-
LTS New Zealand Report
December 28, 1999 - March 22,
2000
- by Dawn Gauslin
There was a solemn hush over the
group–adults
and children alike–as we
entered the gates of the Maori marae
(meeting
house). Once inside the
courtyard, young warriors approached,
faces
painted and muscles rippling in
the sun, as they swung their spears and
probed to inquire whether we had
come as friends or foes. They
placed
a leaf before Loren Cunningham, as a
symbol of this question. When he
bent
to pick it up, signifying our
commitment to friendship, the entire
atmosphere
changed, and the sound of
women's voices rang out, breaking the
silence
with the words of welcome:
"Haere mai!"
This was the start of the Leadership
Training
School (LTS), held in
Mangere, South Auckland, New
Zealand.
The 131 students, 40+ staff, and
scores of children had just received one
of the highest honors: being
welcomed onto the land of New Zealand by
its indigenous Polynesian people,
the Maoris.
The focus of this LTS, led by Darlene
Cunningham
(co-founder of Youth With
A Mission), was to help equip young YWAM
leaders–especially those from "the
liquid continent" comprised of the
islands
of the Pacific--to take greater
roles of responsibility and leadership
within
the Mission. Altogether, the
students and staff represented 54
countries
of the Pacific, Asia, Africa,
Europe, North and South America.
There
was a rich celebration of the
nations, as each person clustered
beneath
the flag of their land, which
lined the walls of the Samoan Church
where
the LTS met. They also
represented the future of YWAM: 85% were
"Gen-Xers," born between 1961 and
1981. This unique mixture of
cultures
and generations led to many diverse
expressions of worship, prayer and
celebration
over the three months of the LTS.
This LTS also experienced the change
of millenniums
together–bridging from
the 20th century into the 21st. On
December 31st, we brought our burdens,
disappointments and failures of the past
and laid them at the foot of a
huge cross, placed in the center of the
stage. There we partook of the
body and blood of Jesus and claimed the
power of the cross over our
futures. From the cross, each
person
walked forward to a banner, with
"2000" written in one-meter high
characters.
There, by faith, they wrote
on the banner the dreams and visions God
had placed within their hearts for
the future.
Some met the sunrise of the new
millennium
sitting atop nearby Mangere
Mountain, an important place of making
oaths
and covenants for the Moari
people. Others traveled eight
hours
south of Auckland to join with tens of
thousands of Christians for a
celebration
in Gisborne, the first city to
see the sun rise upon the new
millennium.
Still others joined Christian
and civic events in the Auckland region
to meet this new horizon with hope
and faith in God for the future.
This LTS experienced more events and
celebrations
than any other in the
past; but it also fulfilled it's primary
purpose: to give leadership
teaching from men and women of God which
could lead to personal and
corporate revelation and
transformation.
Loren Cunningham, Founder of
Youth With A Mission, reminded us of the
basic premises of Christianity and
gave global vision "with no
boundaries."
He also shared about the
importance of linking the European
"pioneer"
spirit and the African and
island "warrior" spirit together with
the
Asian "builder" to see the
kingdom of God established. This
triple-braided
cord was a theme which ran
throughout the LTS. (From the
outset,
there was also a strong sense that
Africans and islanders are to be linked
for the purposes of God to be
accomplished, and many ministry
relationships
have been forged for the
future!) Rod Wilson
presented
a powerful overview of Jesus, as He is
revealed throughout the Word. And
David Hamilton (U of N International
Associate Provost) encouraged us to ask
questions and think
implicationally. He also shared
unique
aspects and callings of the
University of the Nations. Dr.
Bruce
Thompson (International Dean, U of N
College of Counseling and Health Care)
spoke
on God's divine plumbline for
our lives, giving helps for dealing with
wounds in our own lives and the
lives of our co-workers. Wilson
Goeda
from South Africa then followed up
with a powerful message on
reconciliation
and forgiveness.
