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Misplaced Priorities:

Misplaced Priorities:. The Strawberry Project - PNG Sherwood Lingenfelter, Professor of Anthropology Fuller Theological Seminary. Story: Strawberry Project PNG. Mission leader -- JT Strawberries in river Opportunity: land, climate, surplus berries

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Misplaced Priorities:

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  1. Misplaced Priorities: The Strawberry Project - PNG Sherwood Lingenfelter, Professor of Anthropology Fuller Theological Seminary

  2. Story: Strawberry Project PNG • Mission leader -- JT • Strawberries in river • Opportunity: land, climate, surplus berries • Goal: new income to community of believers • Training & Implementation

  3. Strawberry COOP Case Study • Project Outcome: • New income • Coop profit • Happy farmers • Issues: • Bad berry crisis • Marked boxes • Mistrust

  4. Strawberry COOP Case Study • Leadership? • JT managed, coop thrives for 2 yrs • Local manager, collapse in 3 mo • What were value conflicts? • Did JT lead or mislead?

  5. JT Values Honesty, integrity Work hard, well Earn profit for all Correct cheaters Are these people really “believers?” Village Values Loyalty to kin Work together Take what you need Overlook cheating Why are missionaries so hard to please? What were the value conflicts?

  6. JT leading or misleading? • Project management • excellent relationships with locals • observed, evaluated people and process • provided accountability for success • Local people’s response • adjusted to accountability • learned from success and failure

  7. JT leading or misleading? • Did JT use command/control leadership? OR • Did JT give the work of managing cheating back to the people? • Did JT lead or mislead?

  8. Local Default Culture Cheating is norm Shame is getting caught Self-interest has priority over COOP JT should solve! JT Default Culture Task-focus training Nothing on sin, default culture Project success has priority over clan loyalty JT must solve! Why did it fail?

  9. Task-focused Leadership (medical clinic, pharmacy, etc.) • “medical clinic social game” • Teach people role, skills, and rules • Leader/Manager directs routines • People follow direction • Crisis: “Default Culture” • Anxiety causes withdrawal into self • “new person in Christ” forgotten

  10. What alternatives do we have?

  11. Who are these farmers? • Converts or disciples? • “Benefits” gospel (escape hell)? or • Called by Jesus to “follow me”? • Cultural standards or God’s standards? • Clan or “covenant” community? • “Clan shame” or “gospel shame?” • What is JT’s challenge as leader?

  12. Focus? “Covenant Community” • New “identity” -- “God’s chosen people” • New command -- “love one another” • Calling -- “servants … diverse gifts” • Unity -- respect, honor, mutual concern • Submission to one another in Christ • “Do not judge, condemn, give false reports” • Be merciful, forgive, restore those who sin

  13. Covenant Community Medicine? • Goal: missional “kingdom” community • Means: “covenant-with-God medic game” • Training: beyond technical skills • Default play (sin) vs. Covenant play • Rehearsal of the options • Cost of default play (wages of sin) • Rewards for covenant play (righteous)

  14. Covenant Community Teams? • Is it possible? • Not without practice! • Covenant-w-God “leadership game” • “love one another” play • Changed values & routines for work • People following Jesus

  15. Covenant Community Teams • Will they “default”? • Of course! • Rom 11:32 - But … • Next generation sees a new thing! • Some follow Christ & change the world

  16. Matt. 7:24-27 Team Builder • “can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” Matt. 20:17-19 • Wise -- hears and puts into practice • Foolish -- hears and does NOT practice

  17. Reference: Sherwood G. Lingenfelter. Leading Cross-culturally. Baker Academic, 2008

  18. THE END

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