Looks Like a Duck, Must Be a Duck? Missions and Ministry

Appearances can be deceiving, especially when it comes to ministry.

Last week when I was in Turkana (northern Kenya), I attended church in a rural village.  Traditionally, such a gathering of people, indeed every important gathering of people, would be convened under a tree.  Any Westerner attending one of these church services quickly realizes there are some major differences in worldview present!  However, during this most recent trip to Turkana, I found myself inside a building for Sunday morning services in the village.  Sure, it still had a different feel to it (mud walls, tin roof, different language, different music, etc.), but the feel was at least a bit more familiar to my Western mind.

Traditional Turkana Church, Under a Tree

I thought, with some sadness, “Will this non-Duck (non-Western church) keep looking more and more like a Duck (Western church)?  But it is NOT a Duck!”

As the Turkana church begins to “look” more and more Western, we need to be careful to continue to contextualize the gospel message.  In other words, just because the church in Turkana begins to look more and more like a church in the West, the people living within the Turkana context have a very different worldview.  The message of Jesus is meant to reach people at a deep level, their heart level, and this cannot happen if the hearer’s worldview is not taken into consideration as ministry “programs” are developed.

The danger in doing ministry within a situation that “looks” familiar to us is that we will often fail to do the research, up front, to understand how our hearers think, feel, and perceive the world. In a more familiar context, it is much easier for us to simply assume we already know the worldview of our audience.  We assume we already know their thoughts, feelings, and needs.

Good ministry will always do the hard work of contextual research before implementing various forms of ministry.

So the question becomes, “This looks like a Duck, but is it really a Duck?”

This is the major failing of the Western church today.  Her leaders too often fail to ask this vital question.

We (speaking for those of us in the ministry profession) are really good at doing the “copy” and “paste” thing when it comes to ministry.  We see something working well over-there, and over-there looks like me over-here, so it must be true that that-thing will be successful over-here as well as over-there.  In reality, it is highly likely what is working over-there is the result of a lot of good contextualization, and research.  Someone has done the necessary missiological work of trying to understand their ministry context, and it is paying off!

Campus Ministry?  Well, students look like “normal” people to me, so it must be OK to treat them like normal people.  Wrong!  Students are quite different than their older counterparts.  They have a different outlook on life.  They have different needs.  Their hopes and dreams are far different from the generation which precedes them.  They’re NOT a Duck.

Many ministers have not figured out, even after years and years of doing ministry, that they are actually missionaries.  And as missionaries, they also need to be missiologists…they need to understand that doing culture and language study is a part of every ministry gig…not just a part of the “foreign missions” gig.  It is this lack of missiological understanding and application that is responsible for the existence of a Western church that is on the verge of death!

So, what does the Western church need?  No, not a doctor, but a missiologist…and a good one!

I have MUCH more to say on this topic, so I’ll take more time to discuss this over the next couple of weeks.  I’d love to hear your thoughts, feelings.

Reflections on Turkana

The fog is finally starting to clear.  I can almost count on having three full days of “clouds” in my head as I recover from the jet-lag of a Turkana trip, but now that I’m thinking straight once again, I thought I would do some reflecting on the trip.

First, thank you!  I had so many people praying over this trip, and it was evident.  Prayer is such a vital part of mission work and I too often forget this fact.  We all are God’s ambassadors, and as such, dependent upon His guidance.  He was faithful to answer our prayers, and to speak words of direction along the way.

Overall, I believe the trip was a great success.  After three full days of meeting together, the Turkana church leaders parted company on the fourth day, eager to move forward in faith. Though much of the meeting was focused on working through various “hurts,” a good portion of the time gave attention to the future, and how the church might move forward.

We ended up discussing, at great length, four main “issues” that had developed over the past couple of years.  Each of these items served to drive wedges in relationships.  It took time, but eventually the group (about 25 in total) worked through these issues, resolving to put each of them in the past, and to move forward, united.  True reconciliation and forgiveness takes time, so I beg you (in true African form) to continue on in your prayers for the churches, and church leaders.  Pray that they will continue to do the necessary work of maintaining relationships, and to deal with issues as they arise.  The situation, I believe, remains “delicate.”  It would not take much for relationships to become strained once again.  So, I encourage you, keep praying.

Vision for the future

Day three was fun.  After having dealt with the hurts from the past, we set our sights to the future, and did some dreaming.  Gene Morden, the resident missionary in Turkana, had a great idea.  We had the Turkana share their “dreams” for the future of the church.  What sorts of visions has God given to them?  We had them share these visions, and then take time to prioritize them (see the photos…stones, representing votes, were placed on each idea in order to get a visual of the thoughts of the group).

As it turns out, the group agreed that as they look to the future, it is important to make the construction of church buildings a top priority.  This may seem a bit odd, but I can understand their concern.  The culture of Turkana is shifting, and becoming more Westernized (I’ll blog about this topic as well).  Buildings represent “validity” in the minds of the people.  Without a building, the church leaders feel that they are going to lose opportunities for growth because of how outsiders will view them.

Of course, money is an issue.  It takes quite a bit of it (in Turkana terms) to construct a building.  From where is the money to come?  The church leaders were unanimous on this one:  Where God leads, He will provide!

Stones representing votes

This discussion took several hours, and throughout the entire process I was praying that these men and women would trust God to provide for their future.  I didn’t have to say a thing…they reached this conclusion on their own (well, with some divine guidance).  Clearly, the Spirit was at work through your prayers!