Darrow Miller, a Vice President of
Food For
the Hungry, spoke on having a
biblical Christian world view, and our
call
to disciple the nations. In
response to this teaching, students
identified
some of the negative world
views held within their cultural
backgrounds
and then prepared powerful
presentations of how God's glory can be
revealed through their nations.
Maureen Menard, Director of the
International
DTS Centre, and her team gave
the students vision and tools for
leading
DTSs and other training programs.
They identified the "heart" and core
curriculum
requirements of the DTS and
encouraged training leaders to nurture
the
expression of Jesus in their
students and help to extract their
potential.
Sarah Lanier shared on
personality and culture, as well as
group
process skills, and Joe Portale
(International Associate Dean, U of N
College
of Christian Ministries) and
David Hamilton shared about YWAM's
apostolic
call and revelational
pioneering.
The year 2000 marks the 40th
anniversary
of Youth With A Mission, therefore
every 10 days into the new year, the LTS
participated in "Decade
Celebrations" led by Frank Naea, our
next
president. Each one focused on
the words of the Lord and the
foundations
He built into YWAM during each
decade of our development. We
remembered
the 1960s on January 10th, the
70s on January 20th, etc. Friends
from far and near came by to help us
recall these events, including Ross and
Margaret Tooley, Enid Scratch, Ben
and Helen Applegate, Vic and Carolyn
Sundseth,
Winkie and Fae Pratney, Bob
and Simmone Dyer and others. These
were key times for the LTS students to
hear the history of the Mission and
receive
an impartation of our genetic
DNA from the founders, Loren and Darlene
Cunningham, and others.
Then, on February 9th, the atmosphere
was
charged with "electricity" as the
LTS and all the local YWAM staff crowded
into the Samoan Church on Freda
Place. Every seat was
filled.
It wasn't just excitement, but the electric
sight and sound waves of GENESIS, as
YWAM
Mangere New Zealand was about to
connect in a multi-link with YWAM
Norway,
Kona, South Africa, Latvia, Los
Angeles and Lausanne. YWAMers had
gathered in these seven locations 40
days into the new millennium to
celebrate
the past 40 years of YWAM's
history, and to fast and pray for 40
hours
for the future. This new wave
of runners that had gathered were as
young
as the first: 17, 18, 23, 25.
And some were even younger:
second-generation
YWAM kids who were 9, 10 and
11 were at the heart and prophetic
thrust
of what God said and did. But
even more exciting, this next wave was
not
made up of just North Americans
and Europeans. True to the vision
of the Mission from the start, this
wave was made up of young people from
every
continent of the world:
Africans, Asians, Latins, and people
from
the islands of the sea.
Jim Stier, YWAM's current President
who was
leading a large LTS in Norway,
and Frank Naea, YWAM's incoming
President,
who was here in New Zealand,
were key contributors to this GENESIS
event.
We also received a challenge
from Joy Dawson (in Los Angeles) to give
God our "Unwavering Obedience,"
and a report from David and Judy
Cunningham
on the progress on their new
film, "To End All Wars," which the LTS
had
previously prayed over.
Here in New Zealand, God had been
speaking
to the Gen-Xers from that outset
of the school that, just as the first 40
years of YWAM's history were
focused on reaching nations, the
ministry
focus of this next tidal-sized
wave will not only be reaching the
nations
and the people groups, but
especially the "mind molders"–discipling
the nations through the spheres of
society. God has given them this
vision
with a new clarity and conviction
and they are claiming these areans as
"theirs"!
As Loren shared in his
March letter to the global YWAM family,
"The way in which they prayed,
prophesied and embraced the inheritance
of the future was totally fresh:
intense, rich, wonderful, creative,
active,
loud, quiet, colorful,
multi-cultural, youthful, prophetic,
fun,
solemn and more and more and
more. There were spontaneous
expressions
in clay, dance, music, cardboard
constructions, drawings, poems and
drama.
