During those trips I learned how to read a state road map. I still carry an old-school atlas with me in the car, just in case. But today we can open an app on our phones or on the car dashboard to provide us with cues for our travels. The GPS tells us when to exit, merge with traffic, and change lanes. It can provide alternate routes based on traffic, suggest the closest coffee shop, or exclaim “Recalculating route!” when you miss your turn.

But what’s the one thing necessary for a GPS system to function as it has been designed?

A Destination.

When it comes to raising disciples, we should set our eyes on the destination.

I believe that one of the reasons parents and caregivers struggle to disciple children well is that we haven’t clearly identified the destination for their discipleship and the directions that guide them toward that goal.

How would you describe a child who is entering adolescence as an active disciple? Would you choose words that describe their character: loving, joyful, obedient, self-controlled? Or would you choose words that describe behaviors: reads the Bible daily, asks spiritual questions, worships God? Perhaps you would choose words that describe their depth of knowledge and understanding about God and His Word.

Public and private education systems have stated objectives when it comes to student expectations. Lists of student learning outcomes articulate the goals for students at the conclusion of each grade level. Each child is unique and develops at their own rate, so there are those who will exceed the expectations and others who will struggle. But teachers begin each year knowing the goals and guiding students along the path toward achievement. Like a GPS, they might have to find alternate paths for some or help others get turned back around, but with a clear goal and markers on the way, teachers are able to guide their young disciples.

This is what we’ve been missing in our homes and churches — a discipleship map that states the goal for raising disciples and provides directions toward that goal.

In some Christian traditions, the goal for children has been a public confession of Christ; in others, submission through the act of baptism. In yet other traditions, it has been the completion of confirmation classes. Regardless of our tradition, our goal for raising disciples should be the same as the goal for all disciples: to become more and more like Christ every day.

For three years, Jesus taught the crowds, His enemies, and political leaders, but most often, He was teaching twelve ordinary men from various backgrounds, vocations, and experiences. When He chose the Twelve, He had a goal in mind. Jesus knew that at the conclusion of His earthly ministry He would redeem the world through His death, return to God the Father, and equip His followers with the Holy Spirit to disciple others. He needed a core group of leaders who would follow Him daily (Luke 9:23), continuing His mission “to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10) and to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19).

As Jesus prepared to leave the Twelve to continue His mission, He met with them to give them some final encouragements and admonitions. Woven through Jesus’ conversation in the upper room (John 13–17), we find descriptions of what it means to become like Christ:

• Follow His example (John 13:14-15),
• Love others (John 13:34),
• Believe in God (John 14:1),
• Keep God’s commands (John 14:15), and
• Remain in Christ (John 15:4).

These descriptors provide some direction toward the goal for all disciples.

With the destination of becoming like Christ as our goal, we can utilize childhood development information from the fields of social science, learning theory, and psychology to create a map for discipleship from infancy to adolescence.* Beginning at birth, there are seven directional discipleship markers — approximately one for every two years of life — that parallel the biological, cognitive, social, and moral development of children. Just as Jesus discipled the Twelve from spiritual infancy to spiritual maturity, we can use this map to raise disciples who become increasingly more like Christ.

Did you like this article? Check out Teresa Roberts’ full book, Raising Disciples, as well as the accompanying free 8-week parenting curriculum today!

Discipleship Tip:

When discipling someone, consider verbally setting discipleship goals. With a destination in mind, you can orchestrate milestones and implement accountability, making sure that you both are progressing forward in their discipleship journey.

*The faith research of James W. Fowler (Stages of Faith: The Psychology of Human Development and the Quest for Meaning, San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1981) and insights of spiritual development from John H. Westerhoff III (Will Our Children Have Faith?, 3rd. ed., Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse, 2012) has also informed this discipleship map.

Meet the Author

Teresa Roberts is Professor of Ministry and Christian Formation, Program Director of Children’s Ministry, and a vice president at Ozark Christian College. She is an expert in children’s spiritual formation training with more than 25 years of ministry experience.

Dr. Roberts holds a Master of Arts in Family and Youth Ministry, a Master of Divinity, and a Doctor of Ministry. She serves in children’s ministry at Carterville Christian Church where she attends with her husband and step-daughter. Learn more at discipleshipguides.com/.

