2008 April archive at TJ Gause

Posts for April, 2008

Missionary Care Retreat in Helene, Honduras

Published by TJ Gause - USA April 29th, 2008 in Blog, Welcome and Events. 2 Comments

Scroll down to view updated entries and pictures…..

I leave with a team of health care professionals/teachers this Saturday for a week in Helene, Honduras. We will be hosting another Missionary Care Retreat with the purpose to equip, train, provide counsel and generally help our staff deal with life as a missionary. In addition to training, the health care workers traveling with me will make themselves available to staff for personal “appointments”.

I will be adding pictures during our trip to this blog entry, so please come and check us out. Feel free to leave a comment while you are here.

Topics we plan to address:

1. Boundaries

2. Communication Skills

3. Grief and Loss

4. Depression or Suicidality (how to identify and create a “safe” plan for those you find in this situation)

5. Self Insight for the Missionary - how does your personal insight impact your mission?

6. Couples Session: Getting Deeper with one another in marriage and ministry

7. Singles in ministry

8. Cross-Cultural Issues in Missionary Work

9. Choosing good team members using the Alternative Missions staff and intern processes

10. Traits of a healthy team member / Signs of personality issues or dysfunction

11. Teaming

Please be praying for us this week.

Serving Joyfully,

TJ Gause

May 4th Update:

Photo: Here we are heading “down island” with the Helene staff and the Missionary Care Team (MCT). Our missionary care team consists of Tom; director/founder of Alternative Missions (hawaiian shirt in back, right corner); Danny Machado, teacher/counselor (orange shirt); Wendy Grimm, teacher/counselor (white shirt, sitting in front of Tom); and myself (front right corner).

Photo: Upon our arrival to the small island of Helene, we gave out gifts to the staff that included an ice cream maker and various ingredients. I was able to purchase & bring down these gifts based on the generosity of my supporters. Thank you! Needless to say, the staff are pretty excited.

After spending our first night on the main island of Roatan, the Missionary Care Team arrived on the small island of Helene just in time to tour the grounds and eat dinner with the staff. It has been great to re-connect with the staff and see how each of the various ministries are progressing (I had the privilege of visiting Helene for about 3 days, a year and a half ago). This is a unique ministry location in that all of the staff live & work in close community with eachother and the island community. Since Helene is only about 1.5 by 3 miles big, that makes this a small community. Yet, I am always impressed by their ability to enjoy, have conflict, and grow with one another. I look forward to this week full of teaching and counseling sessions, for what it will mean for each of the individuals on staff and as they work together as a team.

Please be praying for us this week for:

- Vulnerability to share with one another as well as grace to be given when someone has shared something important and personal.

- Wisdom, clarity of thought and mind for Danny and Wendy, our counselor/teachers.

- Time for everyone to reflect and “chew” on the material presented throughout the week.

May 6 Update:

Today is our 2nd day of the missionary care retreat in which we continued discussion on various ways of communicating. Yesterday, we studied the Self in an attempt to greater understand how each of us operate. Today, we took a look at these results in light of how they play out on the team. I respect our Helene staff for their continued desire to grow and adapt various methods of communication.

Please continue to pray for the staff this week as we begin to discuss deeper traumatic events they’ve experienced; and that God would bring hidden things into the light in order to heal and restore broken places.

Photo: Below is a picture of Danny teaching on Reflective Listening.

May 8th Update:

The last few teaching sessions have spurred some great conversation regarding traits of a healthy team and healthy team members. I’ve been really impressed with the amount of healthy traits this Helene team already exhibits. At the same time, I’m encouraged by their desire to go deeper and really weed out any unhealthy characteristics.

One of the more enlightening conversations has centered around stress & burnout. In the process of clearly defining each of these terms, spontaneous conversation emerged regarding what major amounts of stress look like for each individual on the team. As a courageous leader, Larry Benson, also director of this team, opened by sharing how he reacts under stress (which most team members agreed with). Quite easily & in a safe manner, the rest of the team began to comment on ways that they know when Larry is stressed. Then, time was taken to identify things that re-charge Larry.

