together -Jan 2016

together
JANUARY 2016
Issue 148
many people | one voice

Official publication
of SIM New Zealand
(Serving In Mission), an
inter-denominational
evangelical Protestant
mission.
Editor: Zoë Cromwell
Print: Ideal Print
For security reasons
some contributors may
use pseudonyms. Stock
photos are sometimes
used to help represent
stories. Except for
stock photographs,
all images copyright
©2015 SIM and its
licensors. All rights
reserved. SIM New
Zealand (#CC28002) is
a registered charitable
entity in terms of the
Charities Act 2005.
For more information,
visit the Charities
Register at www.
charities.govt.nz
SIM New Zealand, PO
Box 38-588, Howick,
Auckland, 2145
Phone: 09 538 0004;
Freephone:
0508 47 46 69;
Email:
nz.info@sim.org
Office: 12B Picton
Street, Howick, Auckland,
2014
By prayer...
Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tyre?*
Is prayer a rope that you hold?l
Prayer isn’t just for a few who have the time
and the gifting to pray ... everyone needs to be
involved. Prayer is one of the most important
ingredients in recruiting and releasing people to
serve God in mission, as this verse makes clear:
“The harvest is great, but the workers are
few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the
harvest; ask him to send more workers into his
fields.” (Luke 10:2)
Join us in praying that the Lord would increase
our mission partners from 42 to 60 by
2017 by releasing 10 new long-term members
and 20 new short-term associates each year.
We have experienced through SIM’s history
that God answers prayers as we have sent out
workers across the world.
* Corrie ten Boom
lMission pioneer William Carey said in 1793:
“I am willing to be lowered into the depths of the
mine to dig, but remember, you must hold the
ropes.”
2

Editorial
This was the text we considered during our devotional times at the recent
Many People One Voice Consultation (see report on page 20). In writing
Romans, Paul was seeking to unify the Roman church and ground them
solidly so they could become a base for missionary work into new areas. In
the same way, for us in SIM to move forward together in collaboration, to
develop strategies to focus our mobilisation and communication into new
areas where people are “living and dying without the Gospel,” we too need
to be unified: not “same same” – that’s uniformity – rather “same same but
different” – strengthened through diversity. Not everyone will be doing the
same task. Not everyone will be the focus of the photograph of SIM, but we
will all be in the photo, contributing with our voice to the glory of God.
In Romans 15-16, Paul shares these very practical points:
• as many people, we need to put others first, just like Jesus did (15:1-6)
• as many people, we need to receive one another without any preconditions
(15:7-13)
• we all participate together in God’s mission – there are no second-class
missionaries (15:14-29)
• By Prayer: with one voice we pray together and for each other (15:14-33)
• with one voice we praise together (16: 25-27):
Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the
preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was
kept secret for long ages but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic
writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of
the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— to the only wise God
be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.
In this magazine you will hear from some of our mission partners who are
part of the many people singing praise with one voice.
Nigel Webb
3
May the God who gives endurance and
encouragement give you the same attitude
of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus
had, so that with one mind and one voice
you may glorify the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ… It has always been my
ambition to preach the gospel where Christ
was not known…
— Romans 15:5-6, 20 (NIV)

Sowing the good seed
For those who go
and plant in foreign
soil, the outcome can
be affected by many
things — a willingness
to learn as well as
teach, the readiness of
the community to
engage, the preparation,
the weather.
What God uses especially
is a heart to
bless the lives of their
neighbours at every
level...
Crops
of hope
“My children were not eating well. Thank you for showing
us how to plant crops that enabled us all to eat better.
I planted two years in a row before moving down here to
the main road.”
Dee Jones, Pastor Kapayi and I had travelled for nearly two hours over back
roads near Kasempa, Zambia, searching for participants from a nutrition
programme that Dee was part of in the community three years ago. We had
stopped at one place, but the mum was out in the fields working hard. At
another place the family had moved on. We asked at the rural clinic where
the training had taken place, but they kept no records.
Everywhere we asked we saw many children roaming around and a
few men completely sloshed on fermented grain or honey – barely living;
without hope. Having also given up hope, we stopped into a market on our
way back to town and asked if there were any participants there. One of the
mothers, Gladys, was there and very grateful for the help that “Sister Dee”
4

