Brigada Today
3 of March, 1995
News and Notes about Brigada, Your Gateway to Missions Networking!
Compiled by
DLucas@TeamExpansion.org
[Pass this issue to a friend! To subscribe, see instructions at end.]
In this issue....
NAVIGATION MAP
Two Brigada conferences -- the top level "Brigada" and
"Brigada-Albania-Durres" continued to expand with 26%+ growth this week,
bringing their conference size to 58 and 14 respectively. Others came
alive with first real activity. For
example, if you'd like to subscribe to The Global Prayer Digest Online
(which has come alive this week -- thanks to Elise at the US
Center!!!), the conference name is brigada-pubs-globalprayerdigest.
(Tack @xc.org onto the end of any conference name to get the conference
address.) So, e.g., to subscribe to The Global Prayer Digest, just
send email to
hub@xc.org with the message
subscribe brigada-pubs-globalprayerdigest
For more information on
this process, see "NEW CONFERENCES BRING NEW GROWING EDGES" below
OR check out the list here on our Web server: List of Current Brigada
Conferences
IDEA DEPARTMENT
Why not forward a copy of this update to a friend who
might be interested in Brigada! Also, you could start a special
subdirectory on your PC called c:\brigada and in it, start a file called
"BrigToda.doc" or something similar. Each week, when this message comes
in, just call up the file and add the current week's message onto the
end of BrigToda and you'll always have the latest information on Brigada
and know exactly where to find it! Want to start by calling in the
previous "Brigada Today" issues? They're archived in the Brigada file
area. (Send email to
hub@xc.org with the sole line,
filelist brigada
and in a few minutes, you'll receive in your 'in-box'
a list of all the files stored in this area. You can then send email
back to
hub@xc.org with the line,
get brigada brigada-today.950224
substituting in the name of the file that represents
the issue date you're looking for
OR check out the list here on our Web server: Issues of
Brigada Today
NEW CONFERENCES BRING NEW GROWING EDGES
During the past week, seven
new conferences were created, though as of this morning, we are still
waiting on CrossConnect to complete the associated "hub logistics".
(Note: Creating a new conference consists of two steps: [1] the set of
commands that designs the framework and [2] the code that allows the
conference to function on the hub. The first step is relatively easy.
The Brigada Coordinator performs those commands and it normally takes no
more than 30 minutes. The last step requires actual coding by
CrossConnect staff people and normally delays the 'birth' of the
conference by about 2 days. Under particularly heavy work loads however
[as in this past week, when CrossConnect staff people were involved in
helping launch a new server at MAF headquarters], the delay can be
longer.) We're hoping that the following conferences will be ready for
use by next Tuesday or Wednesday:
- brigada-colombia-bogota -- featuring updates and prayer requests from
field workers such as Mark Dempsey regarding new church planting in this
city of 8 million people where the number of evangelicals is below 2%.
Requested by field workers.
- brigada-ecuador-guayaquil -- where the number of evangelicals is,
again, below 2%. Requested by field workers.
- brigada-peoples-arab -- to begin general brainstorming and dialogue
regarding how to speed along appropriate care and concern to this, the
remaining largest block of unreached people. Requested by Bill Kelley
on behalf of many others.
- brigada-peoples-latam -- to provide a forum for discussing missions
resources and outreach ideas to the remaining nonChristians in Latin
America. Requested [repeatedly] by field workers.
- brigada-prayer-requests -- specifically for the posting of special
prayer requests. Note that this will allow the prayer-mobilizers
conference to focus on networking and mobilization ideas for
congregations and movements. Requested by Dave Butts.
- brigada-projects-brigada -- to provide a forum for Brigada volunteers
(conference "Moderators", "Reporters", "Consultants") to exchange ideas,
report problems, ask questions, and encourage one another. This will be
the "Op Center" for the Brigada network. Requested, among others, by
our CrossConnect staffer, Jonathan Marsden.