As we continued this exercise for each individual on the team, great new insights were being recognized as individuals were being validated in their personal need as well as challenged to grow in ways they react to stress. These sorts of ideas and spontaneous conversations are a vital part of the missionary care retreat. Having the Missionary Care Team available to help generate and facilitate discussion has opened new doors of discussion and allowed for deep insight. Praise the Lord!

Photo: Wendy leads the group discussion on stress.

In Conclusion:

What a great week we had together! Hear what some of the staff have to say about their week with the Missionary Care Team….

“Reflection on how each individual handles stress was very helpful.”

“I love it! Totally awesome! Come back!!”

“I got real and practical ways to deal with challenging relationships. I know who cares about my health as a missionary in A.M. Yeah!”

“It was great to hear from God about His love for me and my expression of love for Him.”

“Thanks for coming to help strengthen and unify our team.”

“What a wealth of discovery about myself and my team! So much of our lives are dealing with the here and now going on in our ministry/life, it is difficult to stop and find time to sort out personal issues. Personal issues that have hidden elements not easily seen until a professional can guide and recognize. What grace to have this opportunity to deal with my past in order that God can change me as I go into the present and the future. I can’t wait to do this again!

TJ’s Personality Insights

Published by TJ Gause - USA April 23rd, 2008 in About Me. 0 Comments

I recently took the Myers Briggs personality test and thought it would be a good idea to publish my results. This is a perfect description of who I am and how I operate in life and ministry.

Extraverted Sensing Thinking Judging
by Joe Butt

Profile: ESTJ
Revision: 3.0
Date of Revision: 26 Feb 2005

Every right-minded man has a philosophy of life, whether he knows it or not. Hidden away in his mind are certain governing principles, whether he formulates them in words or not, which govern his life. Surely his ideal ought to be to contribute all that he can, however little it may be, whether of money or service, to human progress.
–John D. Rockefeller, Random Reminiscences of Men and Events

ESTJs thrive on order and continuity. Being extraverted, their focus involves organization of people, which translates into supervision. While ENTJs enjoy organizing and mobilizing people according to their own theories and tactically based agendas, ESTJs are content to enforce “the rules,” often dictated by tradition or handed down from a higher authority.

ESTJs are joiners. They seek out like-minded companions in clubs, civic groups, churches and other service organizations. The need for belonging is woven into the fiber of SJs. The family likewise is a central focus for ESTJs, and attendance at such events as weddings, funerals and family reunions is obligatory.

Tradition is important to the ESTJ. Holidays, birthdays and other annual celebrations are remembered and observed often religiously by this type. The ESTJ is inclined to seek out his roots, to trace the family heritage back to honored ancestors both for a sense of family respectability and for a sense of security and belonging.

Service, the tangible expression of responsibility, is another key focus for ESTJs. They love to provide and to receive good service. The ESTJ merchant who provides dependable service has done much to enhance her self image.

ESTJs have an acute sense for orthodoxy. Much of their evaluation of persons and activities reflects their strong sense of what is “normal” and what isn’t. ESTJ humor is frequently centered around something or someone being off center or behaving abnormally.

ESTJs promote the work ethic. Power, position and prestige should be worked for and earned. Laziness is rarely viewed with ambivalence nor benevolence by this type.

Some men can make decisions and some cannot. Some men fret and delay under criticism. I used to have a saying¹ that applies here, and I note that some people have picked it up.
–Harry S. Truman, Mr. Citizen
¹“If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.”

The ESTJ is outspoken, a person of principles, which are readily expressed. The ESTJ is not afraid to stand up for what she believes is right even in the face of overwhelming odds. ESTJs are able to make the tough calls.

Occupations attracting ESTJs include teaching, coaching, banking, political office, and management at all levels.

Functional Analysis:

Extraverted Thinking

ESTJs are very good at making impersonal decisions quickly, and standing by those decisions. They live in their Extraverted Thinking functioning, thus, their prime directive is in discovering that which is true and logical in the events of the real world. Circumstances calling for product invite the ESTJ to supervise or direct other individuals toward production and productivity. Extraverts are attracted to the “object,” the external things and people in observable reality. This bent translates into a natural interest in goods and material objects.

