Sandals on the Ground

Making converts into mature disciples

©2015 Wayne Dye

My Nepali friend Nanda

“If God has a plan for my life

• surely he wants me to go to the university”

GMO and other sites

• Many site visits

• For GMO as an example, about 11% of these are DECISIONS

• 15% of those decisions write in for training or counseling

• If 25% of those starting counseling follow through, <2% of decisions follow through

• RAISING this percentage would be valuable

To improve retention, look at needs of inquirers and new believers

Need 1: Answer THEIR questions

• Some questions one or two countries

• Some are a continent or sub-continent

• Some are an ethnic group, or a village

• Many are just one person

Need 2: Understand Christian Concepts

• Where God is merciful but so sovereign no one can trust His promises

• Where God is the sum total of all life, but knowable through many avatars, including Jesus

• Where all deaths are caused by sorcery or witchcraft or ……….

Need 3: KNOW HOW TO LIVE

•Grow crops

Need 3: KNOW HOW TO LIVE

• Plant my crops

• Carry on my business

• Bury my dead

• Christen my children

• Celebrate anything

Need 4: in the language in which they

• Talk casually with friends and family

• Understand their old religious world view

• “Marry and bury and fight and make love”

In order to answer such questions, COUNSELLORS need to:

• Establish trust, though most people never trust strangers

• Be able to make sense of what they are saying

• Be able to read BEYOND what they are saying

Counsellors must model how to live

• With their limitations and struggles

• Using only their resources

New believer need 5: Friends or family to encourage along the way

• People who share their issues

• People whose opinion is important

• People with whom to laugh and cry

Need 6: Be mentored (discipled) for many years

• Nanda: 2 years before starting to grasp Christian teaching

• 10 years to call God “Father”

• 6 years to feel not alone in Hindu community

Local believer Nearby

missionary Remote missionary

Best2nd

Best 3rd

Best

Who can do all this?

But they need help

• Many know very little Bible

• Some have spiritual issues of their own

• Many know little about how todisciple people

Local believer

Local missionary

Remote missionary

A Better Way

Cell Phones Can Powerfully Assist

• Connection with coaches and mentors

• Video clips

• Oral Bible teaching materials

• Written Bible

Cell Phones Can Powerfully Assist

• Connection with coaches and mentors

• Video clips

• Oral Bible teaching materials

• Written Bible

• Grouped passages and ideas, SEARCHABLE

• Ideas from others dealing with similar questions

• Ways to connect with others in their region

How to Work With Local People

• Listen to them

• Provide materials THEY want:

• Create teaching materials together

• Be a backup information and idea source when they are stuck

• Help them grow spiritually themselves

• = COMMUNICATE A LOT

Never before have broadcast media agencies been able to

directly support local disciplers

•Let us take this opportunity!