Here is another point of continued prayers:  Pray for provision as the churches step forward with plans to construct buildings.  Pray that with each step the Turkana take, they see God’s provision!  I truly hope that within the next five years, we see many new church building erected in the rural villages of Turkana.

Thank you all for your encouragement and support.  No matter the situation, all ministry needs to be bathed in prayer.  I think it is probably easy for us to assume that “foreign” missions is tougher (and, in some ways, it is indeed very difficult), and therefore more in need of prayer.  But in truth, all ministry is impossible when we are not working under the power of prayer.

Go with me to Kenya!

Want to go with me to Kenya?  You can…

Pray with me!

I’m leaving for Kenya on the 14th, returning on the 1st of February.  If you’re interested in following me on the venture, then here are a few ways to do that.

1. Check out the prayerguide on the ImpactBSU.org website (request the password from me).
2. Follow me on Twitter (@williamwestfall).  I’ll do my best to send frequent “tweets” as the events unfold.
3. Facebook.  My Facebook status will be updated with each and every “tweet.”
4. Don’t want to be on Twitter, or Facebook?  Then simply go to the ImpactBSU.org website to view the Twitter feed.

For an overview of the purpose of the trip, you may check out this blog entry, or check out the prayerguide.  I believe that this visit to Kenya is an extremely important one for the churches of Turkana.  More than ever, I covet your partnership in prayer over the next couple of weeks.

Remember, “missions” is all about the earth’s edge…the one you’re standing on!

Vacation is Over, Now it Begins

Well, what a wonderful break the past 12 days have been.  One beautiful thing about campus ministry?  Everything shuts down for Christmas!

Now begins 33 days of travel, and the start of a three-year project (see this blog entry).  I’ll begin my travel with a week in Orlando, FL.  Impact Ministries International, of which I am a part, is holding its annual staff conference.  We’ll do some evaluation of this past year, and planning for the new year.

Then, it’s off to Kenya for three weeks.  I’ll be doing some “peacemaking” work (see this blog entry).  I’m really looking forward to experiencing God’s Presence during this trip.  I’ll have time, God willing, to slow down to the African pace of life, and spend time, much time, in reflection, prayer, and contemplation.  This always lends to ample opportunity to write.

So, please follow with me during the month of January…it should be enlightening, for all of us.  And, as you have time, send me an encouraging word.  Pray for me as I facilitate this gathering of church leaders in Turkana, and, most importantly, pray for peace among my brothers in Turkana.

Turkana on the Horizon

So, it seems God is opening the doors for me to make my 7th return trip to Turkana.

[You may know that I spent four years living in northern Kenya among the people of Turkana. Returning in 2004, I have now made 6 trips back to Turkana to follow up on the things that were initiated from 2000-04.]

The six return trips to this point have largely consisted of teaching, and encouraging church leaders.  However, during the past two trips I have felt more and more that God was nudging me away from these practices, and encouraging me to look to new avenues of “encouraging” the Believers in Turkana.

The past couple of months I’ve seen a rising need among the churches in Turkana, I believe lifted by God’s own hand.  From my limited perspective, it appears that the churches are, more and more, drifting apart in their levels of cooperation.  Church leaders have been quarreling.  Vision is inward focused.

What do the churches need?  They need to recall “the mission.”  They need to turn their eyes outward to the villages “outside.”

In January 2010, I’ll (God willing) spend two weeks in Turkana, calling church leaders together for a time of prayer and encouragement.  No, I’m not planning on teaching, but am planning on praying earnestly for God’s Spirit to move His people.  Only God can truly give renewed vision to the churches in Turkana.

To this end, I need your help.  Here are the tangible things you can do to help the Believers in Turkana:

1. Pray.  Begin praying NOW for God’s Spirit to move in the hearts of the churches, and her leaders.  Pray that God will reveal Himself to the church leaders, renewing their vision of their “mission” to Turkana, and to the rest of the world.
2. Fast.  True prayer is listening to the heart of God.  When we hear GOD’S plan, our desires become His desires.  Pray and fast.  Listen for God’s voice.  Pray according to God’s desires.  This will indeed bless the people of Turkana, as well as encourage you as you see God’s plans unfold, according to your prayers.
3. Fund.  If you can’t go to Turkana, then help those who are called to go to get there.  I’ll need your support (a typical trip costs about $3,500).  I’ll also need additional funding to be able to host 30-50 Turkana church leaders for a prayer gathering.  I’m estimating that this meeting will cost about $1,000.  I’m also going to be traveling with another ex-CMF missionary (God willing).  Fund his trip if you can.  He’s a full-time student now (in a PhD program at Asbury Seminary), and is a big part of the success of this trip.  If you’re interested in this, contact me for more information.
4. Recruit.  Listen for others who might express interest in being involved in global ministry.  Can they fund?  Can they pray?  Can they recruit others?  There are so many ways to be a part of “the mission.”  We all must do our part, as God enables us.
5. Go.  Is God calling you to serve Him full-time?  Be obedient to His call.  Hey, I was an accountant, a CPA for crying out loud!  If God can use me, He truly can use anyone!  No one is beyond HIS ability to equip for service!

What’s your role in the lives of the Turkana?  Has God given you a “piece of the load”?  I know I have a piece…can you help me carry it?