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Omaha, NE // S17    Spring 2017
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Perspectives is a 16 week, 15 lesson, life and learning opportunity that will change the way you view the world around you. In it, you will have your eyes opened to the heart and purpose of God, and how you can take part in His work all over the world, from the urban streets of America to the rain forest and deserts of distant lands. 

A fantastic array of pastors, theologians, international missiologists and mobilizers will challenge and inspire you with their personal experiences that will open your eyes to see just how big God is and how much He desires that all might come to know Him. 

Whether you are single, married, a student, a homemaker, a professional or retired, Perspectives will bless and challenge your life and direction. 

Many local churches have partnered together to bring Perspectives to the Omaha area. 
Join people from all different local church communities for this amazing course!

Dates
January 16 - May 8, 2017

Time
Mondays from 6:30-9:30pm

Location
Christ Community Church
404 South 108 Ave
Omaha, NE 68154

Cost (all include Perspectives Reader and Study Guide, available in Spanish upon request)

To decide which level is right for you, click on Class Pricing "ticket" for information. Discounts are also available.

If you wish to take Perspectives for Grace University credit, please contact the Class Coordinator (below) prior to registering.

Check out this video for more information and exhortation!


Class Info

Date: Monday, January 16, 2017

Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

Location: Christ Community Church 404 South 108th Ave Omaha NE 68154

Contact:

 
    • Instructor


    • Lesson 1

      The Living God is a Missionary God

      God's purpose is three-fold: against evil—kingdom victory; for the nations—redemption and blessing; and for God—global glory in worship. God's purpose revealed in promise to Abraham. Exploring God's purpose for the nations: Blessing to the nations described.

    • Instructor

      Jon Hardin

      Frontiers, Highlands Ranch CO

      Dr. Jon Hardin is the National Communications Specialist for Frontiers. He has served in full-time missions work for over 25 years. Jon regularly speaks and teaches in churches, conferences, and various training events around the world--he has taught over 35,000 Perspectives students. Jon has a passion for seeing local churches and ordinary Christians step into strategic roles in the global missions enterprise. Jon is an ordained minister, holds a PhD from the VU University in Amsterdam, and did post-graduate studies at the International Baptist Theological Seminary in Prague. He is also a graduate of Denver Seminary. Jon is a CPA and prior to going into full-time ministry he worked for IBM Corporation for nine years.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, January 16, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 2

      The Story of His Glory

      Exploring God's purpose for Himself: How God has been steadily unfolding a plan throughout all nations and generations to bring about His greater glory, ultimately drawing to Himself the worship of all the peoples. Passion and prayer for God's glory.

    • Instructor

      Jim Capaldo

      Converge Heartland, Sioux Falls SD

      Jim Capaldo and his family spent 11 years serving in a pioneering church planting movement among the Tuvan tribe of Siberian Russia, a land where Shamanism and Buddhism have the prominent religions for centuries. Jim took a holistic approach to church planting that involved both the spiritual elements of evangelism and discipleship as well as addressing the the physical elements through community development and business as mission. Following his missionary career, Jim has served as as the Outreach and Teaching Pastors at ChangePoint Church in Anchorage, AK and Central Baptist Church in Sioux Falls, SD. He currently serves as the District Executive Minister of the Converge Heartland District (formerly known as Baptist General Conference) working to see a gospel-centered church bringing transformation to every Heartland community. The Converge Heartland District spans from ND to KS, Jim and his family are based in Sioux Falls, SD.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, January 23, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 3

      Your Kingdom Come

      Exploring God's purpose regarding evil: How God has accomplished a defeat of evil powers in order to open a season of history in which the nations can freely follow Christ. The kingdom of God as the destiny of all history. Christ's mission seeks a hindering of evil to bring about a sign of the coming peace of the kingdom of God. Our prayers contend with evil in order to bring about the transformation of society with Christ's kingdom in view.

    • Instructor

      Don Pahl

      Gardner KS

      EDUCATION: BA - Grace University, Omaha MDiv; DMin - Denver Seminary PASTOR (50 years): Saskatchewan; Ohio; Manitoba; Kansas; Nebraska FAMILY: Married to Rosella (45 years). We have two married sons and six grandchildren. Father of 2 sons; grandfather of 6. CURRENT: Semi retired.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, January 30, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 4

      Mandate for the Nations

      Jesus shows great strategic interest in Gentiles; wise strategic focus by initiating a global mission on a few disciples among the Hebrew people. The Great Commission and the ways of God's sending in relational power. Dealing with the ideas of pluralism (all religions the same) and universalism (all persons saved).

