Brigada Today 2018/01/14
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Compiled/Edited by Doug Lucas and Tina McCormick, Team Expansion
Brigada online has more graphics and links at http://www.brigada.org

In this issue…
Jump to…1) “Muslim Connect” Celebrates One-Year Birthday: Subscribe Today?
Jump to…2) What if We Were to PRACTICE Joy?
Jump to…3) What if There Were an App to Help You Make Disciples in Arabic?
Jump to…4) Sahara Challenge is Crescent Project’s Most Intensive Training
Jump to…5) “Window to the World” Will be Free on January 21 and 22nd
Jump to…6) Learn From a Writer/Director/Producer How To Tell a Better Story
Jump to…7) Free 8-week Online Literacy Tutor Training
Jump to…8) Learn Arabic from a Syrian Refugee in Lebanon
Jump to…9) Search the Entire 23 Years of Brigada in an Instant
Jump to…10) How Fast is Islam Growing in the USA?
Jump to…11) Finishing the Task in Laos Conference
Jump to…12) When Christmas Goes Wrong for Christians in Laos
Jump to…13) We’re Grateful…
Jump to…14) The Last Bit: What in the World is 2414?
Jump to…15) Closing Stuff


1) “Muslim Connect” Celebrates One-Year Birthday: Subscribe Today?

Issues around Islam and Muslims loom large in the world today. Most Christians want to be obedient when it comes to Muslims, but are puzzled about what to do, even what to think. Along comes this little gem called Muslim Connect that long-time friend of Brigada Today, Shane Bennett sends out each week. Each post is only 300 words long, and packs a solid, one idea punch. You’ll find it useful and funny and probably worth passing along to your network. We subscribed here at Brigada Today on the first day we learned about it. We’d love for you to read it with us. Subscribe here.

http://jesusplanet.us1.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=d29944800aacc3e14aab102e1&id=96050a1d62

(That’s all one link. If your browser breaks it up, please just kind of knit it back together by copying one broken line at a time. We here at Brigada Today believe in showing you the real site to which you are being directed. So we’d lots rather give you the real URL rather than some “tiny URL” forwarder. Who wants to be kidnapped? : ) )

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2) What if We Were to PRACTICE Joy?

 

That’s what Ankit Jain asks in this video, which is going viral…

https://vimeo.com/250644582
He asks us to ‘practice joy.’ To us, he makes a fairly successful case. But check him out for yourself to see what you think.

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3) What if There Were an App to Help You Make Disciples in Arabic?

Guess what: There already is. If you speak Levantine Arabic (the Arabic of the Levant, which is spoken in parts of Cyprus, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, and Turkey, there is a website and an Android app for you.

https://darb.thedmmplatform.com/

This website and the accompanying Android app exist to support leaders at every stage of their discipleship and leadership journey with a system of easy to use resources in Levantine Arabic. They do this so that generations of whole and healthy disciples of Jesus can be developed and the glory of God more fully expressed. Now if you don’t speak Levantine Arabic, the cool part is — they at least show enough of the site in English so you can admire it. There are 351 lessons — and all of them are amazing. You can read the Arabic online or in the app, or LISTEN to it as an audio presentation. It’s really quite remarkable — and it raises the bar high for all the other languages of the world. Well done, DMMPlatformers!

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4) Sahara Challenge is Crescent Project’s Most Intensive Training

 

So — wouldn’t you want to take it? Held every summer in Minnesota, Sahara Challenge provides in-depth teaching and application by high-level instructors, followed by a short-term trip to a Muslim culture. Catch it this year June 19 – 23, 2018, in St. Paul. You won’t regret it. You get an intensive classroom training and preparatory course focused on bridging the Gospel to the Muslim heart and mind. Participants include missionaries, pastors, lay workers, and college students. They all receive practical tools and an encouraging message designed to spur a lifetime of service. Learn more at…

https://www.crescentproject.org/saharachallenge

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5) “Window to the World” Will be Free on January 21 and 22nd

“Window to the World” is a 40 page short book that convers the top 100 statistics every Christian should know about the world through 10 global topics of significance (unreached peoples, poverty, refugees, world evangelization, missions giving, world population…). Each chapter is just two pages: a page of commentary and then a page of 10 unsettling stats on that global topic. The eBook is usually available for only $.99 or the paperback for $3.99. But on January 21 and 22, the author, Andrew Knight, will be offering the book for free. (Note: You have to click on “Choose All Formats” to see the zero-priced Kindle version.) Obviously, this book is short. 40 Pages. But it’s kind of cool, nonetheless. Don’t buy it expecting to be wowed by the format. It’s simple. Get it because of the collection of quick and easy stats that will find their way into your teaching. Find it here…

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078Q28TKF/

(Thanks to Joshua and the folks at
http://simplymobilizing.com/courses/kairos/
for relaying this tip to us! )

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6) Learn From a Writer/Director/Producer How To Tell a Better Story