Introverted Sensing

The secondary Introverted Sensing is like that of the ISTJ, but not as strong. Si provides practical form and concept data to the Te head, however, form is not the overriding principle, especially if Thinking has already decided. In times of need, ESTJs are tempted to overlook even necessary information if its absence impedes closure. Secondary sensing sometimes translates into interest in sports. The persistence of primary Thinking gives many ESTJs a desire for discipline and regimen which can be beneficial in skills development in the arena.

Extraverted iNtuition

As the ESTJ matures, and as situations arise which call for suspension of criticism, Extraverted iNtuition is allowed to play. Under the leadership of the Te function, iNtuition gravitates toward the discovery of broad categories which at worst amount to stereotypes. Those ESTJs who hone their Ne abilities may find success in academia. (I’ve encountered ESTJs whose Ne overshadows the auxiliary Si function–for whatever reason–to the extent that there is an appearance of NT radical geekism.)

Introverted Feeling

This function may rarely be expressed. ESTJs who have cultivated, or have been blessed with, a “natural indirect expression of good will by inference,” have great prospects of developing genuine friendships (as opposed to ESTJs who merely act out the behavior of Extraverted Feeling). Such a weak, introverted function is best observed in facial expression, eye contact, body language, and verbally only by implication.

Famous ESTJs:

Simon Peter (Christ’s disciple)
John Heywood (c.1497-c.1580, collector of English colloquialisms)

U.S. Presidents:: James Monroe; Andrew Jackson; William Henry “Tippecanoe” Harrison; Franklin Pierce; Grover Cleveland; Harry S. Truman; Lyndon B. Johnson; George W. Bush

Carrie Nation
Elliot Ness
John D. Rockefeller
Bette Davis
Robert A. Taft (U.S. senator, son of Pres. Wm. H. Taft)
Sam Walton, owner and founder of WalMart stores
Barbara Stanwyck
Rev. Billy Graham
Dale Bumpers (U.S. Senator, D-Arkansas)
Phil Fulmer, head football coach of the U. Tenn Vols
Pat Head Summit, head basketball coach of the Lady Vols
Bill Frist, M.D. (U.S. Senate Majority Leader)

Fictional:

Lucy (Charles Schultz’s Peanuts character)
Mrs. Harbottle (Herriott, All Creatures Great and Small)
Mrs. Rachel Lynde (Anne of Green Gables)
The Mayor (The Music Man)

MCT Mexico Report

Published by TJ Gause - USA April 21st, 2008 in Blog and Welcome. 1 Comment

“WOW! What a week! It has been a very refreshing break form ministry; and a very insightful time for our team, personal relationships, and marriage. I’ve enjoyed it very much!” - staff member in Cofradia

I could not say it better myself. What a privilege to take part in such an important event as the Missionary Care Retreat in Mexico! Thank you to all who enabled me to help facilitate this retreat through your prayers & financial giving.

On a personal note, I am grateful for God’s’ direction in leading me in missionary care. This week confirmed the vision that God placed in my heart as well as my plans to realize this goal (to see these plans, click here). I’ve known & experienced the great need that exists in caring for the emotional, physical, and spiritual health of missionaries. And now I have first-hand experience in offering this care. This is a good fit for me and a valuable career; I am so thankful to have a clear purpose.

Hear what people are saying about the Missionary Care Retreat….

“This was such a valuable experience for me. The topics covered are vital for life and ministry both within the team and outside it. I encourage everyone to do whatever necessary to take full advantage of this team and allow the Lord to minister to each one thought the Missionary Care Team folks.”

“Anyone who’s been on the mission field has probably seen that most missionaries don’t make their own mental health a priority. I am extremely grateful to Tam, Danny, TJ, Tom and the Alternative Missions Board for providing this great week for us.”

“Great to be cared for!”

“This retreat made me feel closer to my team. It helped me see who I am a little better. I feel our team is a closer family. This gave me the rare opportunity to talk to a professional counselor.”

“Although I didn’t know what to expect before the week started I really benefited from taking time out to be heard, identify my own needs and needs of our team.”