The Holy Trinity is a mystery to me, with its three in oneness and its oneness in three, and I can just barely grasp the deep relational nature of how the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit touch and spin and dance off each other and with each other. Hospitality — that generous making room for others and giving and receiving to and from each other from our plenty and sometimes from our scarcity but we do it anyway — seems to flow out of that communal and relational and so generous nature of God. Being holy as God is holy, if we can believe it, catapults us into relationship with others and the practice of hospitality. Holiness is relational, and that is why hospitality fits holiness like a soft leather glove.

Hospitality involves the holy practice of gratitude.

All of this is made easier alongside the holy practice of gratitude. I have this place, this food, this book; please take it and enjoy it as well. We try to believe that everything we have comes from God, and so it is ours not to own but to share. So hospitality is almost always best when it is gratitude adjacent. However, the discipline of hospitality can happen also while you are still a grouchy, miserly mess. Disciplines take discipline. Not everything is easy or feels good right away, but that might mean it’s even more worth doing, and not less.

Hospitality invites humility.

In Luke 14:12-14, Jesus tells us how to throw a dinner party. Dinner parties are, after all, what most of us think of first when we think about hospitality: “‘When you put on a luncheon or a banquet,’ he said, ‘don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will invite you back, and that will be your only reward. Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. Then at the resurrection of the righteous, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you’” (NLT). In Luke 14:8-10, He even discusses seating plans: “When you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t sit in the seat of honor … Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table” (NLT).

Jesus knows me so well. He predicts my thirst for status. When we practice hospitality as part of our holiness, we will come face-to-face with our desire to invite first our friends, the people we especially like or those whom we want to especially like us, along with the relatives we are most comfortable with, and, of course, our rich neighbors. We might strut around like a peacock in our own dining room and not even realize we are doing it. Again, our intentional moves toward holiness will show us how far we have yet to travel. Our efforts to do good on the outside will show us how far we are from good on the inside, and in that gap, we learn again of our need for the forgiving, restoring love of God in our own lives and hearts, and how much we need him, even when we are serving macaroni to friends.

We learn something about ourselves — and therefore move deeper into our holiness journeys — when we pay attention to whom we want to welcome in and how we want to welcome them to our homes, our tables, and our lives.

Hospitality helps us to examine our hidden motivations.

As we consider ourselves, we can confess ourselves to God and ask for help. Why am I making this so fancy? we can ask our inner hostess, in an examination of motivation that is a daily part of pushing into our holiness. What is my motivation? Also, Why am I talking about myself so much? And why can’t I stop?

Our honest answers do not bring the dinner party, the coffee date, or the open house to a screeching halt, but instead provide us another opportunity to be honest with ourselves and with God — who is the ultimate and gracious host of heaven and earth now and the new earth that is to come. Make me holy in my hospitality, we might pray. Kill off my show-off-ness, we might ask. Help me listen more than I speak, as my blunt spouse has said I need to work on.

Help me not to be so needy, I can pray as I juice blood oranges for udon noodles with fried tofu and orange nam jim from my expensive hardcover Ottolenghi Flavour cookbook propped open on the counter. Perhaps for a little while, as part of our own healing, we will make a simple spaghetti Bolognese, accept the offer of our guest to bring store-bought garlic bread and let Maureen help with the cleanup, like she always wants to do. We will resist the temptation to offer our guests a tour of our new barbeque and satisfy our thirst for thanks by turning it outward to gratitude to God. What if whenever we yearn for someone to say, “Thank you, you are marvelous for all you have done,” we accept that as a prompt to whisper, “Thank You. You are marvelous for all You have done.”

Hospitality exercises a variety of spiritual disciplines.

Food is just one expression of hospitality. Conversation is another. When we practice holiness through hospitality, we create a space in which other pursuits of holiness can be practiced, such as listening well and not interrupting, putting others first, and offering encouragement and companionship to the person God has placed and we have invited in front of us. From the way Jesus tells us to invite, and the humility presumed in His recommended seating plan, we can assume that we don’t invite people to our table so we can imprison them to hear all and only about us. We don’t tie them to their chairs with our story and our glory.

We can stretch our ability to put others first, and to forgive.

We can practice patience, a fruit of the Spirit we get to work with, toward friends who arrive late (or even worse, early) and those who stay too long. We practice not biting off the heads of those with whom we disagree. If we do bite their heads off at dinner, we can practice the art of unequivocal apology. Apologizing is a holy act. I’m sorry are holy, healing words. Through hospitality’s gift of space opened up and time slowed down, we can “be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep,” which Paul told us to do only two verses after he reminded us to “always be eager to practice hospitality” in Romans 12:13-15.