had been to her family.
Everyone gathered
around to hear the conversation
and asked for
Dee to come back again.
Dee is currently learning
Kaonde, the local
language, to be able to
communicate effectively
and better help communities
like this to apply
Foundations for Farming
principles and thereby
break the cycle of poverty
and hopelessness.
— Nigel Webb
5
Lessons from
the harvest!
• God opposes the proud but gives grace to
the humble. After I read many articles on
growing techniques in the desert and talked
to Western ‘experts’, the locals all had much
better crops than me. I have come to realise
that the locals know how to grow a good
field and survive here much better than I do.
• Sow in good soil. There’s a reason they fight
over the good dirt and don’t do what I did
and try to improve the rocky ‘no-mans’ dirt.
• When the rains fall everyone has a good
field, but when they stop you see who planted
wisely. My rocky field looked amazingly
impressive while the rains fell! But when the
rain stopped it died off within 10 days.
• The height of your crop doesn’t matter; the
amount of corn or grain that comes off it
does!
• And to humble me even more...my wife
grew possibly the best peanut and bean crop
in the whole region in our little back yard.
Praise the Lord that at least I married smart!
— Pete Johnstone, Sebba, Burkina Faso
Harvesting corn with his neighbours: these
relationships are growing well through Pete’s
farming and are the key focus of the work.

Peru’s youth empowered
I met Gaby when she was 13. She was a tiny, shy girl in our junior youth group
who could barely say her name in public. But after years of discipling and
training, Gaby is growing into a confident daughter of God, full of passion and
a deep desire to serve him.
The turning point for Gaby was a church mission trip. She only went because
she wanted to see another city, but while there, she started listening to
and obeying God’s voice. One day he told her to go and share the gospel with
the women in the local market. Quechua women are not always very approachable,
and Gaby, who was half their size, was very afraid. But she knew God
wanted her to go, so she prayed, “Lord, give me the words to share with these
ladies.” Gaby went to the market, and God gave her the words.
Now 19, she is a youth leader at her church. “Before I knew God, I was
so shy, and really struggled with what to do with my life,” she says. “Working
with the youth group has taught me that I need to trust God with my future.”
Gaby is now studying business administration and wants to use her career to
serve the Lord. She has no problem speaking in front of people these days. She
has learned to live by Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who
strengthens me.”
Almost half Peru’s population is under 25. One of the biggest worries for
youth is getting a university education. Although universities are available,
many cannot afford to go or cannot pass the entrance exams. And those who
6

do earn a degree are not guaranteed good jobs. Unemployed graduates are
susceptible to ills such as depression, substance abuse or gangs. The evangelical
church in Peru is in an ideal place to reach out to youth, but only a few of
the many churches have a trained youth pastor. Existing youth programmes
are usually run by lay leaders who lead miniature church services.
Future leaders
As churches recognise the need to train youth leaders, SIM is ready to
come alongside. As mission partners, instead of leading one youth group, we
want to train youth leaders and empower the Church to care for their young
people. The first step is developing disciples of Christ like Gaby, who will later
become leaders in the church, so I adapted the Jesus Focused Youth Ministry
programme from Barry St. Clair’s Reach Out Ministries. This programme
focuses on six areas: developing a deep relationship with Jesus Christ, praying
with passion, developing leaders, discipling students, encouraging outreach
activities in churches and
encouraging outreach activities
outside churches.
Through the programme
more than 700 youth
leaders from 40 churches
have been trained throughout
Peru. Four of these
have become Eagle Leaders,
working with me to
provide leadership training
workshops for the local
churches. One of them
says “Youth ministry is all about one-on-one discipleship,
helping youth discover who they are in Christ and
then building a lasting relationship that will guide them
through life’s struggles.” Mike develops youth ministries
in some of the poorer parts of Lima, Peru’s capital.
Other leaders include Pedro, a new pastor who is
helping the Presbyterian Church develop youth work;
Daniel, a pastor and director of a Bible institute, helps
pastors in his city better meet the needs of youth; and
Diego, an educator who works directly with young people,
helping them discover their identity in Christ.
– Cynthia Sundman
Pray
For the many
youth leaders
whom God has
changed and is
using to help
meet the needs
of Peru’s young
people.
7