- brigada-projects-cells -- To allow those who are applying the cell
group church planting approach to dialogue and exchange ideas on a more
personal level than that allowed by other cell church mailing lists.
These new groups will bring the total number of Brigada conferences to
20 in all! Once these conferences are launched, you'll see them in the
list when you send email to
hub@xc.org with the following text in the
message body:
conferences
OR check out the list here on our Web server: List of Current Brigada
Conferences
In addition, if you're slated to be Moderator for one of these
conferences, you'll receive email confirming your 'subscription', along
with the standard "welcome message" for that new conference. So be
patient! CrossConnect will come through!
BRIGADA-ALBANIA-DURRES
This conference is set to come alive this
week, with input from Albania Field Coordinator, Eric Derry, fresh back
from crisscrossing Albania on a strategy/planning trip with on-site
personnel. You can write Eric at
EricDerry@xc.org
A SAMPLER OF BRIGADA NETWORKING
Having consultants like World
Vision's John Robb online in Brigada can multiply our resources
exponentially. As MARC's Unreached Peoples Researcher, John tries to
act as a catalyst for forming relationships that can be beneficial
across the board to many in God's kingdom. For example, this past week,
noting Bill Kelley's interest in Arabic peoples here on Brigada, John
sent a note to Bill and Doug Lucas about a certain George Livingston who
was trying to facilitate the formation of a network of churches that
could launch a project for Turkic people. We contacted George and found
him very eager to work together with the Brigada concept. His
organization, Global Consulting Group, is at work full-time to draw
attention to 10/40 Window opportunities and networking to reach them.
George is at Compuserve 73124,2120. Thanks John Robb!
ARLIEN, PORTRAIT OF A PRAYER WARRIOR
Out of the blue this past week,
we received a call from a Mrs. Arlien Spring. Turns out that she is the
Coordinator of the Mission Frontiers Vision Network. Several years ago,
she began making the 100-mile drive to the US Center to do volunteer
work there and has become a permanent part of the US Center staff.
Someone had faxed her a copy of the 'vision' paper on Brigada that we
circulated early on. Little did anyone know that she had been praying
for the development of Brigada ever since. Why did she call? She
wanted to know the name of Doug's wife and sons because she felt that he
would be attacked, along with those who were close to him, specifically
because of the potential that Brigada held for reaching unreached people
and cities! Right there on the phone, she started reading from Psalm
78, encouraging us to have "Faith, Obedience and Dependence on God".
She said that in the past, when God's people didn't trust Him to work
out the future, little would happen. But during the times that they
were fully dependent on him, amazing things took place. Her
encouragement was to fully depend on God -- then she broke right into
prayer for Brigada. Our sense was, with this lady praying for Brigada
like this, what might God do???!!! Thanks Arlien! [She's getting an
email connection specifically to keep in touch with Brigada's growth so
she can pray all the more effectively for the work of God around the
world!]
FILE OF THE WEEK
If you're in a meeting with someone and they happen
to mention, "Oh yes -- I've been meaning to get a copy of those 100
Gateway Cities [which are the target of prayer for the October '95
"Praying through the Window" prayer Campaign]. Are they available
online anywhere?" Look no further. Tell them to send email to
hub@xc.org with the following lines in the text typed into the body of
the message, exactly as they appear below (Compuserve users will need to
send to INTERNET:hub@xc.org, of course). The last line gets a help file
with more information:
subscribe brigada
get brigada 100-gateway-cities.txt
get brigada help-detailed
That's all there is to it. The list of 100 Gateway Cities will come
right into the email in-basket!
OR check out the list here on our Web server:
List of 100 Gateway Cities
NEXT WEEK -- A review of "Light the Window", the new video on the 100
Gateway Cities!
[Did someone forward this note to you and not give you instructions as
to how you can start receiving "Brigada Today"? Simple. Just look
above to the item, "FILE OF THE WEEK". Follow the instructions to get
the file and you're in business. You'll start receiving "Brigada Today"
automatically.]
Have a great week!
3 of March, 1995
