International (MNN) — If you could learn how to better tell the Gospel story to vulnerable people, you would probably take the opportunity. There are always things in the faith that believers can be brushing up on and learning more about, especially when it comes to missions.
Every Child Ministries is giving you just such an opportunity in four different areas with their Institute of International Ministries. The ministry has just announced the topics for the Institute this year. ECM's Lorella Rouster gives a good overview:
"We have training on four topics coming up. One is anti-slavery activism, and that is to open your eyes to what modern-day slavery is all about–what it is, why it is, where it flourishes, how people are recruited, and mostly what you can do to fight back.
"The second topic is ‘become a master trainer for children's ministries.' This is for people who already minister to children and want to learn how to use their ministry skills and their experience internationally to train nationals in other countries. And because our organization focuses on Africa, that will of course be the emphasis.
"The third is preventing and fighting child trafficking. This will show how people become vulnerable, how families are duped by the child traffickers, and how we can fight back, especially emphasizing effective intervention.
"The fourth topic is evangelizing devotees of African traditional religion. This would be presenting the Gospel in ways that traditionalists can understand and can relate to."
Anti-slavery Activism 101 training will take place March 11-12, 2011, and the Master Trainer for International Children's Ministries program will take place March 25-26, 2011, both at the ECM headquarters in Indiana.
The trafficking prevention training and the training on ministering to African traditionalists, however, will both take place in Africa. Anti-trafficking training will occur both on June 20-21, 2011 and November 7-9, 2011 in Uganda and Ghana respectively. The training on evangelizing to African traditionalists will take place on November 9-10, 2011, also in Ghana.
All of the training sessions will be led by Lorella Rouster, with the help of some African staff on the last two. The programs being held in Ghana will include a witnessing element afterward in which participants take what they've learned and share the Gospel.
Anyone can apply to these training programs; the only major stipulation is that anyone wishing to join the Master Trainer class on children's ministry will need to have prior experience working in this realm. Each program costs $199. Learn more and get an application here.
Rouster says the best way to get any other questions answered is to contact her directly. "People can get more information, the details, and even an application by e-mailing me at [email protected]."
Mission Network News will be sure to keep you posted on these sessions as they take place. In the meantime, start praying. "Pray that we will connect with the right people who will profit from the training. Pray that God would keep away anyone who would want to disrupt the training," asks Rouster. As far as outreach following the Ghana training sessions goes, "[Pray] that there will be life-changing results, with people coming to know Christ."