    • Instructor

      Tim Lubinus

      Baptist Convention of Iowa, Ames IA

      Tim Lubinus and his family served in South Korea for six years in student ministry with the International Mission Board and ten years as team leader for the IMB in Turkey. Then after serving on staff at Cornerstone Church in Ames, Iowa as the Global Ministry Director for eight years, Tim became the Executive Director for the Baptist Convention of Iowa in March, 2014. Darlene and Tim have four children.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, February 6, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 5

      Unleashing the Gospel

      The first followers of Jesus: obedient in costly, foundational ways. The climactic act of the book of Acts is the freeing of the gospel to be followed by Gentiles without Jewish traditions as a requirement. A foundational act of God which speaks to the situations where the gospel is hindered today. Strategic suffering and apostolic passion.

    • Instructor

      Mike D Schmidt

      Global Friends Omaha, Omaha NE

      Mike is the director of Operations for Global Friends Omaha, an evangelistic ministry reaching out to international students in Omaha. From 2012 to 2018 he served as an associate professor and director of the Intercultural Studies department at Grace University. Before coming to Grace, Mike served with his family in Niger for 18 years with SIM. His ministry experience includes church planting among different Muslim groups, overseeing food security ministries, giving leadership to a large mission hospital and discipling Nigerien church leaders. He did his undergraduate studies at Grace University, a ThM at Dallas Theological Seminary and a D. of Missiology at Biola University.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, February 13, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 6

      The Expansion of the Christian Movement

      The story of God's purpose continues relentlessly from Abraham's day until the present moment. An overview of the largest and the longest-running movement ever in history—the world Christian movement. How the gospel surged through the peoples and places of the world. Important insights for our own day.

    • Instructor

      Jim Settle

      Calvary Assembly of God, Alliance NE

      Jim Settle is a mission mobilizer whose passion is provoking others to risk serving the Lord beyond their comfort zone. Jim and wife Brook began missionary service in 1996 by leading teams to Mexico’s Baja Peninsula. They also traveled to Romania over a six year period encouraging and equipping leaders. Jim attended Bethany Bible College and Fuller Seminary. He currently pastors Calvary Assembly in Alliance, NE, and instructs for Perspectives.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, February 20, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 7

      Eras of Mission History

      The greatest explosion of growth ever has taken place in last 200 years in three "bursts" of activity. Why we could be in the final era of missions. The global harvest force comprised increasingly of non-Western missionaries.

    • Instructor

      Darrell Racey

      Christar, Lincoln NE

      Darrell and Ruth worked in the Middle East for 26 years, witnessing and gathering believers into fellowship groups. They now work with Arabic speaking refugees in Lincoln, NE, from Muslim, Yazidi, Christian and Sabean (followers of John the Baptist) backgrounds.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, February 27, 2017

      Time: 1:00 AM to 1:00 AM

    • Lesson 8

      Pioneers of the World Christian Movement

      Today we anchor the race by continuing what others have begun. It's a day of finishing. All the more reason to learn the wisdom and the heart of ordinary people who did extraordinary things in earlier generations. Reading the writings of William Carey and other leaders to discern what these people have left to us. Exploring the contribution of women in missions throughout the centuries.

    • Instructor

      Melissa Harris

      Pioneers, Columbus NE

      Born & partially raised overseas, Melissa’s love for crossing cultures never diminished. Her mission journey started with a short-term trip to Bosnia when the ethnic cleansing war had moved into Kosovo and shortly after that she took Perspectives for the first time in 1997. Over the next 12 years, she traveled to 36 different countries, working as a mobilizer and missionary. She’s been involved with church-planting in the Middle East and as a mobilizer for the former Soviet Bloc countries and Central Asia. She resigned from mission work for a time when she got married but has always been involved in the discipleship of God’s people toward outward kingdom work cross-culturally and mobilized churches for mission involvement. She took Perspectives a second time in 2015 and coordinated the first course in the Columbus, NE area in 2016. Her family is currently pursuing a move back to Central Asia/Middle East to work with an unreached people group.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, March 6, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 9

      The Task Remaining

      God's pressed His purpose forward until the present hour of amazing opportunity. Understanding the concept of "unreached peoples" to assess the remaining task. Recognizing the imbalance of mission resources shapes strategic priorities. The basic minimal missiological achievement in every people group opens the way for working with God against every kind of evil so that the gospel of the kingdom is declared and displayed with clarity and power. The need and opportunity of urban mission.

