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Grace's PERSONAL NEWSLETTER UPDATE |
Archives - INDEX to Personal newsletters
WHAT DO I DO ALL DAY?
(2003)
CONTENTS:
===========
+ Intro
+ A Bit About My Journey re Ministry Directions
+ Some Core Values
+ Let My People Go - encapsulates the vision on my heart
+ My Roles
+ Some Things I'm Currently Working On
+ Some Recent Developments
+ Some Things on the Horizon
+ To Give You Some More Background on Where I'm At
Some of you, though you may have known me for some time/many years, may not be very clear on what it is that I'm involved in on a daily basis, or may not know much about my journey regarding the things I've sensed God leading me into and confirming over the years.
So I thought I would try to break that down as clearly as I can for you, since it can become rather confusing for people because it appears that I'm involved in so many things, but in reality everything overlaps a lot and is quite integrated with everything else. I'm involved in a number of main roles that are basically the same type of role in each situation, so it's not as complicated or as confusing as it may appear :).
I hope this helps :)
Thank you so much for your love, many prayers!! and encouragements in various ways!!! I appreciate you and thank God for you!!
With love, prayers and much appreciation,
Grace
Email
PS For those that have been asking, yes, I continue to be supported financially through the same mission org. that I have been working with for about 14 years.
If there are others that sense God leading them to help contribute financially to assist me in being able to continue to move forward in the things the Lord is leading in step by step, I would be deeply grateful!!
If you would like to contribute, I can send you further info on how/where to do that once I hear from you. Thank you so much for your prayerful consideration in this regard!!
===============================================
A Bit About My Journey Regarding
Ministry Directions
http://disciplethenations.org/index63.html
Some Core Values:
http://disciplethenations.org/Rield/index72.html
===============================================================
The following basically encapsulates the vision on/passion of my heart:
LET MY PEPLE GO!
Let My people go
SO THEY MAY WORSHIP ME
Release My people now so they may praise Me
Release them from the darkness they're imprisoned in
Set My people free to worship Me
I have said to you - that you - will be
A kingdom of priests and-a holy nation
Bring My people now into My Presence
My heart yearns for every tongue and tribe!
My Glory shall be seen in all it's brilliance
Multifaceted - in all My splendor
Reflecting my Glory to the nations
You - are the ones that I have called
Be satisfied in Me with all your being
Express your love for Me through all you are
I've created you to be creative
Use your creativity to worship Me
And praise will spring up from every people
Your worship will truly fill My heart
I will delight in your adoration
For I am worthy - worthy of all praise
I've redeemed mankind from every nation
As My blood was spilt for everyone
I'll rebuild the ancient ruins - restore devastation
As My Name is lifted high in all the earth
Our Wedding Feast is just around the corner
Love songs from My Bride do thrill me now
Hasten! Speed My coming through your worship
And you will reign with Me - by My side!
Worship Me! Worship Me!!
I am coming soon, so WORSHIP ME!
Worship Me! Worship Me!!
I am coming soon, so WORSHIP ME!
By God's grace - Grace Wiebe, Feb.97
CONTENTS
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MY ROLES: my main roles in all of these aspects fall under the following:
+ Consultation - mostly done by email (internationally) but also visits (mostly in my home) of local folks with related interests/ministries, etc. Most people contact me through my web site (http://DiscipleTheNations.org)
+ Networking - connecting with folks with similar vision (and connecting them with each other as appropriate) so there can be potential collaboration and mutual encouragement/resourcing, etc., as well as possibilities of meeting needs with opportunities, etc. Mostly done by email, through the web site, developing mailing lists, sending out resource/networking newsletters, putting together directories to help bring related people (and resources) together, coordinating/facilitating resource networking (and other similar) meetings to bring together people of like heart/mind and to see how the Lord might lead various ones - or the group - to partner together in specific ways in the future as He leads, etc.
+ Research - mostly internet research on related topics (ie. missions, M*us-li*ms, music and the arts, ethnic music and the arts as vital part of church planting, house churches, etc.) I then provide the research/resource materials to those I'm networked with - through my web site, through the free e-newsletters I send out regularly. Part of this role also includes writing related articles if I find that there are gaps and if there doesn't seem to be info/much info on the subject that I'm focusing on.