One of the most powerful
elements of the whole event was the
‘agreement'
of generations, proclaiming
the future in this generation's form,
with
great joy and unity. It was a
multi-generational celebration of hope
for
seeing God's promises
fulfilled.... Words cannot
adequately
convey what we experienced together
via GENESIS in worship, a tangible sense
of the omni-presence of God's
Spirit at work among us simultaneously
in
these far-distant locations, and
the unified hope and understanding that
He gave for the future of Youth
With A Mission. What transpired
during
these 40 hours was of major
significance for the Mission as a whole
as we travailed in prayer for the
birth and release of peoples, nations
and
ministries on God's heart....
The resounding conclusions from these 40
hours of prayer is that God is
firmly on the Throne, and His dreams for
the future of the Misison are in
good hands!" (Attached are
some
of the headlines God spoke to us
regarding the future of YWAM.)
Following the GENESIS multi-link,
Cheryl
Harrison, Acting Director of YWAM
Latvia wrote: "Thank you for including
Latvia
in the 40 hours of prayer and
enabling us to be a part of
GENESIS...[this]
means a lot, because of the
history of this small nation.
Latvians
generally feel like they are not
important and are too small for anyone
to
take notice. When the Soviets
annexed them during WW II, they felt
neglected
and forgotten when no one
came to their rescue. Throughout
their
history [they were]...ruled by one
oppressive system after another. I
don't really know how to put it in
words, but our being able to be a part
of
GENESIS is significant and a real
honor. After years of being cut
off
from the rest of the world, and having
so many restrictions in the areas of
travel
and communication...it is just
awesome to be connected to the rest of
the
world in this way. I believe in
some way this is breaking a stronghold
that
has held back the destiny of
this nation."
Immediately following the 40 hours of
fasting
and prayer, students launched
into the LTS Project Workshop, a time of
focusing on how to fulfill the
visions God had put in their
hearts.
A qualified team led the workshop,
comprised of Howard Malmstadt (U of N
International
Provost), Christine
Colby (Director, U of N Community
Development
Centre), David Hamilton (U of
N International Associate Provost),
Linda
Connorton (U of N Kona Assistant
Provost) and Fiona Gifford
(International
Associate Dean, U of N College of
Communication). There was a sense
that God had ordained the sequence of
these two events–speaking new dreams for
the future through the 40 hours of
prayer, and then providing some
practical
steps for how to accomplish these
visions through the LTS Project Workshop.
Jim Stier then shared a vital and
timely
message on "Hope" via GENESIS from
Norway with the LTS and the Mangere
Campus.
Darlene Cunningham taught on
character qualifications for spiritual
leadership,
giving guidelines for
husband/wife ministry teams (and how to
find the right ministry partner!)
Since more than half of YWAM's
constituency
is made up of singles, Dawn
Gauslin then spoke on maximizing the
single
season, and challenged leaders
to look for ways to "do justly and love
mercy" in caring for their single
as well as married long-term
staff.
Darlene gave guidelines for how to
handle difficult leadership situations,
and also reminded us of the
Foundational Values of YWAM.
Winkie
Pratney offered some profound insight
into the fractal organization of YWAM:
that
we are a living organism that
should always look different on the
growing
edge, but always carry the same
genetic DNA at the core of every new
initiative.
He also shared on the
character and nature of the wonderful
God
we know and serve.
Loren Cunningham returned during the
final
week of the LTS to explain the
international structure of YWAM and give
practical principles regarding
financial integrity and the
appointment
of councils and boards. He and
David Hamilton taught on the biblical
basis
for women in ministry. And Tom
Bloomer (U of N International Associate
Provost) shared via GENESIS from
Lausanne on Transformational versus
Transactional
Leadership: our
leadership is to reflect the values of
our
God! Pedro Garcia, Director of
YWAM Bangladesh, took us through an
insightful
review of trends throughout
YWAM's history and challenged us to take
the hard places: "The success of
the future depends on how well we impart
godly beliefs and values into
future generations so that they can
truly
disciple Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist
and Animist countries."
