- NEWS SUMMARIES PUSHED TO YOUR INBOX
- NEED A RESOURCE TO TRAIN TEAMS GOING OUT FROM YOUR CHURCH?
- HOW TO FOLLOW UP YOUR SUMMER TRIPS
- MISSIONARY TRAINING CAMP
- PLACES AVAILABLE IN BI-LINGUAL DISCIPLESHIP SCHOOL
- CHECK OUT THE “HAPPINESS METER” FOR YOUR COUNTRY
- ORPHANAGE SEARCHING FOR CURRICULUM
- IS THERE A TENTMAKING GROUP FOR OIL WELL WORKERS?
- MAKE A DIFFERENCE WITH BRIGADA
- THE BACKPAGE: THE AGE OF PARTNERSHIPS
- CLOSING STUFF
- NEWS SUMMARIES PUSHED TO YOUR INBOX — Do you have trouble remembering to check CNN.com? Or do you live in a place where web access is costly? One of our Team Expansion workers asked this past week if I could recommend a daily email news update, so he wouldn’t be caught in the dark about some major terrorist action or whatever. It was a good question, I thought, and it spurred me to do some research. I found a lot of good help from Dartmouth College Library. For your convenience, I’ve clipped some of the best options for you here. Just scan through and pick out the right level for you. Then click on the link, sign up once and forget about it. The rest will come pushed to you via email:
BBC: This service lets you specify which categories you’d like from a large list including each continent, subsections of the United Kingdom, Entertainment, Science/Nature, and more. Three to five stories will come in each category, and depending on which you choose, some may overlap. You may also specify delivery time and mail format. A great service for those who’d like a non-US perspective on current events.
CNN: A daily e-mail, CNN’s QuickNews features fifteen to twenty headlines and article summaries arranged by category: Top Stories, Weather, US News, World News, Sports, and Business. All link to full content.
CNN *breaking* news: CNN Breaking News is very fast. The content is typically political, though some financial and other news is delivered. Each alert comes with a link to CNN.com. Highly recommended for those who want to keep aware of current developments.
CNN *Custom* news alerts: This custom e-mail alert will notify you of any CNN.com article that mentions your selected keywords. You can choose immediate, daily, or weekly delivery. You’ll first have to register as a member; then click the “Create your own” link on the alerts page.
http://www.cnn.com/youralerts/
New York Times: This service brings you the top stories from the New York Times, and lets you choose from a diverse set of categories, including Business, Editorial, and Arts. Headlines are followed by a brief summary and links to the full articles.
http://www.nytimes.com/mem/email.html
Washington Post: This daily alert briefs you on current events in eight categories–Highlights, Politics, World, Nation, Metro, Business, Technology, Sports, and Style. Each category features one story summary and a link to more news in that category. There are also links to editorials, horoscopes, comics, and a Washington DC webcam.
- NEED A RESOURCE TO TRAIN TEAMS GOING OUT FROM YOUR CHURCH? — “Ready Set Go” is a Global Training Ministries DVD for your use. These 2 training DVD’s assist your local church to train your short term missions teams. Each of the 8 sessions gives insights into key missions concepts. Your training coordinator will develop the individual sessions in interaction with the team to enhance the effectiveness of each team members experience. Purchase online for (Aust) $39.95 + postage.
For more information see
http://www.globaltraining.org.au or email
globaltraining(at)ozemail(dot)com(dot)au [As a means of preventing spam for our contributors, in the preceding email address(es), please replace (at) with @ and (dot) with .]
- HOW TO FOLLOW UP YOUR SUMMER TRIPS — “The Journey Deepens” is a weekend retreat to help prospects explore what it is like to be a missionary, discover whether a missionary or sender role is God’s fit, and connect with mission agencies. These retreats are for college students, young professionals in their 20s and 30s, adults in their 40s and 50s, and high school seniors willing to explore becoming a missionary. Each retreat of 50 participants and 10 missionary mentors from multiple agencies is highly relational with extended worship, small group discussions, personal reflection and much prayer. Discussions include agencies guidance, finances, singles/families, etc. For those in south central USA a 2006 retreat will be Sep 29-Oct 1 in Davis, Oklahoma (between Dallas and Oklahoma City). For those in southeast USA a 2006 retreat will be Oct 20-22 in Atlanta, Georgia. Agencies may apply to send a mentor/recruiter. These retreats are presented by MissionsFocus Int’l and co-sponsored by ACMC, Caleb Project, Perspectives and the U.S. Center for World Mission. For more visit
- MISSIONARY TRAINING CAMP — Elijah Company will host another training October 12-15, 2006 at Living Waters Farm in Virginia. These four-day intensive exposures often illuminate the pathways for those desiring to be in missions. From the last training Robyn wrote: We are still processing the closest four days with Jesus ever! Meaning you discipled us so deeply according to the Word that we felt so close to Him, we truly were able to “hear”. Please do not wait too long to register. For more information and applications write to elijah(at)elijahcompany(dot)org [As a means of preventing spam for our contributors, in the preceding email address(es), please replace (at) with @ and (dot) with .] or call 757-226-3507. See their web site at
- PLACES AVAILABLE IN BI-LINGUAL DISCIPLESHIP SCHOOL — StEP International, a residential missions and ministry discipleship training center, begins its next school year November 5th in Pirmasens, Germany. During Phase 1 of the 10-month program, students experientially and relationally learn to apply Biblical principles to their every day lives, as well as, learn practical skills, such as budgeting, computers, car maintenance and either German or English. Working closely with a local church, students are also equipped and released to participate in church ministries and outreaches. Then, during Phase 2, students further apply their training through missions work, including outreaches in Europe and a 2-month missions trip to Suriname.
