from August 3, 2014 prayer update

I have had the opportunity to spend time at Glen Eyrie, The Navigators national and international headquarters in Colorado Springs, twice this summer. First for a week of new staff orientation and fundraising training, and second for several days of interactions with NCM’s regional field leaders.

Colorado has had more rain than usual this year, so everything is green. With the backdrop of the Rocky Mountains, it is a beautiful setting. But greater than the physical beauty of the location, is the spiritual beauty of my new colleagues.

the castle on the Glen Eyrie campus
I have lots of first impressions from these first four months with The Navigators. I will share about three that stand above the rest. A passion for Christ and His mission, a passion for digging deep into the Word of God, and a passion for intentional disciple making.

First, a passion for Christ and His mission. The Navigators motto is “to know Christ and to make Him known”. Passion for Jesus’ mission should flow out of passion for Jesus. If we love Him, we also love what He loves. This is at the very core of who The Navigators are, and it is evident in the lives of our staff as you get to know them personally. The apostle Paul, the model cross-cultural evangelist and church planter, speaks of his passion for Christ in Philippians 3:8. “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ”.

Second, a passion for digging deep into the Word of God. Depth in the Word in our personal times alone with God, in our discipling work with individuals, and in our coaching and training work with church leaders is central. It is the Scriptures studied, grappled with, and lived out that transforms lives. “But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.” – James 1:25.

Third, a passion for intentional disciple making. This is what The Navigators do best. I believe we do this better and with greater enthusiasm than anyone else. For the 130 staff serving with NCM, we have a passion for seeing this happen in the 400 thousand Protestant churches in the U.S. II Timothy 2:2 says, “and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” The Navigators believe that Biblical reproduction has not occurred until you see a solid third generation in place. The proof of reproduction is seeing someone you have invested deeply in turn around and do the same with someone else.

from July 6, 2014 prayer update

In June I read a book that was recommended to me in my new role with The Navigators. Real-Life Discipleship is written by Jim Putman, senior pastor at Real Life Ministries in Idaho. It is a NavPress publication. It describes the lessons learned and principles applied in disciple making in the planting and growth of the church where he serves as senior pastor.

In the book he describes disciple making as intentional, relational, and reproducible. He describes the disciple making process in five stages (spiritually dead, spiritual infant, spiritual child, spiritual young adult, and spiritual parent). The book is an expansion on the basic concepts found in Putman’s description and stages of disciple making. The stages are described well (and do not always conform to the stages that some churches use to describe their pathway to spiritual maturity). The author does a good job of providing windows into where a person is spiritually by the listening closely to the kinds of things they say and the kinds of questions they ask.

I found the book a helpful introduction to the disciple making process, written from the perspective of a pastor and practioner who has seen these principles at work over an extended period of time in a large, growing church that is doing a great job of raising of laborers and leaders. Outreach magazine lists the church where Putnam serves as one of the one hundred most influential in the U.S.

For those who are not well acquainted with the work of Navigator Church Ministries (formerly Church Discipleship Ministries), this book provides some great insights into what we do. NCM’s aim is to serve as catalysts and coaches as we come alongside local church leaders in helping create a disciple making culture within a local church. If we can ever be of service to your church, please let me know. We would be delighted to serve you toward the goal of becoming a more effective disciple making church, both within your community and among the least reached globally.

from June 1, 2014 prayer update

Church Discipleship is one of eleven missions for the Navs serving within the U.S. Our mission statement reads: “Partnering with church leaders to develop generations of disciples in everyday life – where they live, work, and play.” We serve as consultants and coaches to church leaders. We play a catalytic role in helping church leaders create a disciple making culture within their own congregation. We do this by coming alongside these leaders, modeling, networking, and recommending resources that provide practical help in six key areas: leadership development, life-on-life discipleship and mentoring, local and global outreach, mission and vision, small groups, and spiritual maturity.

Church Discipleship currently has 114 staff in 11 regions nation-wide, serving leaders in the 400 thousand Protestant churches in the U.S.. And we have 71 lay ministry partners serving as key volunteers alongside us in this work. Our vision is to see this grow to 1000 lay ministry partners.

God has promised to provide us with the resources we need for success in life. In II Peter 1:3 it says, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.” The next verse goes on to explain the role Biblical promises play in that process.

CDM also seeks to make helpful resources available to God’s people. The three key resources CDM makes available to local church leaders are the life experience of our staff, our printed resources, and our online resources. In this month’s update, I would like to introduce you to what is perhaps our most helpful online resource.