In addition to all that took place
within
the classroom, LTSers were
ministering nearly every weekend,
sharing
at mission festivals, Samoan,
English, Maori, Korean and Indian
churches
and involved in evangelism
outreaches. Altogether, throughout
the three months of the school, they
ministered to more than 20,000 people,
saw
2,500+ commitments to missions
and scores of decisions to follow
Christ.
(See attached ministry report.)
They also made generous financial
investments:
the LTS spearheaded a
fundraiser that generated nearly
USD$25,000
towards the development of the
Mangere Campus; they gave USD$20,000 to
purchase equipment to launch
GENESIS in the Pacific Region; and they
gave USD$14,000 toward the film "To
End All Wars" in a spontaneous,
student-initiated
time of giving.
At the outset of the LTS, God spoke
to us
through the image of a tree: the
roots represent our belief system; the
trunk
represents our values; the
branches represent our policies and the
fruit, our programs. In order for
there to be healthy life and
reproduction,
the DNA must flow from the roots
into the fruits; if we cut off and
simply
try to replicate the fruits (or
programs), they will die. At the
end
of the LTS, God spoke to us through
the image of seeds. Each fruit
carries
within it the seeds of life and the
DNA for multiplication. The Family
of Ministries of YWAM International is
like an orchard; all carry the same DNA,
yet each tree and every fruit is
distinctly different.
As we come to the close of this LTS,
we recognize
that it is not an ending;
it is a beginning. New seeds have
been produced in the hearts and minds of
the students and staff which are now to
be planted, nurtured and
watered–and they will lead to a whole
new
crop of ministries–all carrying
the same life-flow and DNA of the
Mission.
The end of the LTS was as spectacular
as
the beginning. Students and staff
participated in a grand and glorious
University
of the Nations Graduation
ceremony, conferring degrees on six
individuals,
including three islanders.
We participated in the dedication of
three
babies, born to LTS students
and staff during the time of the
LTS–little
symbols of new life. We were
also privileged to add the blessing of
the
nations to the civil wedding
ceremony of two staff members, Lionel
Thompson,
a New Zealander, and Misha
McClung (with a traditional church
wedding
to follow with Misha's family in
the States). Lionel and Misha are
both second-generation YWAMers who
embody this generation's call to
disciple
the nations. And the capstone
event was the prayer and commissioning
of
the LTS students–who came from
the four corners of the globe–and who
are
returning "into all the world,
to preach the Gospel and disciple the
nations."
[End]
MINISTRY STATISTICS–LTS NEW ZEALAND
African, Polynesian, Korean, Indian
and mixed-culture
LTS teams had the
privilege of ministering through
preaching,
teaching, worship and creative
arts in Samoan, English, Maori, Korean
and
Indian churches nearly every
weekend of the school. They also
ministered
at GO-Festivals, the Parachute
Festival and other missions, music and
cultural
festivals. In addition,
many participated in the Americas Cup
evangelistic
outreach, as well as
other citywide rallies around the
Auckland
area.
Following are some of the churches
where
teams ministered. There were many
more than those listed:
Samoa United Churches, South Auckland (1,500 in attendance)
Pacific Islands Church, Glenndene (1,000 in attendance)
Pentecostal Church, New Lynn (1,000 in attendance)
Emmanuel Church combined Korean churches, Auckland (500 in attendance)
Samoan Church, Glenn Ennes (100 in attendance)
Assembly of God, North Shore (250 in attendance)
Indian Nazarene Church (200 in attendance)
Congregational Church, Mount Wellington (200 in attendance)
New Life Church, Henderson (700 in attendance)
Word of Life Church, Glenn Eden (100 in attendance)
Presbyterian Church, Papatoetoe (300 in attendance)
Emmanuel Church, Papatoetoe (300 in attendance)
Indian Life Center (100 in attendance)
Parachute Festival–30,000
participants.
6-7,000 visited
the YWAM booth. LTSers had
personal
conversations with about 600 regarding
missions.
In addition, Loren Cunningham spoke over 100 times during
his three months in New Zealand, all
across
the North and South Islands.
These numbers are not reflected in the
above
statistics.