MCT Mexico Retreat - Day 5

Published by TJ Gause - USA April 18th, 2008 in Blog, Welcome and Events. 0 Comments

Day 5 concludes our missionary care retreat here in Cofradia. During the morning session, each ministry team met together with one of the counselors intentional application of some of the topics presented throughout the week. We concluded the week with a prayer service for one another. Overall, today was a powerful closing for each team and individual staff member and I am praising God.

At this conclusion of this, Alternative Mission’s first missionary care team trip, I can say with confidence that this was a necessary and a empowering retreat. I respect each of our staff members in their continued desire to grow closer to the Lord and to each other. This week provided a different atmosphere in which to grow and learn. Let’s continue to be praying for the Tepic and Cofradia staff here in Mexico.

Below are some random pictures from our Taco Stand Night:

MCT Mexico Retreat - Day 4

Published by TJ Gause - USA April 17th, 2008 in Blog, Welcome and Events. 1 Comment

We continued the retreat discussing additional aspects of team life including boundaries, enjoyment of life & ministry, burnout and depression (for staff & for those they minister to). These topics sparked so much conversation that we could have continued on these topics for another week! Praise God that our plans are to extend this MCT Retreat into an annual occurrence so that we can cover some topics in greater detail next year.

One of things I’m grateful for has been the ability to simply spend time getting to know the staff. I’ve enjoyed walking in the afternoons with a few of the ladies, a visit out to the Indian village where one staff family has recently moved, and numerous conversations over coffee or guitar music. There is something special about being able to discuss life and ministry with people of similar experiences.

Below is a picture of some of us enjoying lunch together:

MCT Mexico Retreat - Day 3

Published by TJ Gause - USA April 16th, 2008 in Blog, Welcome and Events. 1 Comment

Day 3 included a new twist to our mini retreat in the form of teaching and discussion we followed. Danny led us in a variety of topics including perception of self, communication/conflict styles, and also team dynamics. Although we spent time as a whole group, the majority of discussion existed within each ministry team, Tepic & Cofradia. As I listened in on the conversations in each team, I praised God for the ways He is drawing out important aspects of life and ministry and for the direct ways these topics are being approached.

One of the challenges to working in a team is the different “baggage,” both good and bad, that each individual carries. Learning to grow as an individual and at the same time learn to work quite closely in a team context is a challenge that missionaries face. I respect our staff in their willingness to accept such a challenge and for their humility in seeking to grow.

Below are a couple of pictures from our time together:

Danny Teaching

Breakout Session

MCT Mexico Retreat - Day 2

Published by TJ Gause - USA April 15th, 2008 in Blog, Welcome and Events. 0 Comments

We began day 2 of our missionary care retreat with worship, presenting ourselves and our discussions before the Lord. Having built a biblical foundation for community on Day 1, we continued by exploring our various family backgrounds and different personality traits. It was interesting to note the differences among each ministry team and how they affect the way the team interacts and functions. Although it is difficult for some individuals to share, thereby making themselves vulnerable to the group, there also exists a sense that this is a safe environment to explore these differences together. There has been a lot of light shed on how our similarities/differences affect our marriages, teams, and families in both positive and negative ways. Overall, we’re continuing a great week of exploration of who God made each of us to be and how we contribute to function or dysfunction.

One of my favorite questions posed was this: What is the perfect missionary?

Don’t we all ask that question of our missionaries (or of ourselves) more often than we should? Is the perfect missionary an extrovert or an introvert? Married or single? Structured or unstructured? It is obvious that there is no correct answer. God created each of us with differing gifts and has a plan for how He desires them to be used (Ps. 139).

This is just a small description of some of the discussions we’ve had thus far. Praise God for such great teachers in Danny & Tami and for a staff that is willing to grow in relationship with God and one another.

Below are various pictures of our time together.

