This is my senior year. I am ultimately called to be a career missionary, along with my beautiful wife. I have one problem with this. Along with my Intercultural Studies degree I am getting a degree in Christian Ministries. For this particular degree I am required to take a course in Church Leadership, given by a professor from the graduate program.

I have one major problem with this course. Especially knowing that I am going to be a missionary. Throughout this class we learn what we should watch for as a church is growing and the people are becoming more knowledgable and trying ot make ministries in the church stronger, while watching we have to keep people in line. Then we are required to look at all of these models of church minstry and even take a field trip to a church in Indy to observe the ministry and gather ideas about church leadership from this. The problem is all of this concentration on Church Leadership deals with America and American culture. I can't go to a different country throwing out ideas that work over here when I won't be over here.

The interesting part was when I brought this up with the professor in class. The answer that I received was "Sift Culture." No explanation at all from him, but that one phrase. If I knew what he meant it might help but once again I also realize that I can't always do as an instructor says especially if he doesn't understand that other cultures don't run like ours so we might not be able to "Sift" another culture. So I have to deal with this class and try to find something out of everything that is getting thrown at us, and figure out how I can take a principle from that to possibly use it elsewhere, outside the U.S.