Thoughts and insights into Alternative Missions and how AMU can help us accomplish our individual and corporate goals. This material is the result of several emails I sent out to all staff when AMU was first started.
Purpose of AMU # 1: Orientation and Training of Missionaries.
I am really into this AMU tool for our mission. I believe it can be a meaningful and productive tool for training, pastoral care and personal development for all of us. I want to see each of you become what God has purposed for you and for our mission to be all that God has purposed for it. The more I spend time on this tool the more God shows me how it can be developed and useful. Each of you, as Alternative Missions staff and AMU student can play an important role in each others life as we particiapte together.
Godspeed;
Tom Hackett
The goal is to orientate (familiarize) and train (instruct, prepare) workers for missions service with A.M. There are several points to consider.
1. For Missions Service with Alternative Missions - We are not trying to be a degree granting school with a specific curriculum that you work through and “graduate”. Each person identifies their goals and develops a curriculum based on those goals. You never graduate and you are in AMU as long as God has us relating to one another in ministry.
2. Orientate (familiarize) - When it comes to orientating staff to Alternative Missions there is a big challenge communicating the “culture” of our mission as, at times, we participate from a distance. The culture of our organization will continue to evolve as God adds people to our numbers but many key principals will remain. There are several ways that you will gain an understanding of who we are, what we value and how we function…some of those are…Email updates like this, Reading the articles that are posted in the docs section of the AMU website, participating in Internships, Discussing issues by leaving a reply in the “Leave a Reply” area in various posts, and actively pursuing relationships with A.M. staff.
3. Train (instruct, prepare) – There are a few “required” reading books. They are foundational to what you need to know to be a missionary with AM. There will be recommended curriculum items from time to time but for the most part your individual plans and goals will determine your curriculum.
Purpose of AMU # 2: Encouraging Ongoing Personal Development of Staff.
It is important that we continue to grow spiritually, intellectually, in our skills and our character. Life does not come to a stop. We move from glory to glory growing in our responsibilities and ministries. God has a purpose for each of our lives and He will put a passion in our heart if we are open to Him. I want to help you live out those passions and accomplish your goals. I want to see you be successful at the responsibilities you have now and ready for what God has for you next. No one “graduates” from AMU until you leave Alternative Missions or go to be with Jesus. That is graduation. Until then we press on towards the mark of the high calling we have in Christ Jesus developing our knowledge, character and skills. I want to encourage you to set goals and then pursue those goals to completion. There are many opportunities to continue to learn; online study leading to degrees, correspondence, books, and websites to name a few. Take advantage of what you are doing now to develop new skills. My desire is to see each staff member go on to their next assignment ready for the task ahead. Prayerfully set goals, make a plan and work your plan. We can hold each other accountable as we encourage one another along the way.
Tips:
• Take notes as you have your quite time or study time. It will give you material for posting on the activity log or discussion board. Share your thoughts and insights. The Holy Spirit will give you insights if you ask. “God shares with the person who cares”
Homework:
• Weekly Post: Add something to your log a minimum of once a week. Keep in mind that other Am staff will see what you write. I read through the weekly posts in order to know what is happening in our staff’s lives and what they are learning. It makes a great resource for knowing how to pray for people. When entering in your weekly post keep in mind that others will use it as a source of finding out what you’re up to and to know how to pray for you. To get ideas on what kinds of things to post check out some of the other students posts.
Purpose of AMU #3: Facilitating a Caring Missions Community.
One of my desires is to facilitate a sense of community in our mission. ..“To be a “part” of Alternative Missions means… That God has called you into a community of people who are committed to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to others in a way that blends personal callings into a team effort in order to accomplish specific goals. Our desire as an organization is to develop and coordinate people and projects in such a way that it recognizes individual callings while forming team partnerships. That is a fancy way of saying lets work together to see people touched by God! It’s kind of the Three Musketeer thing…”All for One and One for All”. We look out for each other and each of us looks out for and works for the big picture.
