Current & Future Facets of Int'l Ministries
IFA International: Ministry Outline (modifiable to each situation and the time of year)
1. Powerful Peoples Pray-ers: Promote Concerts of Prayer in Lancaster County in conjunction with any area churches or ministries that wish to host them. Generally follow formats like: www.efca.org/student/media/how_to_lead_a_concert_of_prayer.pdf Or for a detailed example of a longer time format: www.prayertoday.org/2004/PDF/Guides/Concerts-Two.PDF This can also morph into prayer meetings bringing international Christians, ethnic church people and Americans interested in world outreach together. God loves to hear prayer in accordance to His will, and people from all
Nations coming to Christ is definitely His according to 100s of
Scriptures. Special Pray-er partners would pray for those involved in international
ministry here and the internationals. They would get updates and see
what God is doing. A constant prayer would be to use wisely and develop the gifts and talents of those involved and to build up
relationships between international and American Christians - learning
from and respecting one another.
2. Church & Ministry Motivating & Connecting: Contact area churches and ministries to see which would be interested in having us come to share about international ministry possibilities. Offer to come over in advance and share with those interested some of the ideas for reaching internationals to allow each church to choose what is appropriate. These ideas include the following (from which a church can select or modify):
A. International Friendship Partners (IFPs)– people who commit to invite an international to their home or together some place at least once a month and keep in touch twice a month or more. This simple idea has led to many internationals coming to know Christ across North America. It’s adaptable to any church or folks interested in missions, so churches often start here. We currently have about 20 volunteers to be IFPs.
B. International Helpers – people who assist internationals by giving rides, taking to Christian or secular social events like the summer park concerts, helping with paperwork,… International Friendship Partners may do some of this too.
C. TELL Teachers (Teaching English Language Learners) – IFA can train people to feel confident in teaching English since Scott has over 14 years experience teaching English Language Learners in Japan, China & the USA and has taught ESL teacher certification courses.
D. Mission-Minded Mentors – these would be people planning to go overseas as missionaries or friends and family in Christ who support them. We would seek where possible to find people from the nation to which they were going who live in this area for targeted, practical mission preparation though any cross-cultural experience helps prepare. Friends and family staying behind could continue ministering to the missionary’s people group or a related one, and thus feel a special bond when the prayer letters or emails from their missionary arrive. [This idea has worked beautifully at Eastbrook Church, our home church in Milwaukee] On home assignment, missionaries are gainfully employed in ways that fully utilize their God given skills to reach internationals here and can help mentor others.
E. Friday International Gathering (FIG) – This is now happening - a weekly Friday meeting at our home (since 70% of internationals never see the inside of an American home). Format can vary from a discussion group on a variety of topics into which Christian values can surface to a simplified Bible study. We are opening to all religons so there is no Bible study, but there are meaningful discussions and opportunities for Christians to befriend nonChristian internationals are share the Gospel in a friendship. If possible, church groups could provide meals or at least rotate who brings refreshments if a meal is unwieldy. We are currently having participants who are able bring a dish. A relaxed, fun time of singing easy songs, introductions and a cultural corner in the middle is entertaining and helps build cohesiveness. Students usually find Friday night best whereas temporary residents may prefer Sunday afternoon or evening.
F. Women’s International Fellowship Time (WIFT) – this could involve getting international women together to do crafts or go on a day trip or discuss things like child raising from a Christian or American perspective, while carefully listening to how their culture does this. Naturally churches can be creative in developing a unique outreach based on those to whom they area reaching out to and I can help provide cross-cultural input in the design.
G. Refugee Relief – Lancaster County is blessed with many refugees due to the Mennonites, Church World Service and Lutheran Refugee Service. The latter two have a severe shortage of churches willing to be sponsors for incoming refugee families. Sponsors will help refugees find employment, an apartment, fill out paperwork, register for school, and especially help with transportation in the initial stages of adjustment. All the services above support you throughout the process but having a sponsor church helps refugees far more personally see the love of Christ.
3. Share the need for international outreach - We often give a brief message (5 min. – longer if desired :-) at a church or ministry, ideally with advance notice in the previous week’s bulletin. In this we show how clearly in the Scriptures God loves all people and the tremendous opportunity we have here to reach the nations in America. There is a response form in the bulletin that is put in the offering if possible. Also check with the pastor to make sure those who volunteer are a good match with this kind of ministry. Lord willing this motivates a group in each church that desires to be International Friendship Partners or start up another of the above ministries that they feel appropriate.
4. Provide Intercultural Training - Contact those who respond and are interested to the message and find a time and place to meet. Provide materials that can be read in advance or provide a starting point along with networking for those who can’t make a meeting. Help to layout the initial stages of the international outreach including having people praying and looking for opportunities. Also give some practical intercultural training to build awareness of less overt cultural differences. Give guidelines on friendship evangelism to International Friendship Partners to help our relation with colleges be a smooth one. Assist in setting up the ministry and stay with the group until they feel that they can handle their international outreach on their own. (This can be a one night orientation for International Friendship Partners with follow-up contact or longer for more complex programs.)
5. Move on as the international ministry becomes theirs. Provide support as called on either by the church or by some agency that the internationals are in touch with, with which I too am networking. Help to widen an international ministry as a church expresses desire to do so.
6. Be involved in efforts to connect churches (especially ethnic ones) and area ministries with similar visions in symbiotic ways for their mutual benefit and because God/Jesus love unity (Psalm 133, John 17) within believers as help to us and a witness to the world. These include Mission Fest, cross-denominational prayer meetings, The Regional Church and Ministerium meetings. Also network with both Christian and secular immigrant or refugee agencies, cultural organizations, schools like Lancaster Mennonite that have many internationals and with ethnic churches and ministries in the area.
7. Japanese Connection, as a branch of IFA International Ministry, will continue to be a meeting of Japanese and those interested in Japan and Christianity. Japanese Connection and the leaders of IFA will also seek to help Japanese moving into the area, so that they will be able to connect with other Japanese, get good advice on the American and Lancaster system, find Japan-related stores and schools, be able to choose an area with appropriate ESL programs for their children, and have questions answered before arriving here. This branch will be called Japan Friendship Association which will include Japanese Women’s prayer which also helps disciple Japanese women
8. As part of developing cross-cultural appreciation and to raise support for the ministry, IFA will be involved in the teaching of ESL (English as a Second Language) and JSL (Japanese as a Second Language) from its inception with other languages possibly to follow as the ministry grows. This will be primarily through tutoring along with possible subcontracting to companies with workers requiring TESOL (Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages) or to ministry programs in which international students are taught English.
9. Seek to be led by the Holy Spirit, guided by God’s Word and healthfully connected within the Body of Christ, so as to have an increasingly effective ministry. This includes learning from the variety of experiences and advice of siblings in Christ in a humble fashion, knowing that the vision of reaching internationals here for Christ is very much in tune with the heart of God. Pray for wisdom how to expand the outreach to internationals in Lancaster County and, as God leads, beyond. |
