 |  I recently came across a wonderful quote which expresses the essence of the DNA as well as anything I've seen. "Social engagement is not first of all to change society--that may happen but it is not the goal. Rather, it is to witness to the Lordship of Christ over all areas of public life and to love our neighbor as we struggle against dehumanizing idolatry." According to Goheen, our ultimate aim in Christian social engagement is, ironically, "not to change society" but to "witness to the Lordship of Christ over all areas of public life." The DNA exists to "equip the church to transform the world" as we say in our byline, yet I firmly agree with Goheen. Our ultimate goal is to see Christ glorified. At the center of the DNA is a set of seven core beliefs, and the first of these is "Jesus is King." When communities languish in poverty, or suffer from the destructive consequences of Satanic lies, Christ is not glorified, for He is not seen as the great Lord, redeemer, and healer that He is. As members of Christ's family, we are called to join him in blessing and discipling nations, that "your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations" (Ps. 67:2). DNA co-founder Bob Moffitt wrote a powerful paper on this which I commend to you. The paper is titled Our Target, God's Glory. Goheen goes on to say that we are to witness to Christ's Lordship over all areas of public life. It is not enough for us to acknowledge His Lordship over our personal lives, and over the church. Christ is Lord over every area of life, both public and private. He is Lord over the the nations and every aspect of cultural life, including the arts, business, education, and the family. These areas are often seen as "lower" or worldly. When this happens, God and His Word no longer provide the framework in which we act in these areas. Rather, we function within another framework, and by "another set of rules," whether materialistic or animistic. This is why we encourage Christians to not only be the church on Sunday, but also on Monday. According to Goheen, our goal is "love our neighbor as we struggle against dehumanizing idolatry." We agree, which is why we teach the "irreducible minimum" of the Great Commandment as "love your neighbor as yourself." It's important to get practical with this through Seed Projects. But Seed Projects are not enough. We must oppose "dehumanizing idolatry," which is why we emphasize the importance of Biblical truth, or the Biblical Worldview in cultural transformation. I hope you will be inspired and encouraged by the stories in this newsletter, accounts of Christians around the world who are actively embodying Goeheen's words in their daily lives. |
An Unlikely Journey Toward Transformation Steve Chia is a Consultant Civil Engineer in Jos, Nigeria where he also works for Youth Leadership Development Forum (YLDF) and chairs the Biblical National Transformation Committee. After serving in leadership in his local church for many years, Steve grew concerned about a trend in the churches he knew. During his search for answers, Steve found two DNA books: Against All Hope: Hope for Africa and Discipling Nations. He read both and started passing out copies to friends. Although Steve was invited to several Vision Conferences, he was unable to attend any. He first met DNA co-founders Darrow Miller and Bob Moffitt last March when he had the opportunity to attend a global forum in Pretoria. In this video, Steve shares his story about how the message of DNA changed his world, and what he is doing to spread that message in Nigeria. |
Mercy Ships Incorporates DNA Training An innovative ministry of wholistic service has embraced DNA training for its Africa volunteers. For the first time, Mercy Ships sent a volunteer crew to a four-week Worldview and Development training led by Chris Ampadu, West Africa representative for Samaritan Strategy Africa. "We are very excited about this program and we count ourselves as privileged to have this opportunity to serve Mercy Ships," Chris said. "Starting this year they want to send all their new African crew members through this Worldview and Development course." Go here for the rest of the story! |
A Call to Pray Dr. Eisuke Kanda is executive director of Friends with the Voiceless International (FVI), the national DNA organization in Japan. In this brief video, Dr. Kanda shares how Friends with the Voiceless was launched through a radical commitment to a neglected activity. |
 Shawn Carson Joins Phoenix Team The DNA international secretariat welcomes Shawn Carson as Discipleship/Training Program Manager. Shawn comes from Food for the Hungry where he served since 2005. After spending 20 years working with mission organizations and local churches to disciple/mentor young people in basic Christianity and missions, Shawn is joining DNA to help create a Training/Discipleship program. “It is our desire to create a step by step process for people wanting to be exposed to and grow in Biblical Worldview/Wholistic Ministry," Shawn writes. "I feel very honored to be a part of the DNA and am thrilled to see how God will help us create a program to get the teaching of DNA into the hands of many people around the world." Shawn and his wife, Amy, fostered three siblings from Afghanistan, Mansoor, Palwasha and Haroon, adopted Mahir (ethnically Somalian), and have one biological son, Matias. Now that the foster kids are out of the house, Amy fills her days homeschooling Mahir (5) and Matias (3). |
 Every child is a promise –
with a name,
a passion, a story,
and a place in His Story! In 2002, Elizabeth Youmans was challenged by an international NGO to create a principle-based curriculum for at-risk children around the world. The result: a curriculum dubbed “AMO” (acronym for ‘Feed My Lambs’ in the Romance languages). AMO® is an enriched children’s program that has been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, French, Romanian, Korean, and Burmese. Dr. Youmans wants to “break the cycle of ignorance and the poverty of ideas in the Church by teaching the knowledge and application of Biblical principles for education and self-government to transform the culture for Christ.” Her organization, Chyrsalis International, serves as the platform for her global effort to reform education “by laying teaching and learning solidly on the foundation of Christ and His Word.” A recent newsletter puts it like this: one of the goals of our AMO® Program is to nurture and disciple the whole child for Christ—spirit, mind, conscience, and imagination—with beauty, truth, and moral goodness for individual and cultural transformation. AMO is just one of a number of resources Chrysalis has to offer. DNA is happy to promote this fine partner organization working to "disciple leaders by Biblical principles, methods, and tools of Christian education and government for individual and cultural transformation." |
Another Post You Don't Want to Miss See the full post here. Go here to subscribe to Darrow Miller and Friends. |
Save the Date! The next Disciple Nations Alliance Global Forum is scheduled for the week of March 10-16, 2013. We encourage you to mark your calendar, and hope you can join us! The location has not been finalized, but it will be in Central/South America or the Caribbean. Possible locations include Brazil, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, or Trinidad and Tobago. Watch for further information in the months ahead. |
To subscribe to this newsletter, please set up a "My DNA" account here. The Disciple Nations Alliance is a global movement with a vision to help the church rise to her full potential as God’s principal agent in restoring, healing, and blessing broken nations. Your gift will help us realize this vision! Donate online or email us about becoming a monthly supporter. One of the most effective ways you can support the Disciple Nations Alliance is through a planned gift. |
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