Lets be praying for each other and doing all we can to help each person achieve what God has put in our hearts.
I personally value the “Community” dynamic in our mission. The staff of AM is “family” for me. I love watching God add to our “family” and then watch each life, marriage, family and ministry develop into what God has purposed. Join with me and invest in others lives and callings. Let’s invest in the big picture by investing in each other. If we invest in others we will all benefit as the Kingdom of God is advanced.
By participating in the AMU weekly posts we can all benefit. We can show concern and love for one another as we pray for each other. We can share in struggles and victories. We can share in hopes and dreams. As we work together for the Kingdom of God we can invest in one another’s lives. As we pray for each other our sense of community will grow closer and the bonds of friendship will become stronger, enabling us to work more effectively together.
• Weekly; post and read other student posts and comment.
• Update your personal profile so the information is current.
• Fill out or update your personal ministry goals worksheet so others can dream with you and pray for you.
Philippians 2:4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Romans 1210 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.
1 Thessalonians 511 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up…
Life is about relationships. And God has put us together in relationship to enjoy one another, learn from one another and accomplish the task of spreading the gospel. While accomplishing this task Gods’ desire is for there to be a sense of devotion and brotherly love among us (living out the gospel we are preaching). God has called us and placed us on a “team” called Alternative Missions. In order to be successful each of us needs to have a sense of responsibility for each other and the team. If we encourage one another and make a commitment to build each other up we will realize the individual and corporate goals that God has called us together to accomplish. When it comes to building one another up I can see several levels of care and oversight that God has built into our organization that I want to point out. For myself as the founder and director and for the newest staff member there are several levels of care and oversight if you will. For myself, there is the Board of Directors, my personal mentors and there is the “one another” factor of each of you praying and showing interest in me as a person. For the newest person to our mission there is the Board of Directors, Me as the organization director, your personal mentors, your area ministry leader, your location ministry leader, and your department ministry leader as will as the “one another” factor in the mission that all should provide a sense of caring and nurturing. We all fall somewhere in between and if we all do pray for and are concerned for one another the team can enjoy the process of serving together and each of us will be built up.
Please; take the time to consider your role on the team. Do you care? Are you putting out the effort to “look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. “? Let’s become a team. Let’s participate in each others success! Commit beyond your department, location or area and gain a sense of team as we pray for each and every member. When we do we will experience the sense of community that God has purposed for us.
Your participation in AMU can be a real tool for participating in the overall community and team of Alternative Missions.
Tips:
• When entering information in your weekly post keep in mind that this will be viewed by future ministry team members who will be wanting to know what you are like as a person in addition to what growth type things you are doing like reading books, your experiences etc. The more you give people the better they can pray for you and have a sense of how they would relate to you in ministry. Be honest, insightful open.
• When filling out your Personal Ministry Goals Worksheet, The last question is the key to helping build your curriculum. Answer that question as thoroughly and thoughtfully as possible.
Goals and Curriculum
Continuing on the theme of the Purposes and Goals for AMU…
While there is no specific or systematic curriculum for students of AMU there are these guidelines that you should be considering as far as development as a missionary. Your development and knowledge in these areas is under your control as far as what you pursue, when and how. Growth in knowledge, character and skills is important in each area. For a list of resources to help you develop in these areas go to the “Curriculum Resources” in the Curriculum area of the Docs section of the AMU website.
Goals: Using the various avenues of personal development including, a personalized curriculum plan, short term internships and long term placement AMU strives to help the missionary student attain growth in the following areas…
Personal Spiritual Growth
Biblical Knowledge
Emotional Health
Church Relations
Interpersonal Relationships
Practical Abilities, Leadership
Evangelism
Discipleship
Theological Knowledge
Missiology
Cross-Cultural Communication
Cultural Anthropology
Linguistic Orientation
Christian Ethics
Tips: For those who are finding it hard to find time to fill out the Shape Worksheet and the Personal Ministry Goals Worksheet I would encourage you to consider making it a part of your devotional time over a few days. Prayerfully work on them as you are asking God to help you. You will find that what is asked for can be great material for talking with God and getting inspired. Work through the material and email your worksheets on to tj@alternativemissions.com .
