By: Rev Jacob Bolton on January 31, 2019
“And one more thing,” proclaimed Carla, our native Nicaraguan chaperone for the week, “you might as well put your watches away while you are here. You’re used to American time, but while you’re with us, you will be on Nica time. Trust me, just roll with it.” It was my first time to Nicaragua, leading…
By: Dave Watermulder on January 31, 2019
“The sad truth is that the vast majority of managers who conduct business internationally have little understanding about how culture is impacting their work.”[1] In her book The Culture Map: Decoding How People Think, Lead, and Get Things Done Across Cultures, Erin Meyer seeks to better understand cultural differences and how those dynamics can undermine…
By: Mike on January 31, 2019
Erin Meyer’s The Culture Map is like Ralphie’s secret decoder pin in The Christmas Story because when you know how to decode multicultural messages you can learn how to live and lead better in cross-cultural contexts. I hope to leverage Meyer’s cultural how-to-field-guide and see if I can adapt some of her ideas and apply…
By: Harry Edwards on January 31, 2019
This is a tough one. One one hand we see a newness in celebrating diversity and on the other it appears that the emergence of culture was a form of punishment by God when he confused people’s languages at the Tower of Babel. In the United States celebrating significant cultural events (Cinco de Mayo, St.…
By: Rhonda Davis on January 31, 2019
At times, it seems like a minefield when navigating cultural nuances in my own American context, much less those present when working with global stakeholders. Erin Meyer’s The Culture Map is an excellent tool for anyone desiring to increase cross-cultural effectiveness. She sets out to help leaders address this challenge. Meyer provides an eight-part framework…
By: Dan Kreiss on January 30, 2019
There are an increasing number of books written for the purpose of developing a multi-cultural and diverse church. Erin Meyer’s book is not one of them but should still be mandatory reading for anyone interested in Christian leadership as the effects of globalization continue to be felt. Whether in business partnerships or faith communities multi-ethnic…
By: Chris Pritchett on January 30, 2019
Laden with accessible language, practical advice, and relatable stories, Erin Meyer’s Culture Map is a practical and insightful guidebook about leading and managing across cultures. The book is written from a Western perspective and with an effort toward humility in that regard. Culture Map is an accessible book, written for the popular audience. Meyer earns credibility…
By: Jennifer Williamson on January 30, 2019
“Not right. Not wrong. Just different.”[1] It was the mantra of our pre-field trainer, who was doing her best to prepare a bunch of new missionaries for life overseas. Pre-field training was great, but it was a little like trying to learn to swim while standing on dry ground. The principals were clear and well…
By: Wallace Kamau on January 28, 2019
Heraclitus is quoted as saying that the only thing that is constant is change[1]. John F Kennedy is also quoted as saying, “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future”[2]. While it is hard to keep up with every change, it…
By: John Muhanji on January 27, 2019
Polanyi has brought many issues of life’s concern which we are still facing today even after he addressed them in the mid-1900s. It disturbs me to find out that as far asthe 1780, when the significance of poverty was realized, the stage was set for the 19th century[1] to address this issue. I am confused…
By: Kyle Chalko on January 26, 2019
Donald Lewis’ book Global Evangelicalism: Theology History and Cultural in Regional Perspective advances the conversation about evangelicalism. Both the definition of evangelicalism and the global perspective of this ideology are a significant contribution to this topic beyond what Bebbington brings up in his 2015 Evangelicalism in Modern Britain. One of the most important aspects for…
By: Nancy VanderRoest on January 26, 2019
When my journey started into market place ministry (a Christian outreach into the secular world), I wanted to help the non-believers know more about Christ and his love. I believe that market place ministry is God’s strategic plan to reach our world for Jesus! What I found is that I needed to reach this world…
By: Tammy Dunahoo on January 25, 2019
There is an old arcade game, Pinball, in which the player stands at the machine and shoots a ball into the playing field which is filled with barriers, obstacle forces, and point giving opportunities. The idea is to keep the ball in play as long as possible while scoring the highest points achievable. This crude…
By: Mary Mims on January 25, 2019
One of the biggest stories of this week’s news was the story of the Covington Catholic High school MAGA wearing students and the Native American drummer. As a disclaimer, this blog is not about who is right and who is wrong or how the all the issues unfolded that created a media firestorm, but this…
By: Jason Turbeville on January 25, 2019
In some circles the descriptor Evangelical is a derogatory term. With churches like westboro baptist church (left in lowercase on purpose) calling themselves evangelicals and the rise of the alt right in defiance of the alt left and calling themselves evangelicals it is easy to see why. Global Evangelicalism: Theology, History and Culture in Regional Perspective…
By: Trisha Welstad on January 25, 2019
If you are looking for a fairly comprehensive perspective of the history of evangelicalism and how it has taken over much of the world, a great place to start is with Global Evangelicalism. Beginning with David Bebbington’s classic definition of an evangelical, including a focus on conversion, the Bible, activism, and the cross, Global Evangelicalism…
By: Shawn Hart on January 25, 2019
All Chevys may be automobiles, but that does not make all automobiles a Chevy. I remember a math teacher that once used this same reasoning for an equation; it was a frustrating day in Math when I learned that. Well, I must admit, this is probably the “Global Evangelism” book I have been waiting to…
By: Karen Rouggly on January 24, 2019
In 1982, John M. Perkins wrote With Justice for All: A Strategy for Community Development. In this seminal work which paved the way for Christian community development, Perkins reminds us that poverty is much more than just a lack of money but it is indeed a lack of options.[1] Perkins also reminded us that we…
By: Harry Fritzenschaft on January 24, 2019
To summarize the text, Polanyi writes this alleged classic about the industrialization of Europe leading to the collapse of civilization in the 19th century. The balance of powers failed to prevent a war between the great powers, the gold standard failed to maintain the world economies, the markets failed to self-regulate, and liberal states became…
By: Digby Wilkinson on January 24, 2019
“If all the economists were laid end to end, they’d never reach a conclusion.” George Bernard Shaw Until a few years ago, economics had as much interest to me as trainspotting; I knew such things happened and the people involved were interesting in their own way. Economists had a certain Harry Potteresque feel to them;…
