The Power of Collaboration: Insights from Global Leaders

In this special episode of the Lausanne Movement Podcast, we explore collaborative action in global mission. Through highlights from previous interviews with key leaders, we uncover the transformative impact of working together for the Great Commission.

Featured Voices:

  • Jurie Kriel emphasizes the church’s unmatched potential when united in mission, sharing his vision for synergy to complete the Great Commission.
  • Jiyoung Yoo reflects on the challenges and rewards of collaboration, showing how God orchestrates beautiful outcomes when we work together.
  • Mac Pier discusses effective strategies for collaboration, avoiding duplication, and fostering trust through shared vision and prayer.
  • Gina Zurlo speaks on the Global South’s growing role in Christianity and the importance of unity amid regional tensions.
  • Ron Anderson urges leaders to move beyond understanding collaboration to putting it into consistent practice.
  • Eiko Takamizawa identifies critical gaps and opportunities for collaborative breakthroughs in fulfilling the Great Commission.
  • Dave Raley draws lessons from history, highlighting the power of collaborative innovation in movements like the Reformation.
  • Ted Esler and Ed Stetzer discuss the importance of cooperation in tackling complex global mission challenges.
  • Tom Lin, Guna Raman, and Ramez Atallah share practical insights on building trust, partnerships, and the importance of unity in mission.
  • Leighton Ford reflects on Billy Graham’s vision for leaders to unite in prayer and action, sparking the Lausanne Movement.

Key Takeaways:

  • Collaboration Accelerates Mission: Unified efforts reduce duplication and increase global impact.
  • Trust and Relationships: Effective collaboration is built on trust and shared vision.
  • Global Perspective: The future of global mission depends on greater collaboration, especially across the Global South and North.

We’d love your feedback to help us to improve this podcast. Thank you!

Guests in This Episode

Jurie Kriel

On a local level, Jurie and his wife Karin are part of the pastoral leadership of Shoreline Church in Austin, Texas (US). Internationally, Jurie leads NXT Move, an organization dedicated to gathering business and church leaders to turn around the negative trajectory of Christianity in the next generation.

Jiyoung Yoo

Jiyoung Yoo currently lives in South Korea where she is the operator and manager of a Christian publishing company, With Jesus Press. She also serves With Jesus Ministry, where she helps empower Christians to grow in their personal relationship with Jesus Christ. She is currently serving as the co-leader of the Nehemiah Mobilization Team for the Lausanne 4 process and gathering, and is also the secretary for Korea's Lausanne Younger Leaders Generation.

Jiyoung worked as a journalist for several TV stations in both the US and Korea after studying electronic media at Cedarville University in Cedarville, Ohio. Her connection with Lausanne began through attending the Younger Leaders Gathering in 2016. She went on to serve as the co-chair of the 2019 East Asia YLG.

Mac Pier

Mac Pier is the founder of Movement.org. He helped to birth the Concerts of Prayer Movement in 1988 in New York City. He also co-founded Movement Day in 2010 with Dr Tim Keller. He is the author of nine books including A Disruptive Gospel (Baker Books) and New York Disrupted (Movement Day Publishing). Mac and Marya have been married 40 years and have three children and five grandchildren. Pier has been a Lausanne catalyst since 2013.

Gina Zurlo

Dr. Gina A. Zurlo is co-director of the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and her research focuses on the demography of religion, World Christianity, sociology of religion, and women’s studies. She is also a visiting research fellow at Boston University’s Institute on Culture, Religion and World Affairs, where she works on the World Religion Database (Brill). Her most recent books include Global Christianity: A Guide to the World’s Largest Religion from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe (Zondervan Academic, 2022), Women in World Christianity: Building and Sustaining a Global Movement (Wiley-Blackwell, 2023), and From Nairobi to the World: David B. Barrett and the Re-Imagining of World Christianity (Brill, 2023). She was named one of the BBC’s 100 most inspiring and influential women of 2019 for her work in quantifying the religious future.

Tim Tucker

Dr. Tim Tucker, Africa Development Director for The Message Trust, hails from the UK and has lived in Cape Town since 1998. With a PhD in Practical Theology from North-West University, he’s led Christian non-profits since 2001, focusing on leadership development and potential fulfilment. Tim is the author of Grab a Towel, Grief and Grace, Finding Life After Death.

Ron Anderson

Ron Anderson was born and raised in Guatemala where his parents ministered with the Maya Quiche people. He received a BA from Asbury University and later an MAS from Azusa Pacific University. Together with his wife Brenda, he has been involved in ministries related to church planting in Europe, particularly Spain, since 1978.

In addition to being a Lausanne catalyst for church planting, Ron is the European church planting consultant and trainer for the European Christian Mission International and coordinator of the national platform for church planters in Spain. Ron and Brenda are both involved in a local church planting project in the area of Madrid, Spain.

Eiko Takamizawa

A Japanese female missiologist, Eiko Takamizawa (PhD, Trinity International University) served for Torch Trinity Graduate University in Seoul for 20 years. She is an adjunct professor for Tokyo Christian University and speaks and teaches widely in Japan and other Asian countries.