U of N Workshops were made available
to YWAM
Staff and/or the public:
Darrow Miller "Discipling the Nations" Seminar
DTS Leaders' Workshop
LTS Project Workshop
Marriage Enrichment
Workshops/Relationship
Enrichment Workshops
Keith and Marilynn Hamilton, veteran
missionaries,
were able to offer
weekend workshops to 88 LTS students and
Mangere Campus staff:
4 Level I Marriage Enrichment Workshops, involving 29
couples
=
58 persons
2 Level I Relational Enrichment Workshops, involving 30 persons
Total who went through Level I Workshops: 88
2 Level II Marriage Enrichment (Basic Training) Workshops,
involving 12 couples
2 Level II Relational Enrichment Workshops, involving 15 persons
Total who went through Level II Workshop to be equipped as
trainers: 39 persons
Orientation to the University of the
Nations
The overall vision of the U of N was
presented
in corporate LTS sessions
from various perspectives by Loren
Cunningham,
Howard Malmstadt and David
Hamilton. Students had corporate
exposure
and opportunity for personal
interaction with:
Dr. Loren Cunningham, President, U of N
Dr. Howard Malmstadt, International Provost
David Hamilton, International Associate Provost and Assistant to
the President
Tom Bloomer, International Associate Provost (via GENESIS)
Dr. Bruce Thompson, International Dean, College of Counseling and
Health Care
Fiona Gifford, International Associate Dean, College of
Communication
Joe Portale, International Associate Dean, College of Christian
Ministries
Darlene Cunningham, Founding International Director, DTS Centre
Maureen Menard, International Director, DTS Centre
Christine Colby, International Director, Community Development
Centre
Linda Connorton, Assistant Provost, Kona Campus
Sharon Carrington, Pacific and Asia Regional Records Office
Financial generosity:
LTS students and staff were involved in
giving to several pioneer projects:
$20,000 USD offering given to purchase equipment and launch GENESIS
in the Pacific Region
$25,000 USD raised for development of Mangere Campus through
fundraiser
$14,000 USD given through spontaneous student-led
initiative toward production of David
Cunningham's
film "To End All Wars"
40 HOURS OF PRAYER:
WHAT GOD SPOKE ABOUT THE FUTURE OF YWAM
--The structure of YWAM may look different, but the foundation
stones are to remain; we must restore
the
godly foundations of YWAM and
repair any faulty foundations, in order
to support future expansion
--Room for familiar and unfamiliar ways
of reaching out
--A corporate embracing of the "mind
molders,"
into which God has sewn the
seeds for the future
--New openness to get into closed nations
--More freedom for creative and
indigenous
expressions of worship
--Battle for our inheritance; fight
shoulder-to-shoulder
against the enemy
--Purposeful mentoring, the older coming
alongside the younger, equipping
and releasing them
--The future will be more and more cross-generational and
multi-cultural, with men, women, old and
young honored and involved in God
speaking and moving among us; youth will
take more leadership and be more
prominent in the Mission, but all ages
will
play key roles
--The future will be the result of the
prayers
prayed in the past
--Technology will allow us as a decentralized Mission to be more
unified; GENESIS will allow us to
participate
in more diverse expressions
of group worship and assist us in
hearing
the voice of God globally
--We are to do God's will in ways never done before; new
expressions of creative prayer and
fasting
--God has given us the 87 nations where YWAM training does not yet
exist: we are to take spiritual
possession
of these lands (Jesus said to
disciple ALL nations - YWAM must take up
this challenge)
--God will give us strategic, connected
intercession for whole regions of
the globe
--Restoration of the Biblical Christian
mind: we need to know what we
believe and why
--Greater emphasis on the Muslim world
--We are to reach every sphere, every
people
--In crossing over the Jordan from the past to the future, the
dichotomy between the U of N and other
parts
of the YWAM Family of
Ministries will dissolve: the U of N
will
provide keys for frontier
missions and reaching the hard places
--The arts will take a prominent lead
--Gen-X, a "pay-the-price, go-for-it"
generation,
will reach their destiny!
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