Discipleship Tip:

Hospitality isn’t about impressing others — it’s about making space for them. This week, invite someone into your home or life with gratitude and humility, focusing on listening and encouraging rather than showcasing. Ask the Lord for opportunities to be hospitable in your community in order to point others to Jesus.

About the Author

Karen Stiller is a senior editor of Faith Today magazine and writes frequently for magazines like Reader’s Digest, Ekstasis, In Trust, and other publications across North America. Stiller is a three-time winner of the prestigious A.C. Forrest Memorial Award from the Canadian Church Press for excellence in socially conscious religious journalism. She is author of The Minister’s Wife (2020, Tyndale Momentum); co-author of Craft, Cost & Call (2019), Shifting Stats Shaking the Church (2015) and Going Missional (2010); editor of The Lord’s Prayer (2015) and coeditor of Evangelicals Around the World (2015). She lives in Ottawa and has a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Non-Fiction from University of King’s College, Dalhousie.

This article was originally published on the DiscipleMaker Blog by NavPress. You can also hear more from Karen Stiller through her book Holiness Here and NavPress’ new podcast, “Good Books, Big Questions,” where Karen hosts bold, loving, and sensible conversations about faith.

The glow of thousands of faces lights up the room, a powerful testament to the spread of the gospel from generation to generation. 

This was one of the many special moments from The Navigators 2023 National Staff Gathering.

Last month, over 1,300 Navigator staff came together in Irving, Texas. The theme of the weekend was Heartbeat: A Vital Movement of the Gospel, focusing on 2 Timothy 2:1-2: “Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others” (NIV).

The gathering held five plenary sessions, which were designed to inspire, uplift, and challenge staff attendees to continue the work to which they’ve been called. Staff heard insights on the Lord’s vision for grace, necessary aspects of prayer, and how He works through each and every one of us to reach the nations and spread His mission.  

Staff members also enjoyed times of fun and laughter, along with encouraging ministry stories from new and old friends, breakouts to equip and multiply disciplemakers, precious times of prayer and worship, and motivational messages from fellow Navigators and international leaders. 

For many, the National Staff Gathering was a reminder of why they became Navigators — to be a part of a vital movement of the gospel by connecting, resourcing, and developing everyday disciplemakers. 

Though this conference looked back over the past four years since our last National Staff Gathering, we also took time to look forward to the work that is ahead of us as a ministry. You can partner with us as we continue this work for years to come! 

Pray that the Lord works through The Navigators to reach the unreached and create new disciplemakers. Come alongside us to spread the gospel and disciple those in your circles, from family members to coworkers to neighbors and beyond.

Whether you serve on staff or through your everyday life, we are excited to see how the Lord moves through this next season of ministry!

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV).

Discipleship Tip:  

Pull out your phone and find a photo of someone you’re discipling or have discipled. Pray for that person and reach out to offer them encouragement.

That was “my lightbulb moment,” Karl says. He has intentionally discipled others ever since. 

Karl met Ken and Cheri Chi as a student at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Though he grew up in church, Karl learned how to have a relationship with Jesus through Ken and other believers in the Chinese Christian Fellowship, an offshoot of the Navigators Collegiate ministry. 

As Ken met with Karl for Life-to-Life^® discipleship, he helped him grow spiritually and sort through issues with school and relationships, sharing a biblical perspective on situations Karl faced. 

Eventually, along with that life-changing question, Ken pointed out that there were guys in the young adult ministry at their church who could benefit from Karl’s help. 

Karl started a Bible study group, and from there invited men to meet with him individually once a week to talk about what God was doing in their lives. “I saw it as an opportunity to share what I’d learned,” Karl recalls. 

Karl married Michelle, and they have continued to reach out to college students and young professionals. Although many attend church, they are now learning through Karl and Michelle how to have a personal relationship with God. The couple’s common background and natural rapport with other Asian Americans creates fruitful connections. 

When Ken is in town, Karl invites him to speak to growing believers, illustrating the idea of spiritual generations. Karl shares how Ken helped him grow, how others had helped Ken, and so on.

After years as a graphic designer, Karl now teaches at an after-school Chinese school founded by his mother. He stays in touch with men he has discipled over the years, but his emphasis has shifted to his students, kids in elementary school and junior high. 