+ Development - partnership development, resource development, development of training materials, network development, developing ideas/strategies as the Lord leads and implementing them as He provides the people and resources, etc.
+ Training - developing curriculum (in conjunction with other leaders in the field), writing related articles, developing internships, etc.
+ Maintaining my web sites and adding new materials
+ Partnership development - mostly through email but face to face as much as possible if people/leaders that share similar vision are in town from other cities or nations, and especially with local leaders that share similar vision
+ Mobilization - seeking to encourage those that the Holy Spirit is already stirring in related directions and helping them to think through some potential next steps in these directions. Connecting them with potential specific opportunities overseas or locally. Helping to provide training for them as applicable in their situations (or pointing them to more appropriate training). Considering them as possible interns with me here in Surrey. Providing them with resources to help them in the directions they sense God confirming to them.
+ Resource distribution - through my web site and through the newsletters I send out, these are main ways that I help to promote resources to assist in the overall vision.
For example, one of my colleagues with the International Worship & Arts Network also directs Heart Sounds International, which is a ministry which sends out professional missions-minded recording engineers, etc. to set up (usually free) small recording studios in 'creative-access nations' in conjunction with local church planting teams and national believers. They then encourage them, from a biblical perspective, to write their own indigenous styles of worship music, which the HSI team then records. This helps the nationals to get their first CD recorded, helps them to be encouraged that they can write their own indigenous worship songs, provides a recording studio so they can continue to write more songs which can encourage their whole language/people group, teaches the nationals how to run the recording studio, and provides a way for their music to be distributed internationally - through the contacts and networks God has connected me (and my other colleagues) with, for example, through my web site and newsletters, etc.
Another example: Several years ago a local musician/worship leader friend of mine who was interested in encouraging indigenous worship overseas, and who had taken recording engineering training, wanted to do a short term assignment overseas in this regard (recording an indigenous worship CD in their church planting situation). One of our mission's church planters asked me if I knew of someone that could assist their team in doing this (this is one of the main requests that my colleagues and I receive from church planters from many nations these years). So he and I worked together to tailor-make a situation that worked out well for my friend and for the church planter and the national believers they were working with. (Once my health improves I would LOVE to do some of this personally, too, but at this point it was such a joy to be able to be involved in this from even basically the coordination standpoint and I hope to be able to send many more like this in the future as the Lord enables and leads - in conjunction with the various ministries that we're partnering with.)
Anyway, once these CDs were packaged and ready to be made available, a couple S (people group that they were working with) churches in Canada requested that I send them a bunch of copies of the CDs for their people which are originally from the same people group our church planter is working among where my friend went to record! So we were able to help to encourage the S believers here in Canada as well as S believers overseas! PTL! The worship music on this CD was also aired on Christian radio being broadcast throughout that *Mu&s^li`m region of the world, and our church planter/the national believers have a contract with the Christian radio station for more S worship CDs!
So this is very encouraging and just one example of
the ways that, together, we're able to assist *Mu&s^li`m-background
believers, for example, from other nations, even though I am rarely able
to get out of my home (so far)! :)
+ Writing - over the years I have been writing articles about related topics which I don't see being covered elsewhere on the internet (especially to help to train Christian musicians and artists regarding their roles in the Great Commission - whether overseas or locally). I have many more articles on my heart, yet, and hope to be able to get to more of them soon.
+ Coordination & facilitation - over the past several years I have been coordinating/facilitating various resource networking meetings and various related events.
I currently feel that due to my current health situation, etc., that I need to pull back from this aspect of things for several months - at least till the end of the year.
Following a brief 'hiatus' in this regard, I feel that this aspect is going to increase in the coming year or so, though, since that is a major thing that I feel God has put on my heart to help promote unity in the Body of Christ and to be able to do what God is putting on our hearts -since the things He is putting on our hearts cannot be accomplished on our own but need to be done in conjunction with the various gifts/personalities He has placed in the Body. They are also things that are WAAAAY bigger than I am or bigger than the many smaller groups that I am connected with. We need each other!
