“We need trained leaders,” is the heartfelt need shared by the church in Mongolia. Many Christians and leaders have no opportunity for training. They are often evangelists and church planters that travel from village to village to preach the Gospel and nurture the believers, even though they themselves have very little or no formal training.  Some of them travel over hazardous terrain. Some boldly minister in creative ways where persecution and harassment are never far away.  Others reach out in an environment hostile to Christianity.

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It was this need for trained leaders that caused Asian Outreach to establish the Great Commission Institute. A small core of experienced and qualified teachers participate in training church leaders, evangelists and church planters. Key areas of focus include:

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• Mobile training: going to where the people are

• A focus on those who do not have opportunities for formal training

• Short-term and intensive

• Practical know-how, rather than just academic theory

• Life-sharing concepts

• Each participant is helped to develop a personal ministry plan

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Great Commission Institute training has been running in Mongolia since 2001. Approximately 70% of Mongolia’s church leaders have attended one or more of the levels of training. The training is unique in that it is mobile; the trainers go to the provinces, rather than having the trainees leave their churches in order to attend.

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In Mongolia, Great Commission Institute training has four levels:

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• Level One – focuses on personal spiritual growth and discipleship

• Level Two – focuses on developing church leadership skills

• Level Three – focuses on developing more advanced church leadership skills

• Level Four – focuses on challenging the church to engage their communities effectively, addressing the social needs of their towns, to bring about effective and long-lasting societal change.

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RURAL CHURCH SUPPORT

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National workers are equipped to share the Good News in their home context—they know the language, culture and physical environment. Furthermore, national workers are the one who will ultimately remain in their homelands. When volunteers come to serve, they sometimes have to fulfill the role of “scaffolding” an important part of the process. Once a foundation has been established, the scaffolding is removed an setup elsewhere for another building. Our long term goal is always to train, launch and serve alongside national leaders.