Group Time Led By Tami (top); Tami Teaching (2nd); Tepic Team Talking it Over (bottom)

MCT Mexico Retreat - Day 1

Published by TJ Gause - USA April 14th, 2008 in Blog, Welcome and Events. 0 Comments

Monday was our first day together in our missionary care retreat. The team from Tepic drove up in the morning & joined with our Missionary Care Team and our Cofradia staff (here at the base in Cofradia.) We spent the morning discussing who we are in “community,” meaning in families, marriages, teams and those we minister to. There was a lot of group interaction as we discussed these aspects:

Covenant - to love & be loved
Grace - to forgive & be forgiven
Empowerment - to serve & be served
Intimacy - to know & be known

here was some very enlightening conversation regarding these topics as they related to individual personalities and needs in addition to recognizing the needs of those we work with (teams & communities) or live with (marriage and family). We also practiced reflective listening, which is a listening technique that makes the other person feel “heard” or understood. I am really enjoying getting to know our staff throughout these discussions as they open up and share about themselves or their situations.

Thank you for your prayers as we continue to discuss meaning topics throughout the week. I’ll try to include a picture in the next update.

We’ve Arrived….Almost

Published by TJ Gause - USA April 13th, 2008 in Blog, Welcome and Events. 1 Comment

We arrived in Mazatlan yesterday afternoon & spent the evening walking the streets of historic Mazatlan and getting acquainted with one another and discussing plans for the week.

Below is a picture of us eating dinner together in the Historic District of Mazatlan at the Plaza Machado. Sitting across from me is Tom, the director of Alternative Missions and Tami Englehorn counselor/teacher/trainer. Next to me is our other counselor/teacher/trainer, Danny Machado.

We spent this morning discussing various details and plans for the week and I am already learning so much. I really appreciate Danny & Tami’s ability to assimilate the values of Alternative Missions (continued growth & intimacy with God and with one another) in their approach to teaching. Both are extremely insightful & drawing out discussion topics that have been fun to take part in.

Pray for us:

* Clear communication between Danny, Tom, Tami & myself.

* Sensitivity to the needs of the staff & individuals as the week goes on. We have a defined schedule but want to be open to spending more/less time on needs that arise.

* For Danny & Tami to be able to build immediate rapport & trust with our staf. This will help facilitate open & honest discussion throughout the week.

Missionary Care Trip to Tepic & Cofradia, Mexico April 12 - 19

Published by TJ Gause - USA April 12th, 2008 in Events. 1 Comment

I will be traveling with the Alternative Missions Missionary Care team, made up of Alternative Missions Staff and health care professionals. We will be meeting with the Tepic & Cofradia ministry teams both individually and corporately to coach on team, spiritual and personal development.

Please pray for each of our staff members and their families and that God would guide our conversations. Click on each staff member’s name to learn more about them.

Tepic Staff:

Andy & Nayeli Hackett - Andy is the field director and has worked in Tepic since 2002. He married Nayeli, a native to Tepic, in 2006 and they had their first son, Dylan, soon after.

Josh & Stephanie Horvath - Josh and Steph joined the Tepic team early last year and have been an integral part of the ministry.

Omar Barragan - Omar is a native to Guadalajara, MX and joined Alternative Missions through his friendship with Andy.

Brett Bashaw - Brett has been involved with the Tepic staff in friendship and prayer over the years. He actually just left to join the staff in Mexico today, March 11th.

Cofradia Staff:

Dave & Kathy Elias - Dave is the field director for our Cofradia team. He and Kathy have been involved in church planting in Cofradia since 1993. They have one son, Jonathan, who is 11-years-old.

Steve & Efigenia Silberman - Steve has served on the Cofradia team since 1996. He married Efigenia, a native to Cofradia, a few years later. Together they have two daughters, Rebecka (6-years-old) and Emma (2-years-old).

Jay & Faith Tenbrink - Jay and Faith have served in Cofradia since 1995. Recently, they moved to Mojocuautla to serve among the Cora Indians. They have 3 kids: Isaiah (13-years-old); Elizabeth (11-years-old); and baby Malakai (not-yet-one-year).

Doug & Jan Taylor - Doug and Jan used to lead short term teams to Cofradia for years before joining the staff in 2000. They have a number of children & grandchildren who live in Canada.

Amber Crafton - Amber joined the Cofradia staff in 2006 after visiting with a short term team. She hosts teams as well as helps with administrative work and a variety of other tasks.

Gollo Hernandez - Gollo is a native to Cofradia who joined the Alternative Missions staff in 2000. He preaches at the church in Cofradia and disciples families in the area. Gollo is married to Matilda and has 4 children.