week 4 responds 200 words each and 1 referance
arnita
respondsforweek4.docxMarvin Norman
DB 3- Cultural Intellgence and Gospel Communication
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In Livermore's book, Leading with Cultural Intelligence it states that, "Leaders with high CQ Strategy developes ways to use their cultural understanding to develope plans for new intercultural situations. These leaders are better able to monitor, analyze, and adjust their assumptions and behaviors in different cultural settings. They are conscious of what they need to know about an unfamiliar culture. [1] As of current standings I'm under training with a minister from our church who has a Doctrinal, has started me being her assistant at a Mexican church and I am learning their culture values and how they think and feel about the gospel. Maybe in the future this will help me to be able to help others to teach or lead cross-culturally. If you plan to one day teach or lead multi-culturally you must begin to understand their cultural context and adapt to it.
In Leading Cross-Culturally, Lingenfelter talks on empowering others to be leaders in a multi-culture environment. Alan Weaver in his study of church leaders in Hungary noted that, "every leader who mobilized others did so by creating opportunities for them to lead within their congregations" (2004, 149-53). When mentoring others, we can expect that they may have some short comings in their lives and people may judge the for that reason. A good leader will help them with their situation and teach to help others that may have unshakable situations in their lives. The hardest part about mentoring or empowering a person to move forward after you've taught them to lead you must trust them to go out on their own to prove what they've learned whether they make mistakes or fall short in some areas. The best way to perfect your mistakes is to learn from them. Releasing control of a person is a good act of faith and trust, both in God and the person that was released.
A person with a high CQ Strategy can convince others that they need a leader through empowerment and mentoring. My pastor has taught the ministers under him that to first know that you don't know everything and there's always room for improvement and that a good leader always accepts the responsibility as he/she is the leader of the church. Next year I'm panning to go to Mexico with one of the members from the church I'm training in. From my military experience I do know that I must adapt to the culture scene. Observing their behavior toward me is the first thing I' going to notice so that I don't offend anyone and try to blend in a little. I will also recognize how they adjust to the Bible and their beliefs in Christ, only then am I'm able to deliver the message of salvation successfully. I think that once I'm in leadership, I'll be able to empower those I'm leading to accept Christ without the willingness to feel that I have control over them. I want to know that when I return home those I have trained is able to carry on empowering others to receive salvation.
Livermore, David, Leading with Cultural Intelligence, The Real Secret to Success, 2nd Edition, 2015.
Lingenfelter, Sherwood G., Leading Cross-Culturally, Baker Academic, Grand Rapds, 2008.
Weaver, Alan Ray, 2004, "Towards a Cross-Cultural Theology of Leadership Emergence: The Hungarian Case." PhD diss., Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena,CA.
Brandi Greer
Discussion Board 3
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In my current ministry context, I am mentoring and guiding my life group towards acts of service, taking our faith and working it out instead of only sitting and talking about it within the safe walls of the church. Paul wrote in Philippians 2:12-13 that believers need to work out their faith “with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”[3]This is not to say that God is not pleased when his church gathers together in fellowship to encourage each other through mutual praise, worship, and learning. However, our call to disciple cannot be followed only in the safe environments that we are comfortable with; the people we are seeking are outside the walls of our churches. E. Richards and Brandon O’Brien speak on this topic, noting that Western Christianity can be remarkably self-centered when it comes to faith. “It’s all about Jesus – as long as it’s in a service I like, in a building I like, with people I like, with music I like, for a length of time I like.” [4]
With this context in mind, I will need to plan service opportunities and help lead my group towards them. Of the pertinent points of empowering leadership, perhaps the one I most need to be reminded of is the idea of responsible-to versus responsible-for leadership. While I will seek to empower my group by starting with small projects and moving to larger-scale ones as they feel capable of committing more time and energy, I must remember that I am not responsible for the behavior and performance of everyone. I am responsible to them, meaning I provide the opportunity, mentoring, and encouragement as we go, fulfilling the role God has called me to. However, in the end I am not responsible for the results or lack of them. As Lingenfelter noted, when it comes to covenant community work, God is responsible for the results, and I must trust in him and his infinite knowledge and plan. [5]
Word Count: 469
Bibliography
Lingenfelter, Sherwood G. Leading Cross-Culturally: Covenant Relationships for Effective
Christian Leadership. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2008.
Livermore, David. Leading with Cultural Intelligence: The Real Secret to Success. New York:
AMACOM, 2015.
Richards, Randolph E., and Brandon J. O’Brien. Misreading Scripture With Western Eyes:
Removing Cultural Blinders to Better Understand the Bible.Downers Grove, IL:
InterVarsity Press, 2012.
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