kelley, Kainos Press, 70420.1057@compuserve.com
*Brigada Website: Bob Mayhew, Brigada Volunteer, mayhew@xc.org
*Technical Development: Jonathan Marsden, MAFxc jonathan@xc.org
*Brigada Customer Service Manager: Revis Ann Massey, RevisAnnMassey@xc.org
*Brigada Coordinator: Doug Lucas, Team Expansion & Brigada, DLucas@TeamExpansion.org
*and many other occasional contributors too numerous to mention!
But thanks for working together! That’s the dream of Brigada!
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