This group blog features updates from our "champions" who are promoting resources and best practices in the various areas that represent the top priority ministries of SIM.

An Urban Plan

10 December 2008 — Brian Seim discusses discipleship techniques for the growing urban populations around the world in this Priority! blog.
Filed under: Urban Centers

Kingdom Midwives

20 November 2008 — SIM Members who give time to nurture Associates in their 'Great Commission commitment' make a big difference.
Filed under: Short-Term Service

Discussions About Sex Before Marriage in Ethiopian Schools

10 November 2008 — Zebene Shewaakena, from the Ethiopia Kale Heywot Church shares the following experience working in schools.
Filed under: HIV & AIDS Ministries

Seven Epicenters of Emerging Mission Movements

30 October 2008 — God alone knows the exact numbers of missionaries coming out of the new mission initiatives. What we can identify however, are the epicenters of the largest movements.
Filed under: New Initiatives in Missions

Young People Are Weird

20 October 2008 — This is a value or attitude I have been hearing for years about young people and youth culture. It is often said in relation to trying to understand how to relate to young people and connect into their world.
Filed under: Youth and Young Adults

Kingdom Style Mentoring

15 October 2008 — Four easy to remember action words on mentoring are: care, convey, correct, and connect.
Filed under: Discipleship and Mentoring

Preventing Care-Giver Burnout

9 October 2008 — Burnout has long been identified as a crucial issue in HIV care and support yet there is relatively little known about what measures can be taken to prevent or mitigate it.
Filed under: HIV & AIDS Ministries

The Value of Partnership in Children's Ministry

1 October 2008 — Our strong connection to the churches in our host countries makes us an ideal partner for other organizations that offer specialized services, but might not always have the necessary contacts and relationships that are needed to make a long-term impact.
Filed under: Children's Ministries

Rift Valley Vision—Southern Ethiopia

24 September 2008 — A new mission society has sprung up in Southern Ethiopia known as Rift Valley Vision. Their goal is to train missionaries, plant churches and see healthy productive communities.
Filed under: New Initiatives in Missions

Leadership Development in an Urban Setting

12 September 2008 — Our work in cities will need the same quality of leader, but he or she must be trained for engagement with a different, more complex society.
Filed under: Urban Centers

My Padawan Learner

11 September 2008 — In the idea of the padawan learner the young apprentice is to learn through absorption, that is they learn from seeing how their master talks, acts and interacts. I think that most young people learn through the same process - absorption.
Filed under: Youth and Young Adults

Mentoring

4 September 2008 — It seems to me that we understand the Biblical principles of discipleship but are less comfortable with the concepts of mentoring.
Filed under: Discipleship and Mentoring

Bringing Life Abundant to Schools

27 August 2008 — The neighbors could hear cheers and applause coming from the public school across the street. The ‘Life Abundant’ group had finished another presentation on HIV, AIDS, sexuality, and self-image to 7th and 8th graders.
Filed under: HIV & AIDS Ministries

Sustainable Finances for Emerging Missions

19 August 2008 — Creating and maintaining a sustained income steam for emerging missions is probably the greatest challenge of the emerging mission movement.
Filed under: New Initiatives in Missions

A New Glue

7 August 2008 — For a long time now I have been thinking about what it is that keeps a young person committed to the Christian faith (and church) as they transition through their youth and young adult years.
Filed under: Youth and Young Adults

Short-Term Service and Lasting Impact: A Realistic Expectation?

29 July 2008 — What assurance do I have that short-term missions accomplish true change, true calling, genuine and effective investment in field ministries, and a discernment of one’s role in the full range of Kingdom work?
Filed under: Short-Term Service

Tell Me a Story: Disciple-making Through Bible Narrative

22 July 2008 — Gwen Baker shares what she learned about storying to primary and secondary oral communicators and how it relates to the whole discipleship process.
Filed under: Discipleship and Mentoring

Training Emerging Missionaries

11 July 2008 — I am often asked, "What can Western missions do to help the emerging missions movement?" Helping them set up a good missionary training school could make a huge difference.
Filed under: New Initiatives in Missions

Working with Volunteers: A Checklist

8 July 2008 — Volunteers are the backbone of most HIV & AIDS initiatives. The concept of a "volunteer" varies greatly between countries and settings.
Filed under: HIV & AIDS Ministries

Charms, Omens, and the Evil Eye

30 June 2008 — Workers in Asia share these thoughts about the fears that the people they serve face every day.
Filed under: Muslim Ministries