Kiwis in Botswana
Heat, dust and grace
“It’s 48 degrees and no water for days,
a massive dust storm right now, and
it gets even worse when there is no
power and you have to stand over the
kids for hours waving books and wet
cloths! ...And yes, we are all ok!”
Daniel and Anita Muir and their children have
been in Gaborone, Botswana since March 2015.
They are there under the ministry of Flying Mission
where Daniel is involved in the IT department
helping Flying Mission Services (flying ministries)
and Flying Mission Care (care ministries).
Anita looks after their two young daughters and is
building relationships with women and children in her local community;
she runs a weekly kids’ outreach programme at their house as well as a Bible
study with the street ladies.
Botswana has had a strong history of mission and church work but the reality
of what this means in people’s personal understanding, commitment and
lifestyle is often quite removed from this history. While many people may call
themselves Christian the fact is this is often a label they cling to without much
understanding of what that means. This has led to many people being misled
by cults, prosperity teaching and local traditional religion. Botswana needs
people to help in supporting the church in leadership, youth and children’s
work, care ministries and mobilisation of the church to reach out to people
in their communities and people who have not yet heard the name of Jesus
Christ.
The Muirs have a desire to see the church in Botswana develop spiritual
maturity and to live out and teach people around them about what being a
follower of Jesus Christ means. You only have a to spend a few days with them
(as I got to do recently) and their energy and passion for engaging with people
is evident; from going with Daniel as he took me around the various ministry
sites of Flying Mission and watching him so naturally engage with everyone we
met, to walking with Anita and her children around their local community and
seeing the way Anita was known and recognised by many of her neighbours.
8

A family calling
Serving overseas and engaging with people
to build relationships so that they will
come to an understanding and experience
of God’s love and grace is
part of Daniel and Anita’s DNA.
They are both children of SIM mission
partners and grew up seeing their
parents building relationships and
engaging in the world around them so
that it became ‘normal’ for them.
Daniel’s parents are Ted and Andrea
Muir, who were missionaries with SIM
in Peru doing camping ministry for 4
years, and Anita’s parents are Jim and
Helen Harrington who were missionaries
with SIM in rural Burkina Faso
for 12 years.
Many of them stopped to
say hello and talk and play
with her children.
Being with the Muirs
reminded me of what I love
about hanging out with mission
partners. Serving overseas leads
people to work in IT or health,
teaching, sports, youth, theology
and many other areas as a way to
build up and support the church
and to bring the gospel to people
who have never heard.
9
continues over the page u
Pray
• For the relationships they
are building in Gaborone.
• For grace and strength for
what every day brings.
• For utilities such as water
and power not to fail
when the Muirs need
them.

But underlying all of this is the desire and ability of mission partners to
make connections with people they come across so they can be a Christian
witness or a Christian example. And for Daniel and Anita these people are local
staff working as aircraft mechanics, students studying at the only aircraft mechanics
course in Botswana, local children who come to their house each week
for a children’s programme, mothers who live down the road, the woman who
they buy ice blocks from and so many more.
— Sean Marston
Don’t get us wrong...
“The truth is, continual water and power shortages aren’t the things we
find the hardest,” the Muirs wrote recently. “In photos you see Anita and
the children with huge smiles at kids’ outreach on Wednesdays. What you
don’t see is the mess that is left to be cleaned afterwards, the preparation
that goes into it beforehand, the day when a kid goes home for good because
everyone is laughing at his holey shoes. The parent who comes and
adds their own personal beliefs on to the end of your devotion.
“Don’t get us wrong!— kids’ outreach is going amazingly, we are so
encouraged by this door God has opened. We are just saying that it’s not all
pretty butterflies and hokey pokey ice cream.
“You see photos of Daniel... Days can be filled with extremely productive
IT work which ensures all ministries run smoothly and everyone is extremely
grateful and happy. But there are also days where we wait in long
lines to buy new parts, only to be sent to the shop next door. There are
days where the whole Flying Mission Office and/or Hangar is put on hold
because there is no internet and hours are spent climbing up and down
roofs or in dark tiny holes where cables are hiding.
“Don’t get us wrong! — Daniel is loving his role more than ever and we
know God has us in exactly the right place, but it’s just not always a box of
delicious Cadbury chocolates!”
10