Eiko is a member of the Lausanne Theology Working Group and a co-leader for the Lausanne Global Listening Team. She was the fifth president for the Asian Society of Missiology and a steering committee member for SEANET. She founded an educational center for children at risk in Mongolia called Mongol Kids Home, where she serves as supporters representative.

Dave Raley

Dave is the executive vice president at Masterworks, a marketing agency based outside Seattle that serves Christian ministries around the world. He is responsible for strategy, digital, innovation, analytics, and media. For more than a decade, he has helped drive results for over 50 regional, national, and international non-profits. He’s a regular conference speaker and blogger, and has pioneered a roundtable of top leaders in the industry in the digital space.

Dave is an elder at Newlife Church, based in Silverdale, Washington. He is married to Heather and is father to two daughters, Paige and Emma. 

Ted Esler

Ted Esler is President of Missio Nexus, the association of mission agencies and churches in the US and Canada. Missio Nexus coaches, networks, and trains churches and other organizations focused on the global Great Commission. Before coming to Missio Nexus, Ted was a field missionary in Bosnia and Croatia, and he held leadership roles with Pioneers for 25 years. Ted has a PhD in intercultural studies from Fuller Theological Seminary and is often asked to speak nationally and internationally.

Ed Stetzer

Ed Stetzer, Ph.D., is the Dean and Professor of Leadership and Christian Ministry at Talbot School of Theology at Biola University. He also serves as Distinguish Visiting Scholar at Wycliffe Hall at Oxford University, where he teaches twice a year. Stetzer has planted, revitalized, and pastored churches; trained pastors and church planters on six continents; earned two master’s degrees and two doctorates; and he has written hundreds of articles and a dozen books. He is Regional Director for Lausanne North America, is the Editor-in-Chief of Outreach Magazine, and regularly writes for news outlets such as USA Today and CNN. His national radio show, Ed Stetzer Live, airs Saturdays on Moody Radio and affiliates. Stetzer serves his local church, Mariners Church, as Scholar in Residence & Teaching Pastor.

Tom Lin

Since 2016, Tom Lin has served as president / CEO of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. Previously, he served as pioneering missionary and country director of campus ministry in Mongolia and vice president of missions and director of the Urbana Student Missions Conference. He has also served as a trustee on the boards of Wycliffe Bible Translators, Missio Nexus, and the Leadership and Legacy Foundation. He currently serves on the boards of Fuller Theological Seminary, The Crowell Trust, and the Lausanne Movement.

Tom is the author of Pursuing God’s Call (2012) and Losing Face and Finding Grace (1996), a coeditor of the Urbana Onward book series (2012), and a contributor to Still Evangelical? (2018)—all published by InterVarsity Press. He is also a contributor to Uncommon Ground (2020, Thomas Nelson). He has a BA in economics from Harvard University, an MA in global leadership from Fuller Theological Seminary, and an honorary doctorate in public service from Taylor University. Tom and his wife, Nancy, have two daughters.

Guna Raman

Guna Raman, originally from Malaysia, transitioned to Singapore after completing his university education to teach biology. His journey in ministry began with the founding and pastoring of Agape Baptist Church in Singapore, a role he faithfully served for 30 years (1990-2019). In September 2018, he took on a new challenge as the CEO of City to City Asia Pacific (CTCAP), driven by a passion for planting gospel-centered churches and establishing healthy movements in the strategic and megacities of Asia.

Guna finds immense joy and honor in witnessing the growth of gospel-centered communities and movements across the region. His leadership at CTCAP reflects his deep commitment to fostering collaborative and thriving church networks.

Ramez Atallah

Ramez Atallah served as the IFES Regional Secretary for the Middle East (1980-1990). He then took on the role of General Secretary of the Bible Society of Egypt. In addition to these responsibilities, Ramez played a significant part in the Lausanne Movement. He was the Program Chair for the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization in Cape Town in 2010 and later served as a Deputy Chairman for the Movement from 2010 to 2015.

Leighton Ford

Dr Leighton Ford is the president of Leighton Ford Ministries and a prolific author, speaker, and social activist. He was vice president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association for 31 years, and has been featured on his own radio and television spots in the United States, Canada, and Australia. He has also served on the boards of World Vision US, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and Duke University Cancer Center.

From 1973 to 1975, Dr Ford served as programme chair of Lausanne’s First International Congress on World Evangelization. He continued this role from 1976 to 1992, as chair of the Continuation Committee for the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization (LCWE, which would later become the Lausanne Movement). During this time, part of his focus was to challenge, encourage, and equip younger leaders for future leadership positions. In 1987 this vision grew into the first Lausanne Younger Leaders Gathering (Singapore ’87), which convened younger leaders from 65 countries. In 1989, he was chair of the Second International Congress on World Evangelization in Manila. Dr Ford was appointed honorary lifetime chairman of the LCWE in 1992.

Dr Ford and his wife, Jean, live in Charlotte, North Carolina. They have a married daughter, Debbie, and a married son, Kevin.

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