DMM-Shift happens
In DIsciple Making Movements, we are constantly diving back into the Word of God to discover how Jesus made disciples who made disciples.
In times of crisis we see incredible opportunities to shift mindsets of those who have yet to hear of Christ as their foundation for transformation no matter the crisis one faces.
So, how do we harness these potential paradigm shifting moments for the launch of cascading movements to Christ?
In July and August of 2018, our island experienced a wave of high level successive earthquakes. The result? Half of our island saw 80% pancaked structures with casualties.
How do you respond, as teams desiring to see these unreached peoples know and experience the reality of Jesus in the midst?
“God, what needs to be done for the sake of the launch of cascading movements to Christ in the midst of this present suffering?” Not, “God, what can we do?” Vision drift is easy to be carried into in the midst of large-scale disaster zones. End Vision brings clarity to keep one focused upon what needs to be done.
In American football, the team on the field who possesses the ball has one goal—get to the End Zone. That is it, pure and simple. The coach, the players, the backup players, all live to see that temporal end vision fulfilled. There are times when vision-drift occurs in that process: players are injured, the coach is not coaching well, the playbook falls into the hands of the opposing team, the weather can interfere, mental toughness can wane, physical strength can fail, interpersonal issues within the team can obscure unity, prima donnas can self-promote, the opposing crowd can infuriate. Teams can lose their way. Vision-drift happens.
Imagine how ridiculous it would be if one of the players decides to leave the field to go sit in the spectator seats. Imagine how crazy it would be if the coach takes his headphones off and decides he just wants to make things up as they go along. Crazy, it seems, far from reality in the missions’ world, it is not.
It is to the laser focused laborer who maintains their focus upon the main thing, who can keep their eyes focused upon the End Vision—the glory of God among those who have never had the Jesus option.
O, that the peoples of the earth would come to know and delight in the joy of being and making reproducing lovers of Jesus (disciples) who hear and obey, who choose to live in transformed ways. How will they hear? How will they know Jesus unless they have the privilege of hearing and obeying the only One worthy? As the waters cover the seas upon the earth, so shall the knowledge of the glory of the Lord be demonstrated and declared throughout the peoples of the earth. (Hab. 2:14 paraphrase)
In the book of Daniel, chapter 5, we see the origin of the idiom, "Handwriting on the wall." God was breaking through the godless norm in order to write the reality of His kingdom come ways.
We see in 2 Kings 6, the way in which Elisha had cultivated a listening heart to the Father's plans and ways. This patterned intimacy with God, procured the ability to rely on God in any situation. In other words, Elisha could see from the lense of God eternal for the opposition they faced in the temporal. Eyes to see the hand of God moving in the midst, are developed not by a fast-food, drive thru, cursory embrace of God and his Word.
As we and our local colleagues considered the vast expanse of the massive earthquake damage on our island, the Lord gave those markers of his purposes in the midst.
In one village, a women sat in front of her rubble next a remaining foundation of what yesterday was her home. She took one broken brick at a time and built a new mound of the same broken bricks. The affect? She still clung to the trust that that rubble would still be a worthy home.
When God allows whatever broken rubble in our lives to expose faulty foundations then that is where we can see wholehearted shifts to the worthiness of Christ alone.
When End vision is clearly to see Jesus make reproducing disciples who love, hear and obey Him, who are tethered to His unchanging Word, that is the beauty in the midst of even the most horrendous of ashes.
A DMM Mindset
The resources are in the harvest
Phase One
· Trauma Bell curve of response-
o Who survived?
o Who is injured and needs triage
o Who is injured in minor cases
o Shelter condition
o Temporary tents
o Food, water, toilet issues
o Shock, PTSD, grief, anger, numbness
o Ask God for eyes to see and heart to feel from His
o Listening prayer each morning (hugely vital in all phases)
o Ask God, “What needs to be done? Not what can we do?”
o Personal check in/checkup for trauma impact for workers
o Med volunteers who are DMM centric, and/or teachable in that
o Volunteers and team meet daily for prayer, co-ordination, casting End Vision of the launch of DMM
o Equip volunteers and team to be integral in the med relief with simple intake forms for ailments, then a question regarding person/persons feel trauma and want to talk through with someone who cares
o Trauma Debrief Questions utilized:
Trauma Debrief questions:
When looking for and/or finding potential Persons of Peace (POPs), gather 4-5 people in a group/household.
Ask the Lord to give you, a heart posture which reflects his in all that your team does in response to a given disaster.
Listen to the victims story with patience and lovingkindness.
Have each person share their responses as you invite them to respond to questions.
· Each person shares as they are able their responses to each question
· Listen with care and intent to show love in your listening
· Tears are a way of healing which are received, affirmed, and not closed off when one responds with tears. Listen well
Trauma Debrief Questions:
1. Describe what you experienced. Share as many details as you would like.
2. What were you thinking at the time of the most intense part of the crisis.
3. What were you feeling at the time of the most intense part of the crisis? Share how you felt during and immediately afterward in the initial days past.
How are you feeling presently?
4. When you close your eyes, what images keep flashing across your mind as the worst part of what you experienced? What is the worst and most difficult part to see healed in your experience.
5. What regrets might you be experiencing? Describe the “what-if’s” and/or the “if-only’s” which you are experiencing.
What emotions do you still experience related to the crisis?
6. How might you be able to be part of the solution for healing for you and your family?
7. What is your biggest concern moving forward from here?
8. Based upon their worldview: How did you see God help/comfort you during this time?
What needs to be done, not what can we do? Key biblical paradigm shifts:
1. Resources are in the harvest, come alongside those who are already advocates for their communities
2. Trauma stages in response (Loss acknowledgement process, threat still active/non-active, physical-emotional-mental-spiritual impact?)
3. Tarps for shelter, food and water, people still trapped, unaccounted for…Medical teams of Indonesians n pipelines we have trained in Disciple making movements and/or on mobile clinics
4. Looking for households of peace (persons of peace). Trauma debrief equipping with prayer at end of all. Use simple questions to draw out their experience of the trauma: What happened?Your experience? Loss? Grief? Others whom you love impacted? Feelings/Thoughts? What if's, If only's? Place of regret? How to heal? Art therapy trauma debrief for kids. Draw house, person, rain, tree. Train parent to do w their own families/community. Contacts filtering process
5. Spiritual statements-Shema deut 6:4-11
6. Personal story of God’s healing /comfort
7. Healing prayer
8. Oral story: Jesus calm in storm
9. Woman w issue of blood
10. C2C gospel in 3 minutes
11. Offer an oral story for further healing from the Bible; e.g., Kitab Suci
12. Listening Prayer in all
13. Prayer teams at base camp rotated going out with med/trauma teams
14. In phase 2, portable toilets, temporary homes, food relief
3,000+ contacts, 99% prayed with in Isa Almasih name
300 formed into Discovery Groups
Filtered to 16 house fellowships in 1st to 2nd generation
In one village, a women sat in front of her rubble next a remaining foundation of what yesterday was her home. She took one broken brick at a time and built a new mound of the same broken bricks. The affect? She still clung to the trust that that rubble would still be a worthy home.
When God allows whatever broken rubble in our lives to expose faulty foundations then that is where we can see wholehearted shifts to the worthiness of Christ alone.
When the End vision is to clearly see Jesus make reproducing disciples who love, hear and obey Him, who are tethered to His unchanging Word, that is the beauty in the midst of even the most horrendous of ashes.
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