WHEN YOU CROSS CULTURES - World Evangelical Alliance

CHAPTER FIFTEEN
ORIENTATION OF
CANDIDATES
109
G od had given the land of Canaan for Israel to possess. In Numbers 13,
Moses instructed each tribe to send one of its leaders to explore the land.
Have you wondered why Moses wanted the land explored when God had
already promised it to the people? Shouldn’t they simply march forward and
enter the territory? It was because the people were entering into warfare. It
was necessary for Moses and the people to find out about the land and its
people in order to be prepared for battle. Any mission operation is a venture of
faith. This faith must be based on the proper interpretation of facts.
All twelve explorers who were sent saw the land and its people. Ten of
the twelve interpreted what they saw with the eyes of fear. Only Caleb and
Joshua interpreted what they saw with faith. We know that God judged the ten
and struck them down. Joshua and Caleb survived. Joshua learned from this
experience. He later carried out a similar procedure before conquering Jericho.
Similarly, in cross-cultural missions today, workers need to be prepared
for their ministry and to undergo proper orientation before proceeding to the
field. It is necessary for them to know what they would be encountering.
No cross-cultural candidate should go to the field without adequate
orientation. After the process of assessment is completed and a specific
assignment is decided upon, orientation needs to be conducted before the
candidate arrives on the field. This is usually referred to as PRE-FIELD
Orientation. When a candidate arrives on the field, ON-FIELD Orientation
should be conducted.
Both Pre-field Orientation and On-field Orientation are important and
should not be neglected. Tentmakers also need orientation. Besides learning
similar aspects as full time missionaries, tentmakers could profit from a study
of work and ethical issues. In an interview of Asian tentmakers, seventy per
cent of the respondents received pre-field orientation, some lasting as briefly
as two weeks and the majority as long as three to four months. A majority also
had on-field orientation but this lasted for a brief period of one or two weeks
for most.
Orientation of new mission workers would normally be conducted by
the mission agency sending out the candidates. Certain aspects, however, may