alongside shalom
In some
countries SIM
works strategically
by providing funds and
other support to likeminded
local organisations.
The doctor who heads Shalom,
one of SIM’s partner ministries
in an Asian city of 22 million
people, says that their ministry
is now the only one in that city
working with HIV/AIDS clients.
She talks about broken lives and
the stigmatization that still
exists. “Those infected get turned
away at the government hospitals and if they
finally agree to admit them, they get treated like
cattle,” she explains.
Shalom’s clinic is in a bleak and dry neighbourhood
far from the leafy, affluent suburbs of the
city. This ministry has the vision to bring holistic
transformation and hope to the lives of the urban
poor, with a special focus on people infected with
and affected by HIV/AIDS. Through care and
support to individuals and families, including palliative care, they are the hands
and heart of Christ to desperate and broken
people who have nowhere else to go.
Paul in Philippians writes, “I always pray with
joy because of your partnership in the gospel…”
Our local partners are committed brothers and
sisters who have huge hearts and a calling to work
with the poor and broken. We praise God for how
he is at work through them, and for the privilege
of working alongside them. Individuals, families
and whole communities are being touched by
God’s transforming love.
— a Kiwi mission partner in Asia
11
Give
This ministry urgently
needs funding.
To support staff salaries
and other clinic/community
needs, email nz.donor@
sim.org. and quote Project
#98551

Sharing God’s
story.
Mobilising
people to go.
Zebras, giraffes and wildebeest roamed free at the roadside as some 80
SIM workers arrived from Nairobi airport to Lukenya Getaway, Kenya, for
the Many People One Voice Consultation (12-17 October 2015). Many of
these people were communications and mobilisation specialists or strategic
leaders. During the week we built on SIM’s recently rewritten Purpose and
Mission Statement and our Vision Statement, looking at strategic questions,
new technologies and practical ideas for collaborating across SIM. And we
worshipped God in song, in prayer and in his Word, including a great evening
with a multi-ethnic/ multi-lingual worship team from the Good Shepherd
Church, Nairobi.
The first three days involved
plenary sessions and table discussions
about why the ‘WHY’ question is so
critical to our mobilisation and communications
efforts, setting out a fresh
focus on mobilising prayer, people and
resources for ministry rather than just
recruiting people for jobs, and finding
funds for projects. We explored
focused mobilisation and communication
for priority ministries, with an
emphasis on teams and tough places.
“...setting out a fresh
focus on mobilising
prayer, people and
resources for ministry
rather than just
recruiting people for
jobs...”
12

As SIM International Director, Dr
Joshua Bogunjoko said, “we are not
trying to list all our ministries in our
mission statement, we are trying to
clarify our calling.”
The next two and a half days communications
and mobilisation matters
were explored separately, including
topics like videography training, discussions
on story vs. security on the
communicator side, and internships
and church mobilisation on the mobiliser
side.
As we gathered together again on the afternoon of the last day, we
heard from many people but went away with a sense of one common voice.
We agreed on ways to really inculcate our new mission and vision statements,
on plans for 125th year celebrations in 2018, on new structures to
collaborate more to write great stories of what God is doing and regular teleconferences
to develop mobilisation to and from new areas. Starting new
teams for new initiatives will be a priority, including looking for key team
leaders from amongst our experienced mission partners.
“teams are a priority”
This was great talk, now comes the work. Isaiah 52:7 says, “How beautiful
on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who
proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say
to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’” As we put feet on these recommendations, we
are glad to have met in person those beautiful people with whom we work
in an emerging global work culture, permeated by the sense of belonging to
a great, shared story and the collaboration of many people with one voice.
NB. No giraffes were hurt in the writing of this story, but one was followed
on a quad-bike. J
— Nigel Webb
13