    • Instructor

      Lesson 9 Video Instruction

      Salt Lake City UT

      Bruce Koch (pictured) and Todd Ahrend

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, March 13, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 10

      How Shall They Hear?

      Culture and intercultural communication of the gospel. Communicating the gospel with relevance at the worldview level helps avoid syncretism (blending of cultural error with God?s truth) and also enables powerful movements of the gospel. Sensitive missionaries will look for ways that God has preserved or prepared people to hear the gospel, often finding redemptive analogies for God's truth.

    • Instructor

      Andre Houssney

      Horizons International, Boulder CO

      André was born in Beirut, Lebanon during that country's civil war between Muslims and Christians. The son of a Lebanese father and an American mother, André was raised with an understanding of the complexities of cross-cultural communication. His ministry teaching and training with Horizons International has taken him to over 40 countries including four years spent ministering in his native Lebanon. Andre and has three boys; Elias, Silas and Ezra. Andre is also working on agricultural and business projects to establish the viability of the national churches and their missions programs. These Fair Trade businesses like Zambeezi and The Zambian Soap Company create funds to support native missionaries to Muslim regions.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, March 20, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 11

      Building Bridges of Love

      The incarnation as a model of missionary humility. How missionaries can enter appropriate roles in order to form relationships of trust and respect to develop a sense of belonging, and thus to communicate with credibility for understanding. Explore the intricacy of identification in another culture. Explore the even greater complexity of presenting identity with integrity in a globalized, terrorized, pluralized world. Recognizing the dynamics of social structure in order to initiate growing movements of ongoing communication throughout the society.

    • Instructor

      Al Fadi

      CIRA International, Queen Creek AZ

      Brother Elijah *** Lessons taught: 4 & 11 *** * Missionary to Muslims * Islamist – Researcher, Writer, and Blogger * Co-Editor/Co-author/Translator * Guest Lecturer/Speaker on Islamic Studies & Apologetics * Adjunct Professor of Islamic Studies at numerous Bible colleges and Seminaries * Invited guest speaker and trainer at churches and mission agencies * Invited Guest Analyst on the topics of the Middle East & Radical Islam * Host of the faith talk radio show, "Let Us Reason. A Christian-Muslim Dialogue with Al Fadi" on KPXQ 1360 AM [ http://soundcloud.com/let-us-reason ] Elijah is a former Wahabbi Muslim from Saudi Arabia. He is a researcher, editor, writer, and translator for numerous ministries, including "Answering Islam", “Desiring God”, “The Gospel Coalition”, and “Jesus On Line”. Elijah is the founder & director of an outreach training & equipping Ministry (The Center for Islamic Research & Awareness – CIRA) which focuses on bringing awareness about Islam, building bridges with Muslims, training on outreach and evangelism to Muslims (i.e. immigrants, refugees, & international students), and to provide expert opinion and consultations on issues related to Muslim evangelism, Academic training, Political Islam, & Sharia Law. From 2008 – 2013, Elijah was also involved as a co-editor, co-author and contributor of "The Qur'an Dilemma" (English Book – Vol. 1) - a critical analysis book of the Qur'an. His responsibilities included overseeing and managing TheQuran.com blog & social media. Elijah holds a Masters in Engineering and an M.Div. in Biblical Communications.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, April 3, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 12

      Christian Community Development

      A survey of world need. Dynamic balance of evangelism and social action. Hope for significant transformation as a sign of Christ's Lordship by Christian community development. Exploring the charge that missionaries destroy instead of serve cultures. Healing the wounds of the world between the peoples.

