Working Together

Dr. David S. Lim

Can Asian Evangelical missionaries and mission leaders together with our international partners work cooperatively to get Asia effectively evangelized and disciple by 2020? By the mercies of God, we should at least try. The obvious biblical rationale is that this is the priority of God: God wants all peoples saved! (2 Pet. 3:9; 1 Tim. 2:3-5). Asia remains the least evangelized continent of the planet Earth.

We need to cooperate to maximize our limited resources. We need to admit that as Evangelicals, we function almost always individualistically. This can be a strength, because new initiatives can be born through missional obedience by a few committed to a common vision and mission. But on the other hand, it has evolved a lot of duplication, if not competition in the field and even in the sending centers across Asia. This has produced a lot of wasted energies and resources that are quite limited in supply. Besides in many religiously-sensitive parts of Asia, we can not afford to commit too many mistakes; one’s lapse may affect those who work in the nearby contexts.

Cooperation is sorely needed. We hope that when we come together in our Asia Mission Leaders Forum (AMLF) this year. We hope that missions executives, church leaders, “reflective practitioners,” and frontline missionaries will pray, consult, plan and work together as a convergence, as partners in the Gospel to reach Asia together for Christ. May God use AFMI and each of us to send out more effective harvesters into His desperately needy harvest-fields in Asia! See you in October 27-30, 2010!(AFMI)