Embracing life as a
rubber band
“...I’m not sure
you called the right
person here.”
Several months ago I farewelled the sun and the sand of Sydney to move to
Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia. For an Aussie who has lived most
of his life with sand and surf, this really is “the ends of the earth”. For me
living in Mongolia is to be stretched in many directions. My tongue is twisting
and my ears are itching with the strange sounds. In the first few months,
the many cultural obligations seemed interesting. But as the reality set in,
the differences became more acute.
“Live life as a rubber band” has become my unofficial motto as the Lord
and I have been sharing this journey together. We’ve had some interesting
conversations, and a few arguments. He always wins, but he’s gracious
enough to listen to my side before he helps me to see that his way is best
— though not always easy. He’s been challenging me to embrace being
stretched, to give up some of the perceived rights I have held on to and
partner with him in the process. There are three main rights I’ve been seeking
to lay down.
1) Time. Mongolians’ nomadic heritage has shaped how they deal with
the world around them. Life is transient and time is tremendously flexible.
People leave planning or taking action to the last minute. Whereas I like to
have an idea where I’m going and what I’ll be doing. Mongolians don’t plan
too far ahead, because you never know what a day may hold. The national
!
14

psyche is geared towards the
need to contend with the
changing environment that
was instilled when life was
bound to a ger. I am learning
that time is flexible, but Christ
is immutable.
2) The right to understand
everything that is going
on around me. The differences
in culture and language are
Ulaanbaatar
confusing; I spend most of
my time in a vortex of confusion. I attend a Mongolian church, and listen to
Mongolian sermons, but understand very little. Shop signs and advertising
confuse me. But Christ is abundant.
3) The right to be heard and understood when I speak. Often I cannot
get across the point I want to make because I am using the wrong Mongol
words or grammatical structure. Or maybe my English words and accent
make it difficult for my hearers to understand. This can be disheartening,
but the Lord has challenged me to let go of my “right.” It’s difficult, but I’m
learning to stop and remember that he created language. If I ask for his
help, he’s more than able to provide wisdom and the right words.
Sometimes it feels like I am being stretched so far that I’m going to snap!
I tell the Lord, “I’m not
sure you called the
right person here.” He
replies simply: “I AM.”
—The writer, who prefers
not to be named, is
with SIM Mongolia and
seconded to JCS International.
He teaches
English. In his spare
time he partners in a
sports-based
outreach.
15
...when life was bound to a ger.

Tell us your idea!
We have hundreds of places around the world crying out for workers, with length
of service lasting from a few weeks to a lifetime. Whether you are able to serve
in a business, in agriculture, in a school, university or seminary, in a care facility
or hospital or somewhere else, we probably have a role for your unique gifts and
passions.
But if you don’t see what you’re looking for in our current list, tell us
your idea. We want the message of God’s kingdom to be heard and seen and we
would love to discuss helping you with your mission venture.
Start a dialogue with us by going to www.sim.org.nz
and clicking on GO, or phoning us on 0508 47 46 69 for a
chat, or emailing us at nz.info@sim.org
For a quick list, scan your smartphone here
Re-baptism, Ethiopian Orthodox style
...or check out these life-changing
opportunities:
Teachers
Grace International School, Thailand, Sahel Academy,
Niger, and Bingham Academy, Ethiopia, all have ongoing
needs for staff, elementary & secondary, from
Sciences to English to IT to Art and Sport. In a few
weeks they will be posting their specific needs for
teachers starting in August 2016. Get an idea at the
websites below, and contact us. We know these
schools because they have Kiwi staff and/or
students.
• http://www.gisthailand.org
• http://sahelacademy.com
• http://binghamacademy.net
Bingham field trip with Jo Wallace
16