    • Instructor

      John Brejda

      Lincoln NE

      Dr. John Brejda spent three years in Bangladesh, serving with Mennonite Central Committee as the Agricultural Training Program Coordinator. During his time in Bangladesh he made extensive travels to India and Nepal reviewing development projects in those countries. John has also served as a technical consult on an agricultural development project in Sudan. Currently John serves as a technical consultant with Operation Mobilization in their Global South Initiative project. John earned a M.S. and Ph.D. in Agronomy from the University of Nebraska.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, April 10, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 13

      The Spontaneous Multiplication of Churches

      Look beyond institutional features of churches to understand churches as dynamic movements of Christ Himself being followed. Such a view of churches as organic, living things opens up the practicality of seeing them multiply rapidly as movements and also flourish in society bearing the fruit of social transformation. Churches as counter-communities, acting as salt and light, bringing change to their cultures. How movements multiply by connecting with entire families and larger social structures.

    • Instructor

      Keith Swartley

      Encountering the World of Islam, Highlands Ranch CO

      Keith E. Swartley has had a heart for Muslims since first befriending them in the old town of Mombasa, Kenya in 1983. Since then Keith has enjoyed learning from and sharing with Muslims in Turkey, Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Nigeria, Republic of George, Ukraine and Moldova, the United Kingdom, and Philadelphia. Keith hopes to one day retire in the Muslim world, but, until then, he plans to continue motivating Christians to reverently and gently share the love of Christ with Muslims around the corner or across the globe. Keith and his wife Ethel, an English as a Second Language professional, have two daughters. In addition, their family has often included international students from Asia and Latin America whom they have hosted for up to two years. From 1993 until 2002, Keith was on staff with the U.S. Center for World Mission outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Keith worked with churches and universities training and leading short-term mission teams. One of Keith’s major projects since 1992 has been the development of Encountering the World of Islam, a 12 lesson sister course to Perspectives. After September 11, 2001, the course became his main ministry focus. Since 2007, Encountering the World of Islam has been a ministry of Pioneers. As a part of Keith’s ministry he often teaches in Encountering the World of Islam and Perspectives on the World Christian Movement courses.

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, April 17, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 14

      Pioneer Church Planting

      The hope of planting churches among unreached peoples. How the breakthrough of the gospel in an unreached people requires that the gospel be "de-Westernized". The difference of contextualizing the message, the messenger and the movement. Distinguish and appreciate people movements, church planting movements and insider movements.

    • Instructor

      Pam Arlund

      All Nations, Kansas City MO

      Pam is currently the Co-Editor of Perspectives 5th Edition and a member of All Nations. She lived in Central Asia for ten years, where she planted churches among three people groups, two of whom are Muslim. She earned an MA and PhD in Linguistics (i.e. Bible Translation) from the University of Texas at Arlington. She has published numerous books and articles in missions. She is most well known as “The Stick Figure Lady” for her popular book “Stick Figures Save the World.”

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, April 24, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Lesson 15

      World Christian Discipleship

      What it means to integrate life for Christ's global purpose as a "'World Christian". Into the great story for His glory: a Person-driven life as a way of. pursuing a purpose-driven life. The basic practices of world Christians: going, sending, welcoming and mobilizing. The essential disciplines of World Christian discipleship: community, giving, praying and learning. Simplifying your lifestyle as if in "war-time". Exploring the practical ways of pursuing God's purpose. Business and mission. Short-term mission. Welcoming international visitors. Wisdom in working with local churches and in partnership with Christians in different parts of the world.

    • Instructor

      Lincoln Murdoch

      Step Up To Life, Omaha NE

      Lincoln is the Executive Director of Step Up To Life which is a training and equiping ministry and one that distributes Step Up To Life literature around the world. Lincoln has served as a youth pastor, missions pastor, worship leader, unreached people group advocate, church planter, lead pastor and global networker. He has traveled to 30+ nations to serve, teach and encourage. He has particular experience in Central Asia. Lincoln is also an accomplished endurance athlete and a two-time national champion triathlete who had been ranked as high as 6th in the world in his age group. He is a 3x Ironman finisher including the Hawaiian Ironman Triathlon

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    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, May 1, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

    • Celebration

      CELEBRATION

      Celebration

    • Instructor

    • Class Info

      Date: Monday, May 8, 2017

      Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM

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