Godspeed;
Tom Hackett
Notable Quotable:
“Major barriers to successful planning are Fear of Change, Ignorance, Uncertainty about the Future, and Lack of Imagination” John Maxwell
Student Expectations and Weekly Posts
I have been thinking about how to simplify an explanation about what is expected of students of AMU. I am going to try to make this concise…
AMU student requirements / curriculum…
• Fill out appropriate applications. (AMU, Internship or Long Term) Pay appropriate fees.
• Take the Ministry Insights Report questionnaire. (You receive a number to take the test from the Phoenix office)
• Complete the SHAPE worksheet.
• Complete the Ministry Plans and Goals worksheet.
• Read the required books.
• Post Weekly
• Pursue your curriculum related to your personal goals.
Weekly Posts…There are many good reasons to log in weekly…
• It is a record of your progress towards your goals and curriculum. It will help with accountability for you as you pursue Gods call and purposes.
• It will give future staff a place to go to get to know you and to be able to determine whether working relationships might work out as they learn about you.
• It is a great place for friends and coworkers to go to catch up on what is happening with you and to know how to pray for you.
• It gives the A.M. leadership and board an idea of how you are developing as a missionary and as an individual.
Weekly Post hints…This is not a complete list but some of the things I use to help me do my activity logs.
• Have a notepad with you during your devotional time. God is amazingly creative and willing to give you ideas, thoughts, insights, clear understanding of your life, purpose and other details. Use the notes as a guide to content for your weekly post.
• Many staff send out weekly or monthly updates. Copy and paste some of your update and put it in your log. That way you don’t have to retype information.
• Think in terms of what future staff, leaders, mentors and friends would want to know.
• After completing a job, task or assignment post your thoughts, insights, conclusions, observations, etc.
Culture - “The predominating attitudes and behavior that characterize the functioning of a group or organization.” www.dictionary.com
Every organization has a “culture”. If you are going to be serving as a missionary of Alternative Missions it is important to understand A.M.’s. culture or “predominate attitudes and behavior that characterize the functioning of our organization”.
One of the first attitudes, if you will, is how “growth” is understood. How big is Alternative Missions going to become? What values drive the future of where we are going?
It is important that we do what God wants, where He wants, when He wants and with whom He wants. We want to be busy doing the God directed projects that He gives us. We don’t want to move to fast or to slow. We want to be Spirit led and not personality or ambition led.
How did we get here and where we are headed?
Big topic…simplest answer…
At this stage we are a young, flexible and developing organization. www.alternativemissions.com
Become familiar with the Alternative Missions website to gain knowledge of what we value, why we exist and what we are currently doing. In particular become familiar with the information in the “About Us” section of the website.
We are currently doing the things that we are as a result of…
1. God bringing people together with common vision. One of our stated organizations purposes is “Seek out and partner with others who want to commit to the long term process related to influencing people for Christ.” We are always open to new relationships with people who want to develop long term missions’ projects.
2. Supernatural provision indicating the direction of God in a project. Another of our organizations stated purposes is “Network resources to missions projects around the world”.
3. We want to do new things as God builds teams. Building teams is not a “fast” process. The pace, location and timing need to be God led and provided for.
4. We are open to wherever and however God may direct. I guess the point of Alternative Missions is to give alternatives. We want to be creative in how we reach the world. We want to be relevant and innovative. We want to “Attempt Great Things For God and Expect Great Things From God”.
We will continue in this mode. We will grow and add ministries as …
• God leads people with common vision together.
• People commit as a team to new projects.
• With the approval of the A.M. board of directors and
• With God’s provision.
If God is leading you to start something new start communicating with leadership. Let’s be open.
What has God put in your heart? Maybe there are others who want to join you.