It continues to be such a delight to me to see how God works when His people come together and are submitted to Him and to His agenda and to each other, in love!
+ Resource development - includes various things - such as developing web sites which consist mostly of resources on related subjects, writing articles on related subjects, developing tools to help network related people - ie. email directories, etc.; sending out regular free email newsletters - the Ethnic Worship & Arts Focus Newsletter (international - monthly since Nov98), the Canadian House Church Resource Network newsletter (international - quarterly or half-yearly as able); Lower Mainland Ethnic Ministries updates - about twice a month; 'Christianity & the Arts' e-resources - twice a month in the Lower Mainland, etc.; working with others on developing related curriculum, etc.
It may look like I'm spreading myself very thin, but I'm not really cause many of the networks and resources, research, consultation, training, etc. overlap and are closely integrated, so it basically feels like I'm doing one job but it just has quite a few aspects to it. I thrive on variety :)
==============================================================
SOME THINGS I'M CURRENTLY WORKING
ON:
+ Tying up loose ends
+ dealing with health issues
+ finances
+ prayer
+ women's groups
+ revamping web site and adding resources
+ writing articles for newsletters, web site and book
+ EthniClay
+ Plasticenes re Refugees, AIDS orphans, etc.
+ Focus on the family
+ Scooter
+ re-connecting with folks
+ prayer counseling training
+ curriculum
+ on-going partnership development
+ assisting IWAN, ICE and HSI
+ finishing up the local directory
SOME THINGS ON THE HORIZON:
WAITING
Assisting Northview with Missions
Assisting the missions I'm with
Prayer Network again
LMEMN Network meeting
Partnering with others to develop a CDN directory of Christian musicians/artists,
Gateway network meeting?
SSW
WMB?
My CD?
Book
EthniClay
ScooterView
Internships
CONTENTS
==============================================================
TO GIVE YOU SOME MORE BACKGROUND ON WHERE I'M AT:
Have been with a mission organization that plants churches
among Ms overseas and locally - have been with the mission since Dec98
- initially was the Personnel Director for about 7 years.
My major role under this ministry umbrella (since it changed from being Personnel Director and Interim Director which I was the last two years before my role change):
Founding and directing the:
+ ETHNIC WORSHIP & ARTS FOCUS
http://disciplethenations.org/index62.html
Vision: The facilitation of ethnic worship & the arts as a vital part of church planting among ethnic peoples locally and overseas
Overseas: serving our mission internationally (and other missions with a Muslim focus) in these ways
Local: working with local co-workers with our mission and with local Arabic pastor and Lower Mainland Ethnic Ministries Network leaders to encourage ethnic musicians and artists.
Resource: Ethnic Worship & Arts Focus e-newsletter
- international
http://disciplethenations.org/index65.html
This newsletter has been going out monthly since Nov98
Ethnic Worship CD Page: http://disciplethenations.org/index64.html
Many other resources available online
===============================================
INTERNATIONAL WORSHIP & ARTS NETWORK
http://www.worship-arts-network.com/
I have been a part of the facilitation team of this resource network (formerly called the AD2000 Worship & Arts Network) heading up the ethnic music & arts aspects, for about 8 ½ years now.
The Ethnic Worship & Arts Focus, Great Commission Worship & Arts Center have been working closely with this network all these years.
In the past 2 years IWAN also spawned:
+ Heart Sounds International: http://www.heart-sounds.org/
Heart Sounds is a ministry that sends professional recording engineers,
etc. into especially restricted access nations in order to help encourage
the believers in those countries regarding worship, and also to encourage
them to write their own indigenous worship songs and then record them.
The teams go to these countries, bring a small recording studio, train
the nationals on how to use it, and then leave it there after they've
recorded the CDs. Often the recording studios are given to the nationals
as a gift from supporters from other nations.
After these CDs are recorded, I help to promote them through my networks, newsletters, web sites, etc. - which also helps to support the nationals financially while encouraging especially believers from that people group.
+ International Council of Ethnodoxologists; http://www.worldofworship.org
The vision of ICE, an association for global Christian worship, is that Christians from every culture will have the opportunity to express their faith through their own heart music and arts.
