In this issue…

  1. GOING ON A MISSION TRIP? NEED INSURANCE? WANT TO HELP BRIGADA?
  2. UNREACHED PEOPLES QUERYING TOOL
  3. OSCAR LAUNCHES NEW BLOGGING FACILITY
  4. MEMBER CARE IN CRISIS SITUATIONS: CSAI TRAINING
  5. HELP DAN FIND CAR INSURANCE DURING FURLOUGH
  6. GET PERSPECTIVES IN 2007!
  7. MUCH OF CALEB PROJECT & ACMC (I360) LIVE ON
  8. EQUIP YOUR MISSION TO BETTER PROTECT KIDS FROM CHILD ABUSE
  9. HELP DESIGN A THEOLOGICAL ENGLISH COURSE
  10. THE PERFECT MISSION FIELD?
  11. ESL CERTIFIED TEACHER NEEDED
  12. WE OWE THANKS TO…
  13. THE BACKPAGE: MORE “LESSONS LEARNED” FROM “I360”
  14. CLOSING STUFF
  1. GOING ON A MISSION TRIP? NEED INSURANCE? WANT TO HELP BRIGADA? – As was mentioned before, there are a lot of companies that offer international health, evacuation and travel insurance, but now when you purchase insurance from Insurance Services of America on Brigada’s website your purchase will help to support Brigada’s work with the missionary community! Coverage is available for any international need – short-term trips, career missionaries, trip cancellation, short-term teams and term life insurance. For coverage details, rates and the online applications of the Brigada sponsored plans, go to

    http://www.missionaryhealth.net/brigada.htm

    Insurance Services of America has agreed to help support Brigada from sales that are made on this link, so when you purchase on this site you will be helping to support Brigada! ISA writes, “[Through Brigada], We all benefit from your business and we thank you!”

  2. UNREACHED PEOPLES QUERYING TOOL — Have you ever wanted to look at unreached people group data using your own criteria? For example, suppose you were interested in “Buddhist people groups in the 10/40 Window that are larger than 1,000,000 in population and unreached?” or “Muslim people groups in South and East Africa with a complete Bible but are unreached” Well now you can. Joshua Project has developed a webpage that allows users to select their own criteria and then finds the list of peoples matching that criteria. See:

    http://www.joshuaproject.net/filter.php

    Totals are at the bottom of the listing. To give an idea of some of the kinds of listings you can produce, there are a number of pre-made queries available at:

    http://www.joshuaproject.net/filtermade.php

    Joshua Project welcomes suggestions for improving this tool. It’s dynamite!

  3. OSCAR LAUNCHES NEW BLOGGING FACILITY — OSCAR, the web-based UK Information Service for World Mission, has launched a new section of its website for mission bloggers. The facility pulls together the blogs of a number of people involved in mission around the world and makes them available through one website. As OSCAR generally serves those in mission who are from or to the UK (or pass through the UK), they’re inviting anyone who blogs and fits this criteria to submit their blog to their new facility. It’s an exciting development for OSCAR and they hope that it will provide UK mission supporters and those thinking about working in mission with a day to day insight into the lives of those ‘at the cutting edge’ around the world. This is ‘Reality Internet’ serving the purposes of world mission and helping to build the Kingdom. See OSCAR’s new blogging facility at

    http://www.oscar.org.uk/oscaractive/blogs

    You can also email OSCAR via

    info(at)oscar(dot)org(dot)uk [As a means of preventing spam for our contributors, in the preceding email address(es), please replace (at) with @ and (dot) with .]

  4. MEMBER CARE IN CRISIS SITUATIONS: CSAI TRAINING — Wycliffe Bible Translators International and MCI (Member Care International) will join forces to offer the 2007 Member Care in Crisis Situations Workshop, June 18 – 22, 2007 in Dallas, Texas. The first half of the workshop will deal with a variety of topics, including: What constitutes a “crisis situation?” How can we expect people to respond in times of personal or group crisis? What populations are most vulnerable? How can we respond as an organization? How can we use “Peer Responders” to care for people in crisis? The second half of the workshop will focus on debriefing skills for “peer level” debriefing. Participants should plan to attend the entire workshop, 8:00-5:00 Monday through Friday. A registration fee of $125.00 is due upon registration. Room and board fees for the workshop are $150.00/person, due upon arrival.