Discipleship Library (www.discipleshiplibrary.com) is a great resource on discipleship / disciple making for individuals, small groups, and in a variety of local churches settings. It contains thousands of audio messages from well known and not so well known Navigator and non-Navigator speakers on a broad spectrum of discipleship related themes. The audio messages are listed three ways: by speaker, by topic, and by Scriptural passage. It also contains links to hundreds of other excellent discipleship resources.

One of my favorites is a classic talk by The Navigators’ founder, Dawson Trotman, titled “Born to Reproduce”. Check it out, and many other helpful resources when you have the opportunity.

from May 4, 2014 prayer update

In my past two updates I shared with you about The Navigators. This month I would like to share with you more specifically about Church Discipleship, the mission within the Navigators that I serve with.

The Navigators was started by Dawson Trotman in 1933. Today more than 4600 staff from 70 different nationalities serve in 107 countries among 220 people groups in 174 languages. Our U.S. and international headquarters is at Glen Eyrie in Colorado Springs. Our organizational motto is “to know Christ and to make Him known.” Our mission statement reads: “To advance the Gospel of Jesus and His Kingdom into the nations through spiritual generations of laborers living and discipling among the lost.”

Church Discipleship is one of ten missions for the Navs serving within the U.S. Our mission statement reads: “Partnering with church leaders to develop generations of disciples in everyday life – where they live, work, and play.” We serve as consultants and coaches to church leaders. We play a catalytic role in helping church leaders create a disciple making culture within their own congregation. We do this by coming alongside these leaders, modeling, networking, and recommending resources that provide practical help in six key areas: leadership development, life-on-life discipleship and mentoring, local and global outreach, mission and vision, small groups, and spiritual maturity. I will share more about some of the processes and resources we make available to church leaders in future updates.

Church Discipleship currently has 114 staff in 11 regions nation-wide, serving leaders in the 400 thousand Protestant churches in the U.S.. And we have 71 ministry partners serving as key volunteers alongside us in this work. Our vision is to see this grow to 1000 lay ministry partners.

I serve as part of the south central region (Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas). I also have a role as a liaison between Church Discipleship and Nations Within (one of ten other missions within the Navs U.S. work, focused on ministry among the 40 million plus first generation immigrants living in the U.S.). Initially my work will focus on personal training, cultivating relationships with my new colleagues, and fundraising. I look forward to soon shifting my full attention into the roles I was hired to play.

In late April I had the opportunity to spend four days with my new colleagues at our annual Church Discipleship national conference, held this year in Orlando. What a great kick-start to my new role with the Navs. Please pray for success in my initial work and for a smooth transition.

from April 6, 2014 prayer update

In my March update I shared a little with you about The Navigators. I would like to share more with you this month.

The Navigators was started by Dawson Trotman in 1933. Today more than 4600 staff from 70 different nationalities serve in 107 countries among 220 people groups in 174 languages. Our U.S. and international headquarters is at Glen Eyrie in Colorado Springs. Our organizational motto is “to know Christ and to make Him known”. Our mission statement reads: “To advance the Gospel of Jesus and His Kingdom into the nations through spiritual generations of laborers living and discipling among the lost.”

The U.S. arm of the Navigators is organized under three spheres:
• launching
• life-long laborers
• the nations.
Ten missions function under these three spheres. The “launching” sphere includes three missions – Collegiate, Military, and Nav20s (young adults). These are the primary entry points into the Navs. I first got involved with the Navs back in the early 70s as a college student at UT. The “life-long laborers” sphere includes four missions – Community, Workplace, I58 Navs (Isaiah 58, the poor), and Church Discipleship. This is the heart of the Navs long-term work in the U.S. “The nations” sphere includes three missions – International Student Ministry, Nations Within (first generation immigrants), Nav Missions (our U.S. sending arm to the nations). This is the heart of the Navs cross-cultural work in the U.S. and globally.

There are also three ethnic networks (African American, Asian American, and Hispanic) that function as integrated parts of the ten missions.

I officially started with The Navigators on April 1. I have the privilege of serving as part of the “life-long laborers” sphere within the Church Discipleship mission. We have approximately 100 Church Discipleship staff nationwide, serving in 11 regions, and a growing number of key volunteers that serve alongside us. I serve as part of the south central region (Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas). I will also have a limited role as a liaison between Church Discipleship and Nations Within. Initially my work will focus on training, cultivating relationships with my new colleagues, and fundraising. I look forward to shifting soon into the roles I was hired to play. Please pray for success in my initial work and for a smooth transition.

from March 2, 2014 prayer update

This will be my last monthly update as part of Pioneers. It has been a good seven year ride. The last four years of the ten years I was part of Advancing Churches in Missions Commitment were under Pioneers umbrella, followed by the past three years as part of Pioneers Church Partnerships Team. There is much that I have loved about Pioneers, including their mission of initiating church planting movements among least reached peoples and their core values. I have many fond memories of the people and the churches God allowed me to partner with and serve. But as Philippians 3:13 reminds me: “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead”.