You can contact Joe and Shelli at office(at)step-international(dot)de [As a means of preventing spam for our contributors, in the preceding email address(es), please replace (at) with @ and (dot) with .], and the school website can be found at
- CHECK OUT THE “HAPPINESS METER” FOR YOUR COUNTRY — Browse to:
http://www.le.ac.uk/psychology/aw57/world/sample.html
and find an interactive map. The map was constructed with 2002-2005 data from more than 100 studies involving surveys of 80,000 people. Countries with large populations — China, India and Russia ranked 82nd, 125th and 167th, respectively — “tend to do quite badly,” White said. “One of the reasons we put that down to is the collective identity.” [taken from a news source]. TOP 10
The Top 10 nations on the “world map of happiness”:
1. Denmark 2. Switzerland 3. Austria 4. Iceland 5. Bahamas 6. Finland 7. Sweden 8. Bhutan 9. Brunei Darussalam 10. Canada The U.S. was ranked No. 23, with Australia close behind at No. 26., While the United Kingdom was No. 41. (Thanks Paul!!!)
- ORPHANAGE SEARCHING FOR CURRICULUM — Circle of Hope is a new Christian non-profit organization that is working with orphans in Africa. They currently looking for well written international curriculum for a school that will be built for African students and would like to know if anyone has found or created a really well-done curriculum in English that is appropriate for students in less developed countries. They will be happy to share the information gathered with others. If you have any suggestions please send them to julie(at)newlinkmedia(dot)com [As a means of preventing spam for our contributors, in the preceding email address(es), please replace (at) with @ and (dot) with .]
- IS THERE A TENTMAKING GROUP FOR OIL WELL WORKERS? — That’s what Hebert would like to know. He’s searching for a missions agency that sends oil well tentmakers to sensitive countries. If you know of one, email hebert67(at)yahoo(dot)com [As a means of preventing spam for our contributors, in the preceding email address(es), please replace (at) with @ and (dot) with .]
- MAKE A DIFFERENCE WITH BRIGADA — Want to help make a way for Brigada to keep cranking out the door and onto missions radars worldwide? Just click on “sponsor” in the top menu (to use PayPal or a credit card), or if you prefer, send a check payable to Team Expansion to: Team Expansion (Brigada secretary), 13711 Willow Reed Dr., Louisville, KY 40299. As always, be sure to let us know if you’d like us to promote any particular service or ministry, or if you’d prefer your gift be anonymous. In any case, thanks for considering Brigada in your estate giving, your monthly church missions fund, and/or your own personal giving for this calendar year.
- THE BACKPAGE: THE AGE OF PARTNERSHIPS — Is this the age of partnerships, or *what*?! In the missions agency I lead, we’re teamed up with medical groups, missionaries who are experts in a particular region, national associations, and more. What kinds of things can you do to maximize the likelihood that these relationships will succeed?
*** Write down expectations in advance — Before buying airfare for your permanent onsite workers, write up a “letter of agreement” between your work and theirs. Our organization lists categories in the left- hand column, partner involvement in the middle column, and responsibilities of our organization in the 3rd column. We include topics such as policy, selection of team members, granting of visas, selecting a team leader, training responsibilities, language learning, financial responsibility, stateside representation, and conflict resolution.
*** Clarify the money trail — This one factor can deep-six a partnership as fast or faster than maybe any other issue. Make sure you figure out how much each family has to contribute to any generic project funds, as well as how property is handled once a worker resigns and heads home.
*** Invest in relationships — It just seems as if our most successful partnerships are those in which someone in our organization is best friends with someone in the partner organization. In other words, partnerships seem to thrive best when they are based on *relationships* rather than contracts.
*** Start small, grow big — It kills me how many prospective partnerships break down before they ever even get out of the gate, because the would-be partners try to imagine all the various scenarios that could wreck their futures — and in the process, never get off square one. In my opinion, though some of these scenarios need to be considered, the groups *could* go ahead and get started on some small “baby step.” Start small, build trust, then take on more as you build that all-important relationship.
So there you have it. Not a magic wand… but at least something to chew on getting started. We pray God’s richest blessings on all your future collaborative efforts!
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