Like his compassionate mother, Karl gets involved with kids whose families are struggling. Right now, that means bringing home three children of a single mom once a week to give her a break. “Michelle and I want to use our resources to bless people,” he says. Karl also invests in former students who come back to tutor at the school, many of whom have not received adequate guidance and support at home. 

Meanwhile, Ken and Cheri Chi continue their commitment to Karl and Michelle. “They’ve played a huge role in our marriage,” Karl says. The Wangs sometimes join the Chis in Colorado for a mini retreat. The relationship has evolved into a partnership of mutual encouragement and respect. 

Ken’s admiration for Karl and his ability to relate to Asian Americans in southern California is clear. 

“He loves the ‘pond’ God has placed him in. He can ‘swim’ from one place to another, he knows where the danger spots are. He gets it. Young people trust him.” 

And, given the Asian culture’s emphasis on food, Ken reveals another secret to Karl’s influence: “He knows where the good restaurants are!”

What We Learn From Asian Believers About the Gospel

Ken Chi, Asian American Network co-director, outlines four biblical principles embedded in Asian culture that can enrich the Western church: 

• The importance of sharing life together over meals (Luke 22:8-15, John 21:9-13, Acts 2:42) 
• Spreading the gospel through immediate and extended family connections (Acts 16:27-33) 
• Honoring the blessing of one’s parents (Exodus 20:12) 
• The fullness of the gospel through the lens of honor and shame (Philippians 3:3-9)

Of the latter, Ken explains, “If we only present the gospel from the Western perspective of innocence and guilt, we miss its full glory and beauty.” The gospel also offers freedom from the shame that can be linked to performance, and the incredible glory of being restored.

For more on Karl and Michelle and their ministry, see the video below:

Discipleship Tip:

Thank someone who spiritually invested in you. Think of one thing you learned from them you can share with someone today.

However, these in-person gatherings quickly changed to online Zoom gatherings during COVID-19. This allowed more women from different parts of the city to join the conversation, like Manika Karnick and Natalie Rustad, and they’ve continued online. 

“I think the aspect of community and belonging would matter regardless of where you grew up,” Jane says, “but often we may be the only person of color. That has shaped us, and it’s good to connect with people who understand that.” 

“I mentioned to [Jane] how isolated I felt within the Asian American community as a Chinese adoptee,” Natalie says. “This unique community is one I had never been a part of before.” 

Creating an Honest and Caring Small Group 

During the Bible study, the group discusses and processes anything and everything from life transitions to things happening in the world that impact them personally.

“We each bring our unique stories,” Christine says “and when there are hate crimes toward Asian Americans, we can grieve and lament together. This is a place where I can bring my heart and feel OK to share it fully.”

Most of these women are working in their careers. Christine works as a pediatric nurse, Keshia as an engineer, and Manika in marketing and sales, with Natalie planning to pursue dental school. 

“Something beautiful about a Christian community is God showing up through the people around you,” Manika says. “I want other Asian American women to know God does understand you and He does see you, even if it doesn’t always feel like that. It’s true!”

Whether or not they grew up among other Asian Americans, these young women appreciate their sisterhood and how they grow spiritually together. Jane describes it as an authentic community around encouragement and how to grow in Christ through all seasons of life.

“I grew up in a Chinese church, so I had an Asian American community,” Keshia says. “But I think this group is special because we get to talk about some of the more serious things and how it affects our faith.”

Pray for our brothers and sisters in the Asian American community for safety and for the love of Christ to flourish.  

Are you looking to join an Asian American community of faith? Learn more about our Asian American Network on Facebook at facebook.com/asamnetworkofthenavs.

Discipleship Tip:  Are you a part of a small group? Starting a small group for community doesn’t have to officially happen through a specific ministry or church. You can grab a few friends and intentionally meet together whether in person or online for encouragement, prayer, Bible study, and closely following Jesus.

The Compton Summer Intensive (CSi) was led by Armando Madrid (Navigators Church Ministries) and Alicia Garcia (Navigators Collegiate), in partnership with the Navigators of Los Angeles City Team and local Navigator ministries within the city.

Each CSi team member gave up part of their summer to serve at the Compton Navigators I:58 ministry hub out of a desire to deepen their hearts for urban outreach. Each CSi participant trained in Life-to-Life^® discipleship, learned and taught everyday life and job skills, and mentored kids in camp and internship settings throughout the city. They lived locally, serving churches and faith-based non-profits in the heart of Compton.

