In his book Cross-cultural Servanthood, Duane Elmer cites a study done by the Canadian International Development Agency, seeking for the principal aspects that foster effectiveness in overseas endeavors. The CIDA study, replicated several times, demonstrated that, far and away, the most powerful factor in overseas effectiveness was the ability to initiate and sustain interpersonal relationships […]
Evangelization via Relationship Read More »
I spoke to Dave Miller this afternoon. He was in a hospital bed near Las Vegas. I told him about the arrachera and chorizo tacos I had a few days ago, topped with nopales and green salsa. Dave mentioned that he hasn’t eaten real food in days. Jello certainly isn’t real food. Dave went to
A Ministry for The Rest of Us Read More »
I grew up in Lancaster Co, PA. Even though lots of dairy farms have gone out of business, I’m guessing that there are still more cows in the county where I grew up than people. Both my parents grew up on a farm. When I asked my dad why neither he nor his two brothers
A Broad Definition of Faith Read More »
Last week I flew into Harrisburg, PA, then drove up to Boston for three days with son Daniel. While in Boston we stayed with friend Victor Monterosso on the campus of Northeastern University, which is in downtown Boston, then in guest housing at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary. I was able to attend a mentor re-certification
Quick Trip, Two Purposes Read More »
Earlier this week the 5 students that composed this year’s summer internship experience boarded a plane and returned to the U.S. It’s always a bittersweet experience. The sweet part is knowing that everyone in your trust survived the summer without any major health or safety issues, and left not really wanting to leave. Also, for
End of Internship. Lessons Learned Read More »
Over the last several weeks the inside of the church has continued to undergo transformation, with the rough block surface smoothed out with a concrete surface. Time to paint. Today several of us had way too much fun painting the concrete gray a bright white. The ceiling still needs to be painted, but we’ll save
Thinking about a short-term missions experience? Not sure you want to deal with the hyper-activity? Not sure you really think that short-term experiences are really effective anyway? Let’s re-think short-term experiences together. Done right, they can be transformation, both in the lives of the participants as well as the lives of the host ministry. I
Short-Term Missions Done Right Read More »