Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. JAMES 1:2-4 Joy. Pure joy. The epistle of James, addressed to the Diaspora […]
Since April this year, Garrett Robert is the new lead pastor at All Nations Church Phuket. He is the third lead pastor since the church was planted about nine years ago. Garrett and his wife Claire came to Thailand in 2019, where their daughter Amelia was born last year. Martin Hofmann, MICN’s regional coordinator for Asia […]
If you have not read John Piper’s Brothers, We Are Not Professionals, let me encourage you to get a copy and to read it. It is thought-provoking, ministry-enlightening, and can change your view of ministry and church. His appeal is to focus not on professionalism but on spiritual matters, on God changing our hearts, burdening […]
IC leaders ask more questions now than ever before? Slowly emerging from Covid…we scan the horizon for what the “new” normal will look like. As healthy and humble leaders, we need to ask critical questions of ourselves and the people God entrusts us to lead. The potential for unprecedented gospel ministry is right in front […]
Whose voices do you listen to most? To whom do you give a voice? In a world of increasing polarization – cultural, political, economic, religious – giving a voice to others requires considerably more intentionality, and a preparedness to be judged by those who prefer the simplicity of the “them and us” world. We listen […]
People attending for a long time without becoming members is common for all churches, especially for international and multi-cultural ones. Some join quickly, some more slowly, and some not at all. Why? The answer comes down to the issue identity. People join churches that they identify with. Pastors expect (and hope) for God to lead […]
The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan leading to Ephraim, and whenever a fugitive from Ephraim would say, “Let me cross over,” the Gileadites would ask him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” If he answered, “No,” they told him, “Please say Shibboleth.” If he said, “Sibboleth,” because he could not pronounce it correctly, they seized […]
It has been a deluge. Information, opinions, perspectives, denials, announcements, and no doubt much more to come. Christians have been just as prolific as the rest. Exploitation of the pandemic for other agendas has been equally voluminous, from politicians and some media outlets with primarily political agendas through to the horde of conspiracy theorists. Christian […]
Articles like this abound: many leaders are talking about COVID and the trends happening in the church….so what makes this article different? We are going to explore accelerated shifts not just in ministry, but in the International Church (IC). IC’s are unique, and so are IC leaders…It takes one to know one! (In fact MICN […]
Harold Abrahams won the Gold Medal for the 100 meters sprint at the 1924 Paris Olympics. His story, and that of Eric Liddell, is told in the movie “Chariots of Fire” though the movie has multiple historical flaws. In the movie at least, Abrahams is challenged by the Master of his Cambridge University College as […]