“Getting to work in partnership with Navigators from our other local ministries was a highlight for us,” says Susan Combs (I:58), who led the service project portion of the program with her husband, Bob. “We all have so much we are focusing on in our local ministry context. It was meaningful to me to get to know the other Navigators and be united in a common goal.”

Navigators Los Angeles City Director Carl Camp served on the CSi planning team.

“It was great to see Navigators from all our ministries in the Los Angeles area work together to plan CSi,” Carl says.

This program was particularly unique in that 13 people in the group were ethnic minorities, and many were from urban areas similar to Compton.

“This is the third summer we have run our internship for mentoring high-schoolers, and having the CSi participants this year was a highpoint,” Susan says. “Although we have ongoing relationships with the high schoolers, our staff are all middle-aged or older, and five out of six of us are white. The high schoolers are African American, Latino, and Samoan, growing up in Compton. We will never be able to relate fully to their challenges and struggles. The CSi team was able to speak into the students’ lives and encourage them in their faith in ways we never could.”

CSi also made a powerful impact at a summer camp they helped lead. When volunteers fell through at the last minute, the CSi team stepped in to run the program for 96 kids.

The way God provided for each person to attend CSi was also a profound answer to prayer.

“All of the participants fundraised through a group funding project,” co-director Armando Madrid says. “The only thing we asked was that each person try to invite 50 people to support the project, not necessarily the individual. As a group we raised about $13,000—about a third of our budget. Our budget also included a stipend paid to them at the end of the program. It was a great statement of value to the team.”

“We had to learn from one another and see God come through,” co-director Alicia Garcia says. “One of the most exciting things has been seeing some of the guys who joined us from other cities grow a heart for discipleship. All of us came together to serve and grow with the gospel as our guide. We entered as strangers, and because of Christ and shared experiences, came out of the summer as family.”

As our nation celebrates Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month this May, many in The Navigators are more excited than ever to see how God is burdening the Church with a heart for diversity.

The Navigators Asian American Network Director James Kang is thrilled to see Navs leadership putting more focus on embracing and engaging the changing cultural fabric of America.

“This an exciting time because U.S. Navigators leaders are willing to prioritize the importance of fostering ethnic diversity in our work,” James says. “They’re listening to the ethnic networks. They’re giving us a lot of freedom to really make a place in The Navs for all cultures, including Asian Americans, to thrive.”
That means taking a few intentional steps back in order to make effective steps forward.

“One of the perceptions Asian Americans have of The U.S. Navigators is that we are very individualistic,” James says. “Asian Americans are culturally more group-oriented. We’re trying to bring group and community orientation to The Navs, where Asian Americans will feel at home. We want to encourage more Asian Americans to get involved in Navigator ministry.”
Another key is cultural relevance in leader development and discipleship.

“The way leaders are defined often reflects more of the dominant culture,” James says. “We need to learn how to restructure leader development to be more inclusive of leaders from minority groups with culturally different leadership styles. Asian Americans, for example, tend to solve problems and conflict differently, and to be more community-centered in their thinking. We also need to develop Bible studies and other discipleship materials that are more applicable to diverse cultures.”
These diverse cultures exist even within the Asian American community.

“There are Chinese Americans, Filipino Americans, Korean Americans, Japanese Americans, Cambodian Americans, and many more,” James says. “They all represent vastly different cultural backgrounds and history. And in America, we have had two distinct, major waves of Asian American immigration—those who came four to five generations ago, and new immigrants from the 1960s-1990s and their children.”

Cultural openness and genuine engagement with these unique people groups is vital to our hearts as Christ-followers, and to our relevance in the world as His representatives.

“As Asian Americans, many of us see ourselves as a cross-cultural bridge,” James says. “We see The Navigators as a place we can further the Gospel, here and abroad. We are hopeful because The Navigators are extending their arms out to us to partner together for His Kingdom.”

Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month 101:
Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month is a celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. Though the Asian-Pacific American culture has been honored in some official form since 1977, it wasn’t until 1992 that the official designation of May as Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month was signed into law. (asianpacificheritage.gov/about.html)

Tom and Dana launched the ministry for The Navigators in 1989. “It started slowly, like the mustard seed Jesus talked about,” Tom says. “That little seed was planted in 1976, when Dana and I started working with Asian Americans in Los Angeles. By 1989, we were asked us to develop the ministry nationally.”

The ministry now has 16 Navigator staff, 171 active volunteers in the United States, and 283 active volunteers in Asia. That core group is reaching out to the 18.5 million Asian Americans residing in the United States, and roughly 4.5 billion people of Asian descent scattered throughout the world. And Tom says this harvest field is ripe for spiritual revival.