To further this vision, we seek to promote the application of insights drawn from the field of ethnomusicology, worship studies, and other disciplines in Christian ministries worldwide.
I'm also a part of their resource team although not part of the day to day facilitation of this. (PTL! : ))
--------
+ Perspectives On The World Christian Movement
The International Worship & Arts Network facilitation team is working
together with PERSPECTIVES to put together a curriculum to train church
planters/missionaries, etc. about the aspects of utilizing especially
ethnic music and the arts as a vital part of church planting.
===============================================
I'm also a part of another very small missions ministry (based here in Surrey) working closely with our mission (this smaller mission was also started by the former CDN Director of the larger mission I'm with)
The smaller mission is the umbrella organization for several ministries which focus on assisting church planting among Ms - ie. working among local M refugees; we have a couple missionaries overseas in M countries; the Canadian House Church Network is also under this umbrella as there are mostly house churches in M nations due to necessity and we also feel it's a good way to reach many ethnic groups and post-moderns in our city/nation.
Under the smaller mission umbrella, I founded and also direct the following:
+ GREAT COMMISSION WORSHIP & ARTS CENTER
Vision: By the power and leading of the Holy Spirit, the Great Commission Worship & Arts Center seeks to effectively partner with Christ-centered churches, schools, missions, ministries, businesses and individuals in order to train, equip and release biblically established artists and musicians into their roles in seeing cities, nations and ethnic groups discipled into becoming whole-hearted, total-life worshippers of God.
Resource: 'Christianity & the Arts' e-resources - specifically for Christian musicians/artists and other interested people in the Lower Mainland.
Directory: Coming out this summer, Lord willing - Directory of Lower Mainland Christian Musicians & Artists
Many other resources online
--
Where is the 'CENTER'?
The GCWAC 'Center' is not a BUILDING 'center' - and probably will never
be, as the type of CENTER it is is more like a CLEARING HOUSE of information,
resources, opportunities, networking opportunities, etc. It is a COMMUNICATION,
RESOURCE and NETWORKING HUB. A very strong value is DECENTRALIZATION and
EMPOWERING OTHERS in what God has called them to do as it relates to the
overall vision of seeing whole-hearted, total-life worshippers from every
language, nation, tribe and people worshipping before the throne of God
as presented to us in Rev. 7. Another major value is REPRODUCING/MULTIPLYING
as simply as possible. Therefore, our aim is to network and develop PARTNERSHIPS
with others of like vision in order release the synergy and dynamism available
to us as we are united together and led by the Holy Spirit, while also
presenting a witness of unity AND helping to most effectively use resources
God provides with the least amount of overlap.
This HUB / CLEARING HOUSE is located in Surrey, BC, Canada
-----
And, after being one of the founders of the following, am now part of the facilitation team of the:
+ CANADIAN HOUSE CHURCH RESOURCE NETWORK
http://disciplethenations.org/HCHome.html
Vision: -- By the power and leading of the Holy Spirit, we seek to mobilize, resource, encourage, network, train and facilitate those that God is raising up in Canada who, while complimenting other forms of Christian gatherings in Canada, share and carry out the vision of establishing easily reproducible, multiplying house churches in house church networks as a vital part of seeing Canada discipled and taking a more effective role in discipling the nations, in order that Jesus will be glorified as King of Kings among all nations. We desire to see His life lived out through us in every aspect of life --
Mission Statement:
-------------------------
We seek to establish a facilitation and resource network for those who
are planting multiplying, reproducible house churches across the Lower
Mainland and Canada.
Resource: Canadian House Church Resource Network e-newsletter
Many other resources online
===============================================
GATEWAY CREATION ARTS CENTRE LTD ( & http://EthnicLink.net
- marketing arm) - see handout I sent with you
http://gatewaycreationartscentre.com/ (being developed…what's up there
is just our original rough draft..probably won't be anything like this
when we're done
In early 2003, one of our long-time missionary ethnomusicologists in a M nation, our smaller missions director and I, after many years of God gradually leading us in these directions, incorporated the Gateway Creation Arts Centre Ltd.
