Lausanne Movement

• 2004 Forum Strategy Process Underway
• The Spread of the Gospel
• Political Unrest in Haiti Puts Some Short Term Missions on Hold
• Keep Informed on International Community Outreach
• Praise and Prayer

The 2004 Forum for World Evangelization is just six months away. Forum Invitations and Communications Chair Lisa Tucker Spalt reports, the 2004 Forum Strategy process is underway:
Invitation acceptances and registrations are being finalized by Issue Group (IG) leaders, as they engage in the strategy development process in preparation for the 2004 Forum. IG's are connecting an international network of strategic thinkers and reflective practitioners with a goal of developing an occasional paper that not only addresses key issues facing world evangelization but also provides strategic recommendations following the Forum. IG's also have access to an 11,000-article Knowledge Base to compliment their ministry experience.

IG COMMUNICATION
Over the next few months of strategy development, the IG's will employ a variety of communication methods and web-based tools to assist their interaction. The Reconciliation and Future Leadership Issue Groups have both gathered participant steering committees to launch the strategy development process while groups such as Reaching and Mobilizing the Diaspora have employed teleconferencing capabilities and web-based audio-conferences to facilitate their interaction.

Internet-based discussion forums will build a sequence of contributions toward the production of a final draft of the IG-specific document. The majority of the IG's are expected to facilitate discussion and document- sharing through email and egroups.

The international make-up of the IG's requires leaders to use a variety of communications means ranging from face-to-face meetings to web-based technical tools to facilitate communication. We're pleased to report that 21% of IG participants are from African countries, 22% from Asia, 6% from South America, 21% from Eastern and Western Europe and 30% from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States. Bridging cultural, geographic, technical and language barriers represents the greatest challenge to IG interaction, but also provides the greatest opportunity for learning, growing and experiencing more effective collaboration within the body of Christ. Whatever the means of communication or the make-up of the group, participation in an IG offers a marvelous opportunity for collaborative learning and building an understanding of the issue through a cross-section of contributors.

FORUM OPERATIONS
As the IG's engage in the critical task of strategy development, the 2004 Forum Planning Committee is finalizing operational details.

Forum Chair Dr. Roger Parrott met recently with the onsite operations team at Campus Crusade for Christ headquarters to finalize security protocol, volunteer coordination/recruitment and participant registration/support. Matthew Anderson, Deputy Chief of Staff, is directing a 13-member team from the Office of the President of Campus Crusade for Christ. This team will handle the critical operation needs of onsite registration as well as assisting with the office, the info booth, operational support for the IG's and working with the technical team on the plenary sessions. Matthew emphasizes that their goal "is to help remove as many of the details and distractions so that the participants are free to meet with the Lord and have Him work through them without hindrance."

Gary Barnes, Director of Forum Conference Operations, has been instrumental in hotel negotiations and diplomacy with the Thai church to host the Forum. Gary is overseeing the hotel registration process for all of the participants leading up to the Forum and will be focusing his attention on inviting volunteers from the Thai church to support the conference.

The Forum has also engaged the services of Crisis Consulting International to ensure the safety and security of all participants from arrival at the airport in Thailand to their departure following the conference.

Thank you for your prayers during the formative and invitation stages of the Forum. Your prayers are just as important during these final few critical months of preparation and strategizing by the IG's and Forum Operations team. Thank you in advance for your intercessory prayer support. Please see the Praise and Prayer requests below for specific requests.

The spread of the Gospel is making amazing progress. According to a new report, Christianity is growing in staggering fashion in Africa, Latin America and Asia.

Full Story from Religion Journal

Young people are hearing the Gospel in Haiti despite the political unrest that saw a change in leadership. However, the unrest that's hit that nation has caused problems for many ministries. Young Life's Chad Edwards says their Haiti work is partly dependant on outside short-term missions support. "We had planned a short term trip to Haiti to build our first Young Life Club room. That trip had to be canceled because of the political unrest. But, our leaders report that the Young Life work is continuing even in the midst of political turmoil."