    CSAI Certification Training: June 23, 2007, following MCCS workshop: The CernySmith Adjustment Index (CSAI) is designed to evaluate and enhance cross-cultural adjustment for international personnel and their family members. On Saturday, June 23 both Basic and Advanced CSAI certification training will be offered. Fee: $65.00 in conjunction with MCCS, $125.00 if taken on its own. An additional day of housing can be added for $18.00/person.

    For information or reservations contact Wycliffe International Member Care at: member_care_intl(at)Wycliffe(dot)org [As a means of preventing spam for our contributors, in the preceding email address(es), please replace (at) with @ and (dot) with .]

  5. HELP DAN FIND CAR INSURANCE DURING FURLOUGH — Here’s a Brigada participant, Dan, who asks, “Anyone know any of a short-term car insurance policy that could be purchased for a missionary while on furlough? Those who have lived outside of the US for years have trouble getting car insurance while visiting; either that, or the prices are way out of reach. Is it possible to get a policy that would not apply to a specific vehicle, but whichever vehicle a missionary happens to be driving while on furlough?” If you have an answer to Dan’s questions, log on to this web address:

    http://www.momentum-mag.org/wiki/Furlough_helps

    Click “edit this page” and write some simple text, just like writing an email. The moment you hit “save”, everybody will be able to see your suggestions.

  6. GET PERSPECTIVES IN 2007! — Is your church interested in embracing God’s missionary heart? Do you need continuing education credit for missionary service? The Perspectives on the World Christian Movement course may be your answer. The Perspectives course covers the biblical, historical, cultural, and strategic basis for missions. ICM (International Christian Ministries) offers the course on-line for certificate, undergraduate, or graduate credit. Check out

    http://www.icmusa.org/perspectives.php

    for more information and to sign up, or email info(at)icm-intl(dot)org [As a means of preventing spam for our contributors, in the preceding email address, please replace (at) with @ and (dot) with .]

  7. MUCH OF CALEB PROJECT & ACMC (I360) LIVE ON — I’m sure by now you’ve caught the press releases from Pioneers, which, by faith, has kindly volunteered to welcome many of the former staff of what used to be Caleb Project and/or ACMC. To learn more, read…

    http://www.takeitglobal.org/

    In addition to the many who moved to Pioneers, a few went to Frontiers, a couple to GEM, 4-5 moved to OMF, and others are still seeking God. Please say another prayer for any who might still be struggling. Among the many comments from former Caleb Project staffers came this note: “Doug, thank you so much for your passion for reaching the unreached, for the years of partnership that Brigada and Caleb Project have shared, and for helping the audience that we love and want to serve come to grips with these sad events. God is Sovereign. He wins in the end. His ways are not our ways. He is the healer, provider, and the Rock on which we all stand. He will accomplish his purposes even without Initiative360 still standing. Thanks for all of your continued prayers for the staff across the US and world who are still reeling and finding next steps. Your prayers are a blessing to each one of us!” See the “BackPage” editorial for more on this.

  8. EQUIP YOUR MISSION TO BETTER PROTECT KIDS FROM CHILD ABUSE — In Sept. 2006, leaders from 12 mission organizations met together to candidly examine the issue of child abuse in missions and as a result formed an intermission Child Safety Network. The next Child Safety Meeting is scheduled for May 8-10 in Orlando, Florida and is open to new organizations. The seminar is for leaders of mission agencies and faith- based NGOs and for those with this area of responsibility within their agency. For more information and to register, please go to The Child Safety and Abuse Response Networking Workshop website at:

    http//intre.org/event/info.php?site=36

    Please complete the seminar registation form within the next week. Email further questions to

    childsafetyworkshop(at)ccci(dot)org [As a means of preventing spam for our contributors, in the preceding email address(es), please replace (at) with @ and (dot) with .]

  9. HELP DESIGN A THEOLOGICAL ENGLISH COURSE — Jandre is a missionary living in Madagascar. She teaches English at a seminary, among other things. She writes, “The students only have two hours per week for English. As you can think, this is not nearly enough! And therefore I am looking for ways to maximise this time!” She wrote, looking for someone, “a clever person, who can help design a Theological English course!” If you’d like to brainstorm with her about this, just click to:

    http://www.momentum-mag.org/wiki/Theological_English

    Suggest existing courses, recommend outlines and “gotta’ have it” ideas. When you click edit, then give input, then “save”, others will see your suggestions immediately. Thank you!!!

  10. THE PERFECT MISSION FIELD? — If one were going to design the perfect mission field, here is what it might look like, according to one Brigada participant:

    http://ied.gospelcom.net/webmissionfield.php

    (Thanks Tony!)