VISION
a) general
...providing multicultural training and resources in culture and the arts
in international settings
b) faith
...drawing peoples from all nations to worship God; valuing and promoting
diverse social-ethnic-cultural expressions of the arts in worship; discipling
to create total-life worshippers; bringing reconciliation between the
nations around the throne of God
Some of the reasons for this:
+ to help provide legitimate entry strategies for appropriate church planters
among Ms
+ to help provide potential income opportunities for M background believers,
especially (and other nationals in other nations - though M background
believers are our focus).
+ to help provide opportunities for church planters and Mbackground believers
to be involved in marketplace life-style evangelism
+ to help promote the ethnic music and arts of especially M background
believers and ethnic believers of other cultures
+ to help provide income for the 3 of us directors and our staff and business
partners
+ to provide a place for us to test and develop the things that we feel
God leading us to do, here, to reach Ms and other ethnic and post-modern
peoples here in multicultural Surrey - especially in the down-trodden
Gateway region - in order to see transformation taking place by the power
of God - and perhaps some of the things we learn, here, could be adapted
by others in other places and utilized as well, as the Lord leads…
+ to provide opportunities for local internships and summer teams, etc.
for those interested in working with ethnic peoples - especially for musicians
and artists seeking to work among multicultural peoples - locally or overseas
- we can also send teams overseas (and have in the past). We have also
done internships here.
My role with Gateway is that I'm one of the 3 Directors.
I am the Secretary and the Canadian Director of this international business
- our first international office was incorporated by one of the other
directors in a M nation last summer.
--------
EthniClay - "Expressions of God's Grace"
- modeling clay figurines for any occasion
http://ethniclink.net/ethniclay.html
* my first product line is in the developmental stage - will hopefully
be able to help provide opportunities for ministries, missions and other
friends involved in ministries to raise awareness of, prayer for and funds
for their ministries or to help supplement their personal income. Some
of the ministries I'm currently in the process of working with to help
develop are with a Christian Refugee Network in Canada - which our smaller
missions director and I are friends with and working with - includes a
persecuted believers focus; the directors of an AIDS orphanage in Thailand
which I'm friends with, etc. Also developing the ethnic musicians and
artists line to assist missionary ethnomusicologists/church planters -
especially among Ms; am in the process of developing a line for our mission
with a M focus and a missions line which hopefully missions can use, and
hoping to work with some local ESL trainers to develop some multimedia
and other ESL training materials, and a series for a book based on the
Chronological Bible Storytelling approach), etc. There are others as well
but I feel that all of these have the potential of also hopefully impacting
the M world as things are first tested here, etc.
I have many lines to choose from and various products I'd like to develop - ie. blank note cards, postcards, calendars, coffee table books, prints, multimedia, etc. as appropriate.
Hopefully this will also help to provide some supplemental income for me to raise up my financial support which has recently been going down and health costs going up. I also hope it becomes, partially, a family business because all of my family are artists and two others also create plasticene figurines which I think are great, and other family members can contribute in other ways. My younger brother recently got some major health issues, as well, which have not yet been diagnosed but which have kept him from work for several months and no end in sight…IF he is ever able to go back to work, he would need to be re-trained for another career so I think the timing of this is very interesting in that way, too…he's also very interested and supportive. Anyway, we'll see how the Lord leads… : )
My roles with EthniClay - artist, developer, administrator - at this point…
===========================================================
LOWER MAINLAND ETHNIC MINISTRIES NETWORK
http://disciplethenations.org/LMEMN.html
Vision (rough draft): By the power and leading of the Holy Spirit, the
Lower Mainland Ethnic Ministries Network seeks to effectively partner
with Christ-centered churches, schools, businesses, missions, ministries
and individuals in order to see ethnic groups in the Lower Mainland, Canada
(and beyond) discipled into becoming whole-hearted, total-life worshippers
of God.
Resource: Lower Mainland Ethnic Ministries Network e-update
Directory: - email directory of Lower Mainland Ethnic Ministries available
Many other resources online
=============================================================
DISCIPLE THE NATIONS WEB SITE
http://DiscipleTheNations.org
A web site designed to provide resources for any World Christian interested in being involved in seeing the Kingdom of God expanded. It has a special focus for God's musicians and artists and missionaries/church planters.
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