20010603 Brigada Today

In this issue….

INTERNATIONAL PHOTOS… 50,000 OF ‘EM!

If you prepare visuals (Powerpoint presentations, printed literature, etc.), check out: www.corbis.com. For non-profit use, they’re about $3 each… which isn’t bad at all for professional quality pictures — if they’re the exact ones for which you’ve been searching! (Thanks for the tip, Tony! Check out Tony’s work at: http://www.web-evangelism.com )

TO TRAIN SHORT TERM MISSION TEAMS…

As a youth pastor, mission team leader, or missionary who is hosting a summer mission team, you have a great desire to have spiritually prepared people on the mission team. In this new resource, “Before You Pack Your Bag, Prepare Your Heart”, you will find a user-friendly, concise, spiral-bound study guide for team members to do at home in private before the trip. The team member grapples with 12 Bible studies aimed at cultural sensitivity issues, spiritual formation, and team relationships. The author has trained 100’s of teams for 9 years using this material. Team leaders who feel the preparation crunch will be helped by the page of practical ideas on how to use the book effectively in mission trip orientation sessions as well. For more ideas email Cindy at Judge190@aol.com. Purchase 25-50 copies at $6.95 or over 51 copies at $5.95 each. Fax orders for books at quantity discounts to 630-682-0926 or click to: http://www.campfireresources.com/wv_bk1_prepare.html.

KEEP YOUR VIRUS DEFINITIONS UP TO DATE

Been putting off installing that antivirus software? Better not procrastinate any longer. The frequency of these dastardly programs just keeps stepping up… and the strength and risk are greater than ever. Norton is typically in the winner’s circle for “editor’s choice”, but anything is better than nothing at all. Better act now… or your PC will be toast.

WEBWATCH: A SITE FOR THE HAKKA CHINESE

Hakka Church Planting Ministries has just launched a new web site that they hope will build a bridge between the worldwide body of Christ and the unreached Hakka Chinese of Taiwan. In an effort to raise awareness, rally prayer support, and release workers, this rather extensive site invites viewers to learn about who the Hakkas are, why they are so hard to reach, and how the on-site missionary team is striving to pioneer a church planting movement in their midst. The site also offers an abundance of yours-for-the-taking small group resources such as Bible Discussions, Icebreakers, and Leadership Tips. What’s more, it’s nicely done, serving as a great sample of what all mission teams could do on the web, if they only had the funding and/or the volunteers to make it happen. Check them out at: www.hakkaministries.org (Way to go John! Keep up the good work!)

USA READERS: IF YOU’RE ON THE HUNT FOR A POSTAGE METER

If you’re a USA reader and you’ve been nagged by those trips (and lines!) to the post office and back, “Simply Postage” by Neopost might be just the solution you need. For more information, click to: http://www.simplypostage.com and read all about it. There’s even a great comparison chart there so you can see all the competitive plans too. You’ll notice that “Simply Postage” is the best solution because

you aren’t charged a service fee each time you refill postage,
you can refill anytime you want via the Internet,
you pay only for the exact postage you download (plus a $15/mo. subscription fee), and
you can even print postage while offline.

I’ve been using one of these machines now for about six months. I can tell you that it has been one of the handiest gadgets I’ve ever purchased. At the end of the month, when I need stamps for my regular monthly report, I print them 10 at a time until I have enough for the whole mailing. (The machine will “background print”.) At other times, if I just need one stamp, I just click for the one stamp I need. If the $15/month is worth it to you to escape regular trips to the lines at the post office, it’s a no-brainer! To get connected, just call toll-free to 877-499-3739. (Note — this month they have a special offer going on. If you tell them that Doug Lucas sent you (3700 Hopewell Rd., Louisville, KY 40299; DLucas@TeamExpansion.org, 502-297-0006), you get $25 of free postage and my mission postage account will be credited with $20 of free postage too. Not a bad deal — again… if you don’t mind the $15/month user fee. If you need a meter, give it a try! The scales are built right in so you can weigh, print, and post — then forget about it!

DISTANCE (CHRISTIAN) EDUCATION IN FRENCH

Thanks to Phil for following up on his quest to find Christian Education resources on the Net. The one find he discovered was “Universiti Biblique Virtuelle”, available via email at InfoDEQ@Sympatico.Ca or on the web at: http://www.deq.ca That’s not a great quantity, but it looks like great quality!

KIDS IMPACTING THE WORLD

Do you know of outstanding kids reaching the world for Jesus whose stories could inspire other kids? They could be reaching out through agencies, denominations, on their own, with their families or through a local church or school group. Sandy wants to hear from you! E-mail her at koop1sm@yahoo.com and tell her what you know. In a couple of weeks, she’ll compile a report for all of us.

CALEB PROJECT UNREACHED PEOPLE CALENDAR PRE-ORDER DISCOUNT

Caleb Project announces the new Unreached Peoples Calendars for 2002, featuring the beautiful paintings of Hyatt Moore. Each month features a Scripture verse, descriptions of the unreached people group and ways to pray for them. They will be available to ship on July 25th. Major discount pricing is available for orders over 300. Contact Paul at pmerrill@cproject.com for large quantity discounts. To view the calendar and for smaller quantity orders, see their website at: http://www.calebproject.org.

THE BACKPAGE: MORE SILENT SPRING FEEDBACK

I was impressed (in fact, amazed ) at all the feedback on the “Silent Spring” item. (It has continued to flow in, though more slowly.) It’s clear that many Brigada participants have a very strong view on the current status of mobilization. Some felt that the pendulum has now swung in the direction of non-Western evangelicals, therefore resulting in less “noise” and more action. Others felt that the momentum now favored congregations, whereas before it was focused on well-known individuals (such as special speakers and itinerant evangelists) or agencies. Whatever the case, one thing is clear: there’s a huge percentage of readers out there who feel that global evangelization is by no means finished. What’s more, there’s still a ton of interest in completing it . . . regardless of how long it takes. Bravo to that intent… and that determination!

(As to the YahooGroups polling feature, what a bust that was! We learned the hard way that many Brigada participants don’t ever log into the YahooGroups site and therefore, they have no web-id or password for online access. And that’s fine. Just don’t count on another YahooGroups poll showing up here anytime soon! What a hassle it was for people to try to figure it out and use it. Our apologies to all those who were perplexed!)

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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
Brigada Website: Bob Mayhew, WebServant@brigada.org
Brigada Customer Service Manager: help@brigada.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!