Changing Technology Changing Us

Technology is changing our lives rapidly. Who would have thought a few years ago that missionaries in far away places would be able to communicate in real time through Facebook, videos  and free phone calls. These ways of communicating are taken for granted by our newer members and many of them would not be able to imagine a time when easy and instant communication was not possible. At the moment  in our organisation we are in the process of moving toward communicating with our  audience by email and Internet  as much as possible. This means phasing out postal communications where we can save costs and time. 
 

There is increasing evidence that this age of internet connectivity is not just changing the way that we communicate, but it is also changing us. Researchers are saying that even the brains of young people are wired differently as a result of being constantly immersed in the visual imagery of the Internet rather than the text based information that previous generations used to communicate new ideas. This means that the way that we challenge a new generation into mission has to take this into account. Social media, short videos and stories will become an important part of that communication.

This new technology also brings risks, as we are enthralled and titillated by new ways of sharing information, images and ideas. Missionaries are at increased risk of being drawn in by the lure of pornography, which could ruin their ministry and their personal lives. Some others spend too much time talking to people at home at the expense of being effective in their cross-cultural work. There is also the danger of becoming distracted by the constant barrage of text messages, Facebook updates, emails, Twitter feeds, so that we never really focus on getting anything significant done in our daily work. We have to be careful that our use of communications technology does not become an idol that will become more important to us than Jesus and sharing his love with the people that we meet. While our smartphones and screens can greatly enhance our communication, they cannot replace face-to-face interaction with people on a regular basis (at least not yet!)

So much of our communication is self centred, so we need to evaluate what and how we share in line with God's word on the matter. 1 John 2:16 reminds that "all that is in the world- the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and the pride of life- is not from the Father but is from the world". It would be great if we can remember that in our communication.

Doing God's Work in His Way

One of Hudson Taylor’s famous quotes is that “God’s work, done in God’s way shall never lack God’s supply”.  Our organisation is what is commonly known as a “faith-based” organisation which means that we trust in God to supply all our needs. This includes our personnel. In the last two years we have been able to find more than 10 new people to fill key full-time positions in Australia as well as other people to manage the transitions during handover periods. This does not include the 35 or so people that we have sent long-term to Asia in that time. I thank God that he has supplied all these people to meet our needs! We have a great team and I value each one of them.

However, I sometimes find it exhausting thinking ahead and trying to fill all the roles that we need people for. At times I get anxious and wonder how on earth we are going to find faithful, available and teachable people who are passionate about cross-cultural mission. Many of them need to raise their own financial support, because we don’t have outside sources of income to pay for OMF Australia personnel. Many churches are reluctant to support people who don’t go overseas. Our only income is from donations towards OMF work.

As well as doing the role of recruiter and Executive Director, I am also the Personnel Manager for our 28 OMF workers all over Australia and over 100 adult workers (+children!) on our fields that are coming and going ever more frequently. This means regular reviews and meetings to coordinate our efforts in caring for our workers and mobilising prayer and people for reaching East Asian people. At the moment I am not able to keep up with all of the demands of this role, and I hope to hand over some of that to someone else this year.

On Friday I was re-appointed by the National Council and OMF IHQ in Singapore to another 4 years in my current role. I’m looking forward to implementing some initiatives involving volunteers in the work of OMF over the coming year. There are also some exciting possibilities of partnering with some denominational mission agencies that I would like to follow through on. 

Rejoicing in suffering

Recently one of our workers shared with us about his work. He cares for disabled children as well as facilitates at medical clinics in East Asia. He shared about how he had helped with the relief effort in an earthquake zone and had a narrow escape from an ensuing flood. The experience had left a deep impression on him. It made me realize how often OMF workers have had to face major disasters in the last few years- earthquakes and tsunamis in places such as Indonesia, Thailand, China, Taiwan and Japan. In all of these disasters we have had our workers involved in relief and recovery efforts. OMF people usually speak the language and understand the local culture well and are a valuable local resource for disaster relief agencies from another country.

Involvement in these major disasters comes at a price. Some of our workers have suffered Post-traumatic Stress Syndrome as a result, sometimes with ongoing effects that may last for years. It has reminded me of the need for us to do a couple of things:

It is important to have a sound theology of suffering.
As ministers of the gospel of Jesus, we are not immune or somehow exempt. But God’s servants often suffer as they bear the burdens of others, just as Jesus was prepared to suffer pain on our behalf. We have to avoid giving the impression that God guarantees to protect us from pain, accidents or major disasters. Sending churches need to accept that sending workers to Asia can be painful and risky In order to evangelize in East Asia, we need to accept those risks. While we do everything we can to keep our workers safe and well, the very nature of our work means that we will be affected by the pain and suffering of those we serve.

It is important to give practical help during times of crisis.
Many of our workers will face a major crisis during their time in Asia. This can take many forms and may be a major illness, an accident, conflict or depression. This is where OMF field structures are essential in providing help and support. Our OMF Home Side Ministry Teams and churches are also very important in providing the care needed. In some cases we need to refer people to trained professionals who can give more specialized treatment.

In the book of Romans, Paul explains the grace of God. It justifies us and gives us joy which is not based in this world, but our hope that is in Christ. Then he explains what suffering does for us: “We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, and character produces hope.” (Romans 5:8 ESV) While suffering is not something that we long for, we can be confident that God fulfills his plan for our lives through it. And this gives us hope.

Amazing Grace- Amazing Day!

We had an amazing day the other week. We had the joy of baptising three Thai ladies on a beach in Sydney Harbour.  

