Little Things That Make a Difference

As I attended the conference, one thing came out over and over - little things make a big difference. Here is what I mean. When you are talking about relationships with people all over the world, little things that seem insignificant can mean a lot, for good or for bad.

One example is the conference call. When you schedule a conference call with a group from around the world, who picks the time? Is the US office getting the most convinient time during business hours?

So many times we are in a hurry to get something done. In our haste we overlook things that show another culture that they are not valued. This happens between any two cultures but as we try to work together it keeps us from building trust.

Those silly little mistakes communicate more than hundreds of hours of meetings and thousands of airline miles logged. So how can we pay attention to the little things?

Mission Next Idea 3 - Expanding Networks

So much of missions work is done in networks. Those networks - Lausanne, WEA, etc - drive ideas, strategies, partnerships. Those networks have been established over time and in the models driven by Western mission agendas.

So how do these venerable networks bring in the new movements within the Great Commission? As people from the Majority World join these networks, how do they plug in? How do the Western leaders of these networks continue to share their valuable history and experience while not dampening new ideas that are coming out of very different contexts and cultures?

A key element of this is trust. Will Western Leaders trust new partner's ideas in the Majority World and lend their name/credibility to these new ideas. I think that if established leaders will point to new ideas and stand behind them, new ideas will be given life.

One of the keys in a transition of leadership between old and young / West and Majority World is that the established leaders will value the new even if it lessens their status. Would you be willing to sacrifice your status and importance to bless a new voice?