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I began my faith walk in 1985. At that time and probably until today I was taught. Teaching is the focus of the church today. A disciple, as I was taught, studies the Word of God. Going deep into the theology/teachings of God. The emphasis was the knowledge of God passed down through the ages by the … [Read more...] about Acts 1:1 To Do and Teach

Missionaries are often tasked with reporting results to ministry partners who are often quite distant. It's possible that the preceding statement may draw out tension whether on the part of a missions committee who are trying to stay connected to a mission work they support or on the part of a … [Read more...] about The Problem With Metrics, Part 1  

Paul led a team of young evangelists on a journey into a city/region and began telling the story of Jesus. Some who were hard of heart rejected Paul and his team but he also found those open to the message and they became disciples of Jesus. He seemed to band these disciples together, often leaving … [Read more...] about What would Paul do?

I joined Global City Mission Initiative (GCMI) in January as the development coordinator. My first three weeks were spent getting to know the board and many current supporters of GCMI.  As a new representative of the ministry, last week I headed to New York City to see firsthand some of the work … [Read more...] about Getting Acquainted

A couple of years ago, I was supervising a 6-month graduate school intern.  As part of her academic program, she was to conduct research in a NYC neighborhood.  She is fluent in Mandarin, and chose to interview individuals from a non-christian background in the Chinese community in Flushing.  As her … [Read more...] about What Are We Talking About?

This is a mural found in Highland Park, a northeast neighborhood of Los Angeles. It has been called gangland. I find it fascinating that this picture shows Jesus in the hood. In reality Jesus' disciples rarely do what is depicted in the painting…going out among the people. The church here in LA, … [Read more...] about Making Disciples in L.A.

At the end of one year and the beginning of another, I've been thinking about fruit.  In a haunting parable in Luke 13, Jesus tells the story of a man who is prepared to wait only one more year, and if his fig tree does not finally produce fruit, he will throw it into the fire.  Reading it in its … [Read more...] about Thinking about Fruit