When you receive my next monthly update, we will officially be part of The Navigators Church Discipleship Ministry. I am very excited about the opportunities that lie ahead.

The Navigators was started by Dawson Trotman in 1933. Today more than 4600 staff from 70 different nationalities serve in 107 countries among 220 people groups in 174 languages. Our U.S. and international headquarters is at Glen Eyrie in Colorado Springs. Our organizational motto is “to know Christ and to make Him known”. Our mission statement reads: “To advance the Gospel of Jesus and His Kingdom into the nations through spiritual generations of laborers living and discipling among the lost.”

I read Acts 16 as part of my devotional reading this past week. Paul and his team are on their second missionary journey in this passage and hope to take the gospel into Asia, but are somehow prevented by the Holy Spirit. Plan B was to go into Bithynia, but again the Spirit prevented that effort. Then in a vision God provided the clarity Paul was seeking. God would have him and his team take the gospel into Europe, starting in Macedonia. In verse 10, Paul immediately responds with obedience and enthusiasm to the clarity that God provided.

It is my heart’s desire to do the same with the new opportunities that Lord has provided for us through The Navigators. These open doors came through months of seeking God for clarity regarding His desires for our lives, with Him opening up a vehicle that would better fit the gifts and passions He has placed within us.

Please join with us in praying for this new work. Pray that it would bear much fruit, fruit that would last, and be a work marked by answered prayer that honors Christ. “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He may give it to you.” – John 15:16.

from February 20, 2014 personal update

April 1 I will officially leave Pioneers and begin my new role with The Navigators as part their Church Discipleship Ministry. I will serve local church leaders in the south central U.S. (Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas). You will be hearing more about The Navigators (www.navigators.org) and my role with them in the months ahead.

After months of searching for an organization and role where my God-given gifts and passions could better be utilized, I have found my landing place. Thanks so much for your prayers during this time of transition. I looked into more than 100 different opportunities. Since October I have given serious and prayerful consideration to three great opportunities. My first choice among those three options was with the Navs. Their application and vetting process has been slow and thorough, but it is now completed.

The Navigators was started by Dawson Trotman in 1933. Today more than 4000 staff serve in 107 countries. Our U.S. and international headquarters is at Glen Eyrie in Colorado Springs. Our organizational motto is “to know Christ and to make Him known”. Our mission statement reads: “To advance the Gospel of Jesus and His Kingdom into the nations through spiritual generations of laborers living and discipling among the lost.”

Christ drew me to Himself more than 41 years ago as a freshman at The University of Texas at Austin. A few months after my conversion I got involved with the Nav work at UT. They laid the foundation for my spiritual journey and service with Christ. From 1973 to 1980 as an undergraduate student, a graduate student, and then as a recent graduate, I was actively involved with the Nav work at UT. I served as interim campus director (lay volunteer) for the UT Nav work during the 1996-1997 school year, and I served as associate staff (lay volunteer) with CDM (Church Discipleship Ministry) from 1995-2000.

God has used many different people and organizations as part of the process of helping me become more like Jesus and more effectively join with Him in His mission in the world. At the top of that list of people and organizations is The Navigators.

We are thrilled to remain in Austin, my home of 41 years. This will provide important continuity for our two children as they finish out their high school years. And I am thrilled to continue to serve local church leaders in their Great Commission efforts. For the past 13 years my vocational focus has been consulting and coaching local church leaders in the area of local and global cross-cultural outreach, with a special emphasis on church planting among least reached peoples. First as a regional director with Advancing Churches in Missions Commitment and then through Pioneers Church Partnerships Team. That passion remains unchanged. I am delighted to now be able to extend the scope of my consulting and coaching work with local church leaders into the six areas where CDM concentrates their efforts: leadership, life-to-life, mission, outreach, small groups, and spiritual maturity.

For those of you who of you who currently give to our work, we pray that you will make the transition with us to The Navigators. We will continue to depend on a team of faithful financial and prayer partners to make our work with local church leaders possible. Please continue to give through March 31 using our account with Pioneers. In April Pioneers will transfer all remaining funds in our account to our new account with The Navigators. Please begin giving through our new account with The Navigators on April 1. I will soon provide you with information about giving through The Navigators -- where to send checks, how to set up an electronic funds transfer, and other convenient giving options.

Thanks so much for your faithful partnership with us! We thank God for you. Please continue to pray for us as we make this transition. And please do contact me with any questions or concerns you may have about any of this. May God receive great glory as we move forward into this next stage of life and kingdom service.