·      D became a Christian through contact with our group over some months, first from our ThaiOz English classes and then attending our church- the City Thai Christian Fellowship (CTCF)

·        M came to Christ through her sister who is one of the core members of our church. She is here on a student visa to learn English, and would like to stay in Australia.

·        K went through a terrible period of separation from her husband and young son. Her Aussie mother-in-law had shared about Jesus with her over a few years, but she had not made a response. When she was at her lowest she cried out to God as she was sitting on a bench in Darling Harbour. At that moment two young ladies from St Andrew's Cathedral at Sydney Town Hall sat down next to her and started talking to her about Jesus. She responded immediately. It is wonderful to see how God works differently in each person's life. But his purpose for us is the same- that we would have a personal relationship with himself through Jesus. 

Care to Witness for Jesus?

Member care is very important in mission because is an example to others of how we serve one another as we declare the love of Jesus to the people of East Asia.

Our Homeside Ministry Teams (HMT) play a very important role in member care that we provide. They are a team of people chosen by the Cross-cultural worker to provide pastoral care and support. Many of the HMT members come from the cross-cultural worker's sending churches, and play a vital role in ensuring their emotional health and well-being.

We have dedicated one of our staff especially to the role of equipping and encouraging the Homeside Ministry Teams of our 130 or so cross-cultural workers. When we served in Thailand we did not have a HMT for the first 10 years, but it would have been wonderful to have had one to see us through the most difficult first few years of initial adjustment. We have certainly appreciated having a HMT for personal support and encouragement during times of stress and transition in leadership.

Adjusting to a new culture and language is really difficult. This year some of our new workers have been going through some tough times making new friends and learning to fit into their new context. This process is normal. What has changed in recent years is the close communication that is possible as our new cross-cultural workers go through their day-to-day adjustment to a new culture.

These days the sending churches are much more aware of what is going on in the life of the workers they support by interacting with them through Facebook, Skype, HMTs and phone calls. This has the benefit of a greater awareness of the pain of cross-cultural adjustment.

As a home side office, we now deal with more queries and assure the sending church that this pain is normal and that there are also good structures in place on the field to help new workers through the early difficult years of adjustment. While we would like to avoid the pain altogether, it is not always possible. We are so thankful that we have a structure in place for our cross cultural workers to receive the encouragement and support that they need.

Ride for Refugees 18th Aug

Would you like to support Christians working to help refugees coming to Australia? I'm riding 25km in the annual event "Ride for Refugees" run by International Teams in Western Sydney on Saturday 18th August. If you would like to sponsor me or any other riders in the event, please go to:

http://rideforrefugees.com.au/myride/813/

Why it is important for overseas Missionaries to go home.

(Adapted from an article by Hans Walter-Ritter of OMF International - Home Assignments: Aren’t they just a ‘waste’ of valuable ministry time?)

Often when preparing for ministry overseas we may balk at the idea of spending an entire year back in our sending countries after 4 years on the field.

Some concerns or questions which may come to mind are:

“I’m meant to be serving on the field, not wasting my time back home where I’m not really needed”.

“How can I leave my valuable ministry and relationships on the field behind for a whole year? Who will replace me?”

“Can’t I just have a short HA of a few months to quickly report back, then get back to the field where the real work is?”

Actually, Home Assignment is ministry!

What is Home Assignment actually for?

Some of the main reasons that overseas Christian workers should take time at home are:

• Reporting to churches concerning the ministry/work
• Participation in the mobilization work of the OMF Homeside
• Rest and renewal
• Reunion with family, friends, and supporting churches
• Re-equipping for a more effective ministry

Why is Home Assignment important?

· Our mission agency, OMF International works on a sending model (Acts 13:1-3). Churches send us to Asia, and OMF facilitates the sending. We still remain members of our sending churches

· Being sent also means we need to report back and to reunite with our supporting churches (Acts 14:26-28). As we ask the sending churches to do their part, we need to be aware that we need to meet our obligations toward them as well.

· The experiences that the LORD allows us to have overseas are also meant to build up the body of Christ at home (Eph 4:11-13). We are a part of the sending church and therefore have a spiritual obligation towards them.

The gifts given to us by the Spirit to work cross culturally are actually not given to us personally but to the church. They are given 'for the common good" of the church (1. Cor 12:7ff). We are therefore not only to be served by our churches, but also to serve them.

We are part of God's church. We not only serve the church on the field, but work towards the preparation and purification of the bride of Jesus worldwide. This also implies our involvement in our home churches. We cannot leave our sending churches behind.

What are some of the possible implications of not having a good Home Assignment?

· Personal relationships become impersonal over the years if they are not refreshed by a face to face meeting. There are things that we just cannot communicate via prayer letters nor via personal e-mails. Missionaries slowly lose their home base: fewer people know them on a personal basis.

· Children and missionaries lose their home identity . The churches become alien to and vice versa. Prayer and other support very often fall away gradually as a result.

· Retirement becomes a feared phase of life, as there is no connection to the home.

· Mobilization loses its passion as it is left to the home side, therefore only very general information is communicated and the first hand touch of missionaries is missing. OMF slowly loses its position as "the experts concerning Asia". Without the field expertise the image of an organisation working on the cutting edge in ministry is weakened.

· The home churches are impoverished, as they are not receiving what the full involvement of the missionaries could give them.

· Recruitment of new team members is lacking, meaning that often there are more shortages on the fields as a result of people not utilizing their HA to challenge others to become involved in practical ways by going.