Mission Frontiers 35, 5 (September-October 2013)

The September-October 2013 issue of Mission Frontiers, published by the U.S. Center for World Mission, contains a number of articles around the theme of ‘Water + Gospel = Transformation’.

Setting the scene in the editorial, Rick Wood writes:

‘Today, almost 2,000 children will die from dirty, disease-filled water... The question for us as the Church is whether Jesus wants us to stop such tragedies or is the God of heaven only concerned with getting the message of the gospel to every person, tribe and tongue?’

For Wood, ‘demonstration and proclamation of the gospel go together’.

Individual articles can be accessed from here; the whole issue (9.4 MB) can be downloaded as a pdf here.

Christianity in its Global Context

Researchers at the Center for the Study of Global Christianity, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, have produced a report – Christianity in its Global Context, 1970–2020: Society, Religion, and Mission – on the changing demographics of Christianity and the activities of Christians over the past 40 years while looking forward to the next ten.

Here is the closing paragraph from the Executive Summary:

‘Christianity in its Global Context, 1970–2020: Society, Religion, and Mission illustrates that fundamental shifts in the demographics of global Christianity and religion are continuing into the twenty-first century. The percentage of Christians from the global South is still increasing, but the personal contact gap between Christians and non-Christians continues to be very wide. Christians are also struggling, along with the entire development community, to address critical social and economic issues. A central problem appears to be uneven resource distribution in a multitude of areas. Christian resources are poorly deployed and not reaching those who could benefit most from them, in terms of both mission and social action. Yet, Christian involvement in spiritual and social transformation has never been greater, and it remains to be seen how effective Christians in both the North and the South will be in carrying out global, integral mission.’

More information is available here, and the full report is available for download as 14.8 MB pdf here.

William Carey International Development Journal 1, 4 (Fall 2012)

The Fall 2012 issue of the William Carey International Development Journal explores various leadership models and methods for professionals in the international development sphere. A pdf of the full journal is available here.

Yalin Xin

A Note from the Editor

Recognizing the complexity of leadership, we hope that, instead of attempting to cover every aspect of the topic, this issue becomes an invitation to you to read and dialogue with the research and reflections that explore various leadership theories, models and practices from biblical, theological, and socio-cultural perspectives.

Bill Jackson

Becoming a Church that Makes Disciple-making Leaders: Part 1

What was the leadership model that Jesus demonstrated, and how do we model that today? In this article, Bill Jackson describes why it is so important to be leaders that focus on developing disciples to be the leaders of tomorrow.

Bill Jackson

Becoming a Church that Makes Disciple-making Leaders: Part 2

What qualities are essential for leadership – particularly leadership that inspires others to follow your example? In this article, Bill Jackson describes the four qualities essential for a leader – whether they are natural or trained.

Kevin Mannoia

Discovering Servant in Servant-Leadership

There is a substantial rise in interest in servant leadership in the business world, education and Christian organizations. Leaders hear the ideas and are naturally drawn to the apparent selflessness of the paradigm that puts others first. But the genius of servant leadership is really not in its skills or in its outcomes.

Robert Blincoe

New Social Contract: Leaders Relating Church Governing Structures to Voluntary Societies

In this article, an excerpt from his PhD dissertation from William Carey International University, Bob Blincoe explores a different side to the leadership discussion. How can voluntary societies raise up additional leaders for ministry? How can current church leaders develop and empower those in these voluntary societies?

Kevin Book-Satterlee

Serving God Globally: Finding Your Place in International Development

In this book review, Kevin Book-Satterlee explores the many questions students of international development have as they seek to turn their passion into a career, and why Roland Hoksbergen’s book is a great response to their questions.

MEDA and The Marketplace

MEDA, in this case, stands for Mennonite Economic Development Associates. I stumbled across their website in the course of doing some work on looking at business from a Christian perspective.

Their website describes MEDA as ‘creating business solutions to poverty’.

‘For more than 50 years, MEDA has been designing and implementing innovative and effective market-driven economic development programs that improve the livelihoods of millions of people living in poverty around the world.

‘Founded by a small group of service-oriented business people, MEDA has grown to become a large, dynamic international organization comprised of thousands of members and supporters across North America and Europe. MEDA believes its work is not done until it is proven to be sustainable, replicable, scalable and measurable.

MEDA produces a magazine called The Marketplace, which carries some interesting-looking pieces I’ll be reading more closely. The archive, with downloadable pdfs, is here.