  11. ESL CERTIFIED TEACHER NEEDED — Immediately… for Aizwal, Mizoram India. This is a government-funded program that runs until mid-December and is renewable. Housing, in-country travel, and a $300 per month salary are provided. The ESL students are college level. A single male or a married couple is preferred. The ideal target entry date would be mid-April with mid-May being the absolute final deadline. For more details please email: rb735731167(at)cablespeed(dot)com [As a means of preventing spam for our contributors, in the preceding email address(es), please replace (at) with @ and (dot) with .] You may also call toll-free (888) 248-5902 for U.S. subscribers or use (517) 347-7121 if you are outside the U.S.
  12. WE OWE THANKS TO… — Insurance Services of America (ISA) for a $17.30 gift that resulted from a person buying a travelers’ insurance policy. Hey… let’s just talk turkey here: if every Brigada Today participant merely bought travel interruption insurance from ISA, the truth is, just that alone would probably take care of the small amount of funds we need to break even. Learn more about ISA’s plans at:

    http://www.missionaryhealth.net/brigada.htm

    Thanks, too, to Clowns4Him

    http://www.clowns4him.com/

    for recently sharing $100, with this comment: “We appreciate Brigada and the diversity of information that is delivered online to us.” God be praisedc.

    Join others in spurring Brigada on to good works? Just click on “Sponsor/Donate” 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. (Team Expansion is a 501(c)3 incorporation so for USA citizens, your checks made out to Team Expansion are tax-deductible.) 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. And thank you in advance for helping.

  13. THE BACKPAGE: MORE “LESSONS LEARNED” FROM “I360” — As glad as I am for the partial solution above (Thanks again Pioneers), I still hurt for the collapse of the original dream for merging two really great organizations (Caleb Project & ACMC), each with a 25-year+ legacy. In recent exchanges with one of the first staff “recruits” of what used to be Caleb Project, she shared, “We so appreciate your care for us as people who are seeking to follow God with our whole hearts (we want to be like our buddy, Caleb) amidst this unbelievable situation. Please keep praying for those of us who are struggling through the days of grief, anger, unbearable sadness and loss. … Thanks, Doug, for your concern. It means more than you can know.” She had a great attitude about the whole thing. But I’m afraid everybody else is just going to ignore “the elephant in the middle of the room”… so I’m going to stick my foot in my mouth one last time on this situation, from what I’ve been able to absorb. Keep in mind… my purpose isn’t to judge the past, but to try to learn from the past so we can look toward the future. With that in mind, here are some final “lessons learned” from the Initiative 360 closure:

    *** Lesson #1: “Don’t shoot the messenger” — It is my understanding that the board abruptly released the CEO of Initiative 360 because finances had taken a tragic, though gradual, dive. My humble suggestion to all board members everywhere is this: Yes, call your organization’s CEO into accountability. But communicate to him clearly what you expect and call upon him/her to dream up options when the organization is going through stress. Make sure he has a clear benchmark as to what is the threshold with which you’re comfortable. (Tell him or her clearly what you want; then expect him or her to deliver.) And please… give him/her some time to try to deliver what is requested.

    *** Lesson #2: “Before pulling the trigger, know your target” — I’ve been told that the decision to dissolve Initiative 360 was suggested, approved, and implemented all within about 60 days. May I humbly suggest that it is a sobering move to bury an organization with a 25-year history. Could I ask that if you’re ever tempted to do that, would you please write some key leaders; maybe do a couple of last-ditch fund- raiser campaign letters? Maybe put out some press releases about the financial crisis… or at least ask staff people for input… you know… focus group style?

    *** Lesson #3: “Seek board longevity” — It is my understanding that the Initiative 360 board consisted of several new members and that those members were fairly outspoken about the need to dissolve. Either way, whether that is true or not, it just seems advisable to seek to recruit at least a *few* board members who will stay the course. By some miracle, some of our board members for Team Expansion (the organization I lead) have stayed with us for literally more than 20 years *plus*. They have such an investment in the organization, it is unthinkable to me that they would so quickly kill it. So, again, with deep humility, I would suggest that we seek some longevity… some sober ownership of the organization’s ethos and mandate.

    I wonder if we could spin the clock back 5 months, then put those 3 lessons in place, maybe we’d be looking at a new chance for a couple of organizations with very rich histories. It’s worth pondering.

    Doug

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