Every organization has a “culture”. It is made of a combination of things like values, norms, and standard operating procedures to name a few. These are lived out through attitudes and behavior. If you are going to be serving as a missionary of Alternative Missions it is important to understand A.M.’s. culture or “predominate attitudes and behavior that characterize the functioning of our organization”.
# 1 - The first thing we discussed was the attitude regarding future growth as a mission and future ministry location development.
We want to be Spirit led and not driven by “good ideas”. We are ready to grow in any way God directs us. Let’s work hard to make sure God is directing us and not ambitious people. One of the major “tests” related to ministry development is “waiting” on God for His people, His place, His provision, His Plan and His timing.
The process we go through is related to individual callings and team development. There is a process…In its simplest form:
• God leads people with common vision together.
• Approval for projects is given by the Alternative Missions Board of Directors.
• With God’s provision the ministry begins.
# 2 – The next issue is the importance of each staff member in the “family” of Alternative Missions.
God has called us to live out our lives together in relationship to one another as an expression of His character and His Kingdom. For me, being a part of Alternative Missions is a commitment to each person God has called me to work with. For that reason I am committed to the long term success of each individual. I see myself as part of a whole. Alternative Missions, in its own unique way, is an expression of the Body of Christ and I am committed to each part of that body. With that in mind, one of our values as an organization is, “people are more important than programs, ministries or growth”. We all have lives and plans to consider. Let’s look out for one another and make sure that each person is becoming all that they can be as we obey Jesus together. There is plenty of opportunity to make “sacrifices”. Let’s be committed to obeying God and looking after one another. AMU is a means to facilitate this value. By sharing our lives with each other through the individual personal profiles and Weekly Posts we can pray for one another, encourage one another and minister to one another. The individual curriculum is intended to add to the value of each person and help them achieve their goals in life. AMU is what you make it and what we make it together. Let’s use it for our individual and corporate benefit. AMU enables us to care about parts of our “family” that we may never have the chance to meet in person but are a part of the expression of the Body of Christ known as Alternative Missions.
Homework:
• Post Weekly…ministry activities and insights, personal issues related to growth and learning, book reports, educational achievements.
• Read the posts of others and pray for them as you are led by God’s Spirit.
Students and staff will be reading your Posts in the future to gain a knowledge of who you are and what it would be like to work with you.
As we pray for one another we will grow in our love and appreciation for one another.
Notable Quotable:
“If you plan for a year plant a seed; If for 10 years, plant a tree; If for a hundred years, teach the people.” Confucius
Ideas on what to post about:
I had an unusual experience this week… Describe an unusual experience.
Now this is really neat… Comment about something interesting.
I’m really excited about… What are you looking forward to and why?
This week in prayer God spoke to me about… How has God spoken to you recently?
I read this scripture and here’s the impact it had on me… Talk about how a scripture impacted you.
I need prayer concerning… Make a prayer request.
Something I learned this week is… Tell about a lesson you learned.
A prayer God answered this week is… Give a praise report.
It caught me by surprise when…
Have you read this book?
I recommend/don’t recommend this book because… Explain why you would or would not recommend a book.
A problem I’m having is… Explain a frustration or decision that you are facing.
I need some advice on… Ask for advice and wisdom.
Kudos to ___ for… Give thanks for something someone did.
I came away from hosting this team learning…
After hosting this team I have a new view about…
Let me tell you something…
I’ve been thinking/feeling/laboring over…
I’m facing this challenge…
What would you do in this situation?
I’ve been doing the following…
Here’s my goal, plan, dream…
I think this is a good idea…
I like being a missionary because…
Being a missionary was difficult this week because…
Ya know what I’m really excited about?
A funny thing that happened…
This week I saw God in…
I need a little direction here…
I was really stretched by…
Boy that was really humiliating…
I had a cultural incident today…
God opened a door…
I had an evangelistic opportunity…
Something I’m looking forward to…
Here’s a piece of wisdom to pass on…
When I first started out… Talk about how God has changed you.
I have a difficult decision to make…
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