Finding the well in this global village

I recently attended a mobilization conference at our organization in January. Beyond the amazing stories we heard of God's love for his children in East Asia, we also heard about how the world is changing and how that is effecting missions. We are no longer in a colonial model to world missions. (Thank God!) It's not about western Christians bringing religion to the heathen (i.e. anyone who is not from the west). Christianity is on the rise in Asia and often we in the west are languishing in post-christian countries. Who will lead? Who should follow? How do we honor Christ together?

Some of this came out in Lausanne (which Patrick Fung talked about how equilibrium, or a balancing between east and west is a bad way of looking at it). I've heard it described as everyone reaching out to everyone from everywhere. I think that's a bit nebulous.

But the tension of this change has been showing up internally in our missions organization as we see many home sides (sending countries) struggle to be relevant in a context that is increasingly hostile to the gospel. We are faced with changing "how we do business" to follow the great commission not because the commission has changed but because we have changed. Our culture has changed. What we are doing over seas has changed.

For instance, if you are of an American church tradition that originated somewhere else (Lutheran, Episcopal, etc.) how will your tradition adapt to be in communion with shop keeper churches in Taiwan or a Filipino Christian tradition that is as vibrant as your own? My favorite challenge to date: how does the organization I work for interface with the established African church (in the different African nations) to reach the estimated 750,000 Chinese who are in their communities but who do not know Jesus . . . or a lick of the native language? And then successfully include the American church, which at times is still stuck in the colonial mode of sending Missionaries (TM) to Save(!) them unbelievers.

I don't know the answer, but I do know that that is just crazy God stuff.

But it could mean that the organizations like ours may need "bringers" as well as "senders" For Paul and me, that would look like Singaporean Christians joining our ministry team (which would be freaking awesome!) Not to bring over our vast specialized knowledge (yeah right!) but maybe just to be there as a witness to the Spirit moving in his church. How much healthier and relevant would we be if we were prayed for by the people we came to serve with?