Tyler and Emily in PNG

“Glory of God always comes at the sacrifice of self” – ICOM 2012

For the past week, Emily and I had the pleasure to join thousands of like minded missional folks from around the country and around the globe in Indianapolis at ICOM 2012 (International Conference on Missions). This years theme was a follow-up from the previous year, ‘Radical Again’.

For those not familiar with ICOM or formally known as National Missionary Convention, it is a annual super conference of missions for the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ. It is a three day conference filled with main sessions and workshops plus an exhibit hall filled with mission organizations from around the country. Emily and I both volunteered at the Pioneer Bible Translators booth/exhibit.

Some of the workshops I attended throughout the conference were:
Reaching Muslims – Intro to Islam
Transformational Community Development – Seeing beyond the Need
Discipleship – Making Disciples Like Jesus Did
Unique Mission Endeavors – Global Evangelism through Media
Mobilization – I am Not Ashamed of…
Church – Tapping into Technology

Each workshop, I was able to take away at least one small thing. During the community development workshop, it was good to rethink our strategy. It is not necessarily the ‘need’ we should fix but we should ask the question, how can we use their ‘assets and resources’ better and in turn be self sustaining. Short term trips tend to focus so much on the ‘how can we fix the problem’ syndrome. A better perspective would be how can we help them use their resources better that will enhance their sustainability in the long-term.

Emily, on the other hand, was more centered on the exhibit hall and connecting with others. As an Ozark Christian College grad, she saw many friends and colleagues of the past at the conference. See saw many familiar faces and enjoyed many great hugs from friends and fellow missionaries alike. For Emily, this annual conference is a reunion of sorts and a time to rekindle the joy of missions around the world for the cause of Christ.

Prayer Requests:
Emily got notification this morning that her visa application got ‘lost’ and the PNG embassy is going to have to re-send the documents. Please pray for Emily’s visa application process.
Pray for the unreached people groups of the world.
Pray for justice and the slavery of young children in SE Asia.
Pray for those who have committed their lives to missions at the ICOM.

Praise:
Thank God for a great reunion and conference.
We have bought our tickets to return to PNG in January.
Tyler’s root canal and tooth is feeling much better.

Links:
ICOM – http://www.theicom.org/conference (video streams and more)
Audio Recordings of ICOM – http://catapes.com/
Pioneer Bible Translators – http://pioneerbible.org/ (New Website!)