Recent Articles from Q Ideas

After a few weeks away from internet access, I’m catching up on a few items from the world of Blogdom, including the following from Q Ideas:

Matthew T. Dickerson

Pseudo Salvation: When Science Can’t Save Us

Our advances in science and technology have overcome many of the challenges that our forebears were unable to meet. Our lives are paved with unthinkable convenience, and we expect our engineers to continue providing solutions for the world’s problems. Matthew T. Dickerson, however, says that we must be careful where we place our hopes of redemption.

Steven Garber

The Legacy of John Stott: On Listening to the Word and the World at the Very Same Time

The late Reverend Dr. John Stott will be remembered as one of the most influential religious leaders of the 20th century. From evangelical think tanks to third world activists to the world’s leading newspapers, there have been many who celebrated his intellectual prowess, his tender kindness, and his insistence that faith must be both theologically orthodox and socially engaged for the common good. Steven Garber reflects on a few of his personal memories and the legacy this great man has left.

Kirstin Vander Giessen-Reitsma

Community in the Time of Culture Wars

Disagreements continue to fracture the Church’s relationships. How do we balance diverse opinions without breaking with biblical orthodoxy and without causing disunity? Kirstin Vander Giessen-Reitsma suggests that we humbly “pursue the love that is the beginning and end of all things” and live out our allegiance to Christ as the head of the Church.

Byron Borger

Help the Poor, Help the World: A review of The Hole In Our Gospel and Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger

Is our faith more than going to church, feeling God’s love, and telling others about the forgiveness offered by Jesus? Here are two books that emphatically say, “Yes.” Byron Borger reviews The Hole in Our Gospel and Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger.

Tim Keller

The Gospel and Sex

If we can demonstrate healthy sexuality as a Church, what unlimited redemption is possible for our starving, sex-crazed culture? Tim Keller outlines a compelling and orthodox sexual ethic, and the proper role of singleness and marriage within the Church.

Josh Reinders

The Book Industry is Fine

Borders bookstore is closing all of its doors – does that mean that we are closing all of our books? Josh Reinders reexamines the industry’s numbers and finds that the e-book apocalypse may be false prophesying the print world's doomsday.

Wholly Living: A New Perspective on International Development

This is the title of a new report, just published by Theos in partnership with CAFOD and Tearfund, and kindly available in full here.

The October 2010 Newsletter from Theos notes:

‘The report examines human wellbeing in the context of both the UK and international development. It invites the UK government and citizens to enter the debate on how best to create an environment in which to engender human flourishing. Examples taken from the UK and the developing world indicate that people are most fulfilled when they are productive, creative and have strong relationships with others.

Wholly Living calls for a holistic approach that recognises that economic growth is an important – but not the only – driver towards human fulfilment and that unless growth is sustainable, it can do more harm than good. It argues that people flourish most when they are able to fulfil their potential and live in healthy relationships with others. Drawing on academic and theological understandings of flourishing, it calls for the UK government to consider a range of policy ideas in the areas of economics, environment and governance.’

10/10/10 Global Prayer

Micah Challenge is ‘a global coalition of Christians holding governments to account for their promise to halve extreme poverty by 2015’, seeking to establish ‘a global movement to encourage deeper Christian commitment to the poor, and to speak out to leaders to act with justice’.

This prayer for Micah 2010 will be used in churches around the globe on 10/10/10:

‘O Lord, our great and awesome God, loyal to your promise of love and faithful to all who honour and obey you, hear our prayer. We pray for those who live in poverty, we cry out for those who are denied justice and we weep for all who are suffering. We confess that we have not always obeyed you. We have neglected your commands and have ignored your call for justice. We have been guided by self-interest and lived in spiritual poverty. Forgive us. We remember your promises to fill the hungry with good things, to redeem the land by your mighty hand and to restore peace. Father God, help us always to proclaim your justice and mercy with humility, so that, by the power of your Spirit, we can rid the world of the sin of extreme poverty. As part of your global church, we stand with millions who praise and worship you. May our words and deeds declare your perfect goodness, love and righteousness to both the powerful and the powerless so that your Kingdom may come on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.’

World Toilet Day

I know the possibilities for scatological humour – intentional as well as unintentional – are endless, but let’s go for it anyway: 19 November is World Toilet Day.

TearFund and WaterAid, among others, are drawing attention to it, campaigning for action to tackle inadequate sanitation, and calling on world leaders, including the British government, to address the problem by creating a global action plan on water and sanitation by 2010.

2.5 billion people worldwide don’t have a toilet, and that lack of a basic facility takes its toll on communities in developing countries, where every day 5,000 children under five die from diarrhoeal diseases caused by dirty water. Sanitation also provides dignity; inadequate access is a source of shame, physical discomfort and insecurity.