Joanne Borlase
“I’m going to the Philippines as a Mission
Mobiliser – educating Filipino churches in
mission and equipping them to do their role
as senders.
“For the past five years I have been
working with a mission organisation in New
Zealand endeavouring to help NZ churches
engage more deeply in mission, and have
provided training for short-term mission
Paula Macfarlane
“Although originally from Ireland, I’ve
lived in Southland for 21 years. I attend
Invercargill Central Baptist Church. I’m
a GP and I’m hoping to work at Tansen
Hospital in Nepal for a year. Medical work
overseas has been my intention ever since
I decided to study medicine, but as a solo
parent I’ve had to wait until my children
left home before I could start to realise
that ambition.”
leaders and trained teams going on short term
mission trips. Although I’ve lived in Tauranga for the last five years I call Nelson
home; my home church is Hope Community Church. From 1993-2001 I lived in
the Philippines and was involved in evangelism and discipleship.
Doctors
Would you like to make a difference in
some of the poorest regions in India?
Our partner is serving impoverished
rural communities through medical,
community health, and community
development ministries. Please prayerfully
consider how you could be involved.
This is a priority, strategic need.
Two+ years.
Contact us and quote # 8408
17
Media & IT people
Are you experienced in web design?
The media team in Ethiopia wants to
reach urban youth with new broadcasts
they have developed; your
primary job responsibility would be
to design an attractive web page to
support streaming, downloading and
feedback. Short term position, training
a local person to maintain the website.
Contact us and quote # 8738

Learn
The Bhojpuri of North India
Pray
Love
The home area of the
Bhojpuri-speaking people
extends from the Himalaya
foothills to the Ganges plains.
In history the warriors of
Ujjani Rajput came from their
villages. Mahatma Gandhi
launched his passive resistance
campaign in their midst.
Most of the estimated
50.6 million Bhojpuris live in
houses made of mud and sticks
with thatched roofs and dirt
floors. Many now live in the
mega-cities of India. Most are
vegetarians, growing rice, wheat and sugar cane. They are also involved in
cottage industries, such as weaving. They enjoy storytelling, dance, folk
songs and films.
These people believe that they will cleanse themselves from sin by
bathing in the sacred Ganges River. Many Bhojpuri come to the ancient
city of Varanasi, considered to be Hinduism’s holy city, to die, because they
believe the direct gateway to heaven lies through the most ancient part of
the city.
Because they have been viciously conquered several times by outsiders,
who often forced their religion on them, they are strongly resistant to the
gospel. SIM and partners work among them, including some Kiwis. Five
years ago there were no churches among these people. Today in Eastern
Uttar Pradesh alone there are close to 5,000 house churches — nevertheless,
there are still thousands of Bhojpuri villages with no church. The New
Testament has been translated into Bhojpuri, with work in progress to complete
the entire Bible. The Jesus film and Christian broadcasts and audio
recordings are available in their language.
The Bhojpuri are a warm-hearted people, whose lives revolve around
their families. It is through natural networks developed in families that the
gospel finds the most acceptance. Friendship evangelism and relationshipbuilding
are effective strategies that reach the heart of their culture. People
from the lower castes have been most responsive to the gospel.
PRAY: for more workers willing to befriend Bhojpuri-speaking people,
build strong relationships and tell them about the God who loves them.
18

[project]
@ Sahel Academy
In one of the poorest
countries in the world,
running a 21st century MK
education and supporting it
with the necessary technology
is a daily miracle. Power
outages, heat and dust,
fluctuating internet mean the
school’s computers have to
be up-to-date to cope.
Well, they’re not.
Funds for MKs’ education
Sahel Academy in Niger still
needs more than $30,000 to provide new
laptops and the technology to support
them. Gifts for this project will help
provide the equipment replacement
and upgrades necessary for the
curriculum. Even when a teacher is
not available children will have
better access to online courses.
The school has 200 students from
20 countries whose parents serve
in surrounding areas.
We have Nicola Burrows
working at the school as a dorm
assistant and youth worker.
Go to www.sim.org.nz and click
on DONATE, quoting project
# NE88750