Full Story from Mission Network News

ChristianityToday.com offers a resource channel for the international Christian and non-Christian communities. Find an extensive collection of multi-language resources, be informed with updated news and discover affiliates worldwide. Read World Reports from the Christianity Today magazine; find international news for Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania and South America. Multi-language resources include Bible Gateway, Evangelism Toolbox and Christian Answers web sites together with web sites in over 20 languages; a non-believer can also read "Who is Jesus?" in his native language.

Source: Internet for Christians ENewsletter and Gospelcom.net

By Glenda Weldon, Chair, Intercession Working Group

"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." Colossians 4:2-6

Our hearts resonate with Paul's constant desire to see an "open door" around the world to the message of God's wondrous love and salvation through Jesus Christ our Saviour and Lord. May God enable us to "proclaim it clearly" as we work together in every 2004 Forum Issue Group and seek His insight and creative wisdom to provide action steps that can be implemented by God's people everywhere.

PRAISE GOD

• For the continual evidence of God's provision as the necessary arrangements are being made for the 2004 Forum.
• For sponsors who have already given toward the scholarship fund for the Forum.
• That security plans for the Forum are in place.
• For the provision of a person in Thailand to assist with the visa approvals needed for some participants.
• For the 1400 participants who have registered for the Forum.

PLEASE PRAY

• For Roger Parrott, David and Robyn Claydon, Lisa Tucker Spalt and all who are giving leadership to the preparations for the 2004 Forum.
• For Paul Cedar, LCWE Executive Chair, and for all of the members of the LCWE Administrative Committee as they prayerfully consider a number of important matters leading up to the 2004 Forum and beyond.
• For the national chairs and National Lausanne Committees around the world.

FORUM ISSUE GROUPS

• Pray for the full provision of the scholarships needed for 400 participants.
• Pray also that the work that is being done will be mightily used by God in churches around the world in the task of world evangelisation.
• Pray for fruitful interaction by all participants around the discussion points raised in each group.

IG2 - The Uniqueness of Christ

• Pray that they can make more progress in beginning their online discussion forum in preparation for the Forum.

IG6 - Hidden and Unreached People

• Pray that the participants will begin to read and respond to the documents and weblinks etc. that have been posted in the IG portal.

IG 12 - Future Leadership

• Praise God for a wonderful time of planning for the Future Leadership Issue Group by the Task Force which met on 23- 25th Feb. in Cary, North Carolina (USA). Rick Sessoms facilitated the meeting. They felt that the Lord led them and were very encouraged by the time.
• Pray for Task Force members Doug Birdsall, Rick Sessoms, Paul Stanley, Jane Overstreet, Bobby Gupta, Stacey Rinehart, Esther Waruiru and John Ng for God to continue to lead them as they plan the sessions at the Forum.
• Ask God to be preparing the hearts of the planners and participants aligning them with His thoughts on leadership development for Kingdom purposes.

IG16 - Religious and non religious spirituality in the Post Modern World

• Pray for those who are writing discussion papers and case studies for the group.
• Pray also that people in the group would sense God's Spirit working among them and that He clearly speaks to and through the participants.
• Pray that God would move powerfully among the many persons in new religious movements that were previously involved in Christian churches and that God would use the working group to develop strategies to reach those people.

IG18 - Evangelism of Children

• Praise God for the formation of the group with 37 members including key leaders from across the globe. They have broken up this enormous area into nine key topics to be discussed and written up by nine working groups.
• Pray for the facilitators and members of these groups as they start to finalise the key questions involved - that they can manage a good mix of key thoughts and issues with practical solutions as they look to strengthen the evangelisation of over one-third of the world's population—children.

IG22 - Racial Reconciliation

• Pray for Celestin Musekura, for his involvement in peace building and in tribal, racial and religious reconciliation in Sudan.
• Pray for the Issue Group Leadership meeting in Kigali, Rwanda in August.

IG29 - Bioethics

• Praise God that they have five continents represented and their first 10,000 words of a draft document to start considering.
• Pray that they will be inspired toward practical outcomes and not just theoretical principles.

IG30 - Business as Mission

• Pray for funding needed to enable the Business-as- Mission track at the West Africa Regional Consultation to go ahead as planned.