Understand the importance, and urgency, of story for ministry effectiveness. Learn how story applies to reaching and teaching people for Christ. Mission Media U is offering its five-week online mentored experience for you and your team. The course runs February 21-March 21. To find course details, instructor and mentor bios, comments from previous students, and to register, visit:

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7) Free 8-week Online Literacy Tutor Training

Join Literacy & Evangelism International’s Literacy Teacher Training Workshop. This free 8-week online class starts February 5 and ends April 2, 2018. This course prepares you to teach literacy outside of North America, so that more people may know the love of Jesus and learn to read and write in their own languages using Bible-based primers in 240+ languages. Register at

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8) Learn Arabic from a Syrian Refugee in Lebanon

Want to learn Arabic? Why not learn it from a native. You get to learn a language — while changing a life. Face it — The Syrian conflict has triggered the worst refugee crisis of our time. Despite fleeing the violence, refugees and displaced persons are often unable to work in their host countries. NaTakallam (“we speak” in Arabic) changes this reality by connecting Arabic language learners around the world with displaced persons for language practice over Skype. Learn more at…

https://natakallam.com/

(Thanks Caleb!)

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9) Search the Entire 23 Years of Brigada in an Instant

We pay Google for a real-time search engine that is instant — and focused just on Brigada. What does this mean? You’ve got to experience it to see the results. Just type in “YWAM” for example. You’ll receive all 444 items that have included the word, “YWAM,” over the entire 23-year life of Brigada. TESL will yield 408 results. (TESOL will get you 1,220 additional hits, by the way.) The whole thing happens so fast, so instantaneous, you’ll wonder how in the world 23 years can be searched so quickly. (Paying Google some cash can work miracles.) Sure you can go out to “normal” Google and search something like “YWAM in Brigada” — and the first 5 hits are indeed mentions of YWAM in Brigada. But the other 3,015 hits are all over the board. By using the search engine built into Brigada, you can focus JUST on the topic you seek. Try it someday. Remember, just go to…

http://www.brigada.org/

and use the Google search box immediately under the title of the current edition.

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10) How Fast is Islam Growing in the USA?

Pretty fast. According to Pew Research, Muslims are growing…

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11) Finishing the Task in Laos Conference

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to help finish the task of taking the Good News to some unengaged tribe or village somewhere in the world? Now you can know. There are just a handful over 50 unengaged tribes left in all of Laos. On Feb. 26-27, you can meet, pray, brainstorm, dream, plan and even participate in mapping out a strategy and the action steps to reaching this last frontier. Never been to Laos? No problem. There will be sessions introducing it. Never shared Christ in Asia? No problems. Presenters will share that too. No idea where to begin? No problem there either. You’ll have a chance to bow in prayer side by side with those who have driven motorbikes throughout the entire country. To register, visit www.VisionLaos.com today. Find out how YOU can finish the task in this needy land.

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12) When Christmas Goes Wrong for Christians in Laos

What happens when a Lao believer decides to celebrate Christmas? Sometimes, things can go south.

http://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/celebration-12222017134957.html

(Thanks for the tip on this article, Justin.)

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13) We’re Grateful…

…to the anonymous Brigada participant who sent $250 this past week. Whoa. This starts our 2018 off with a bang — and $250, a gift to Jesus Christ through Brigada for the sake of unreached peoples worldwide. Thank you!!!

Want to partner with Brigada so that all may hear in order to hasten the coming of Jesus? Just click “Donate” at www.brigada.org, or mail a check payable to Team Expansion (Brigada), 13711 Willow Reed Drive, Louisville, KY 40299. Team Expansion is a 501(c)3 incorporation so, for USA citizens, your gift to Christ by writing a check to Team Expansion is tax-deductible. Thank you, in advance, for your partnership!

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14) The Last Bit: What in the World is 2414?

Have you heard about 24:14? It’s actually starting to make a pretty big splash. Basically, they want to reach the unreached through church planting movements with urgency by 2025. Yes, you heard it right. They’d like to finish COMPLETELY the goal of reaching the unreached by 2025. Yikes. My first comment to them was, “Don’t you want to allow just a tad more time?” Nahhh. Bold guys and gals, they are. Passionate. Urgent folks. Pretty much the entire current issue of Mission Frontiers is focused on the idea. No wonder. Sounds like something Ralph Winter would have promoted. Find the PDF version of the latest MF edition here in 10 different languages…

https://www.2414now.net/articles

with the English language PDF being here…

http://www.missionfrontiers.org/pdfs/40-1_MF_FullLoResIssue2.pdf

Or read the electronic, digital versions of the articles here…

http://www.missionfrontiers.org/issue/archive/are-you-in

As you’ll see, there are multiple ways to get involved in 2414. There are several different email responders one can use. We sent one as a test and a real human got back to us in less than 24 hours. In our case, we were asking whether or not we should be forming some kind of task force for the final 55 unengaged unreached people groups in Laos. This triggered an exchange of emails which resulting finally in a live online meeting with several 2414 leaders. This 2414 is the real deal. You can learn more at the 2414 website,…

https://www.2414now.net

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