Gratitude
One of Global Interaction’s core values is dependence on God. A practical outworking of this is to express gratitude for God’s provision. In this post-COVID-19 period, recognizing God’s sovereignty, presence and involvement provides believers with perspective, as we see in Biblical narratives on many occasions, for example, the events surrounding Jonah’s travel to Nineveh. Gratitude challenges cultural perspectives arising from a world of entitlement and individualism, where it gets lost amongst the requests and needs.
As State Director there is no shortage of things to be grateful to God for. The distribution of Autumn/Winter edition of Vision (click here) and Winter edition of Resonate (click here), along with Missioning podcasts (click here), and the Changing Lives appeal letter (click here), provide excellent sources for identifying some areas of gratitude beyond just the financial support through May.
There is gratitude for transformed lives and placing cross-workers in the path of seekers. The Changing Lives appeal highlights the story of Alice, a woman from a Muslim background who encountered Christ through faithful workers being caring neighbours after she was widowed.
Gratitude for the teams and their language nurturers, one of whom is Alice. She graduated from university and assists cross-cultural workers with language and culture and how to share with Muslims.
Gratitude for the building of multi-ethnic teams drawing members from the local context or other Asian nations. Dema and Carolyn from Mizoran are due for postponed home assignment in 2021. Simon and Widya (click here), from South East Asia, are candidates preparing to join the team there long-term, and plan to visit South Australia in 2021.
Gratitude to God for new opportunities to enhance the Kingdom. One of the these is Strategic Mission Week (13-17 July), a short course for anyone keen to explore the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of contextual mission, both globally and locally. It provides an engaging, challenging, and dynamic learning space where stories, interaction and reflection are key. This course is perfect for anyone who wants to understand the mission of God, discern a call, or develop skills for ministry. The team of experienced practitioners and leaders will facilitate sessions from cross-cultural and local contexts around the themes God Before Us, God Around Us, God with Us, God in Us. The online course is four, one-hour Zoom sessions each day. You can join from home or watch and interact with others in face-to-face hubs in capital cities and regional areas. South Australia is considering a hub. For more information and to register, click here.
May gratitude feature more in our acknowledgement of God’s presence in work and ministry.
If you would like to receive further stories or any of the publications, contact the State Office on (08) 8357 1755.