“God’s Spirit is moving and bringing people of Asian descent to Himself like never before in history,” Tom says. “It’s happening now! And we are experiencing it.”

The Asian American community presents lots of opportunity. “These are people,” says Tom, “who value families and relational networks. Those are very desirable characteristics when you’re goal is to disciple the nations.”

Tom and Dana, however, aren’t working alone.

“Ten years ago, I discovered there were around 15,000 immigrants from a certain unreached Asian people group living in the United States,” Tom says. “God gave me a deep burden for prayer—that He would raise up culturally-relevant laborers to work with this group.” So Tom began to pray.

“This year, God brought a Mongolian student to study here in the U.S. and we became friends. This student is now befriending a community of people from the unreached group I’d been praying for.” Tom says this is one big way God is reaching the nations from here within the United States. “Often, He moves us to pray, and then He uses laborers from outside our nation to reach the people groups living here.”

“God is blessing our focus on prayer,” Tom says. “Many family members within our network have been reached, but it’s not simple or easy. We are interacting with Asian American families who have followed other religious traditions for centuries. We really have to pay attention to cultural context as we relate. We’re constantly on a learning curve when it comes to advancing the Good News of Jesus and His Kingdom in a culturally relevant, but biblical way.”

The good news is that they don’t have to do it alone. They may plant the seed, but others water it, and God makes it grow!

Learn more about Navigators International Student Ministry.

by Lorae Kinseth, Communications Department Writer/Editor

May 1, 2014—When Tom and Dana Steers launched the Asian American Ministries of The Navigators in 1989, Tom knew their launching pad would always be prayer.

“It started slowly, like the mustard seed Jesus talked about,” Tom says. “That little seed was planted in 1976, when Dana and I started working with Asian Americans in Los Angeles. By 1989, then U.S. Director Terry Taylor asked us to develop the ministry nationally. It was birthed through prayer and continues to have prayer as its focus. We labor in prayer often and with intensity.”

God is answering.

“God has blessed us into being a movement of the Gospel,” Tom says.

The Asian American Movement of The Navigators now has 16 staff, 171 active laborers in the United States, and 283 active laborers in Asia.

With 18.5 million Asian Americans in the States, and about 4.5 billion people of Asian descent in the world, Tom says this harvest field is ripe for spiritual revival.

“God’s Spirit is moving and bringing people of Asian descent to Himself like never before in history,” Tom says. “It’s happening now! And we are experiencing it.”

Ministering in the Asian American community is full of opportunity for The Navigators—people who value families and relational networks in discipling the nations, Tom says.

“God has led us to focus on this core Navigator value in our work with Asian-Americans,” Tom says. “God is blessing this focus. Many family members of our network have been reached. But it’s not simple or easy. We are dealing with families who have been following other religious traditions for centuries. This means we are constantly on a learning curve of how to advance the Good News of Jesus and His Kingdom. We’re paying attention to cultural context.”

God’s Purpose in the Power of Prayer

God is always working behind the scenes, moved by our prayers, sovereign in His methods. A recent example of this sovereign impact in the AAM is one of Tom’s favorite stories to tell.

“Ten years ago, I discovered there were around 15,000 immigrants from a certain unreached Asian people group living in the United States,” Tom says. “God gave me a deep burden for prayer—that He would raise up culturally-relevant laborers to work with this group.”

Tom needed only pray and watch God move.
“This year, God brought a Mongolian student to study here, and he became my friend. This student is now befriending a community of people from the unreached group I’d been praying for. This is a keen clue in how God is reaching the nations in the United States—often, He moves us to pray, and uses laborers from outside our nation to reach people groups living here.”

As The Navigators and the Asian American Movement celebrate this May’s Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month, we take time to honor our Asian-Pacific American brothers and sisters, and to pray for God’s continued movement among people of Asian descent worldwide.

“This month is a blessing,” Tom says. “It blesses and dignifies people who came to America to better their lives, who make enormous contributions, and who make our nation stronger. It’s also a reminder of our Navigator Calling to labor and disciple among the lost of every tribe and tongue.”

Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month 101:

Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month is a celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. Though the Asian-Pacific American culture has been honored in some official form since 1977, it wasn’t until 1992 that the official designation of May as Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month was signed into law. (asianpacificheritage.gov/about.html)