Orientation: Week 1

I mentioned in my previous post that Week 1 of New Missionary Orientation is underway; in fact, we've made it more than halfway through. There are 11 others participating besides me:

• A FL pastor + his wife and 3 teenagers, going to Russia
• A retired couple from GA, going to the Czech Republic
• A pastor originally from Gary, IN, being deployed as a national missionary through Mission Field USA to Gary, IN
• A STL area pastor and his wife taking a part time call (4 mos/yr) to Papua New Guinea, having previously served there in the 70s
• A Concordia University WI student from IN, going to Taiwan

The goal is to equip us with a support-raising "toolbox" so that we can leave "sprinting"...from congregation to congregation, that is, as we become network-building road warriors! After some generalities on Monday morning, we eased into things with the "Engaged Contributor Workshop," an 8-hour, intensive experience about identifying the blessings that are all around and within us and channeling them to be the positive influencers we unknowingly already are. It's all based on research called Appreciative Inquiry (AI). Tuesday afternoon and yesterday were an information firehose as we dove into developing a 6 second "hook," effective public speaking (I had to deliver a 2 min. persuasive speech that I had 22 seconds to prepare for!), the art of scheduling congregational visits, and the genesis of the Network Supported Missionary model, intermingled with logging into numerous online tools for the first time. 

Today we delivered the presentations we'll use when visiting congregations, which were followed by 5 min. of constructive criticism so that we can polish them before (ideally) using them in the next week or so. We also met 1-on-1 with psychologists from the agency that performed a psychoanalysis on us during the application process. The findings of mine revealed...drumroll...that I like processes and order. No surprises there. I was literally off the charts when it comes to using Structure as an effective leadership tactic. My favorite thing I was told: theological bent or not, I am ideally wired for the task that is before me. I had lunch with the 2 International Center staffers who work with short-term teams; they are both great and we could have talked for much longer than we had!

Morning prayer, chapel, and evening prayer have also been a regular part of our days, as has meeting people from various departments, all of whom are deeply committed to helping us succeed however they can. Another day and a half awaits before I transition to a very different kind of full-time job than I'm used to. Bring it on, though!

Until next time, blessings!