Great Commission Institute
What is the Asian church's greatest need?
"We need leaders," is the heartfelt response from many Christian workers. For many they have no opportunity for training. They are the 'barefoot evangelists' who travel from village to village to preach the Gospel and nurture the believers. Some of them tramp over hazardous terrain in the Himalayan regions. Some boldly minister in 'creative access nations' where persecution and harassment are never far away. Others reach out in an environment hostile to Christianity.
It was this need for leaders that caused Dr. Paul Kauffman and Dr. David Wang to establish the GREAT COMMISSION INSTITUTE. A small core of experienced and qualified men outlined certain philosophies that are still part of the programme today:
 | Mobile training: going to where the people are |
| A focus on those who do not have opportunities for training |
| Short-term |
| Practical know-how, rather than academic knowledge |
| Life-sharing concept |
| Each participant is helped to develop a personal ministry plan |
Nationals are "God-made" to extend His Kingdom in their home countries - they know the language, culture and physical environment. Furthermore, nationals are the ones who will ultimately remain in their homelands. When non-Asians come to serve with GCI ministries, they sometimes have to fulfill the role of "scaffolding" - an important part of the construction process. Once construction has been completed, however, the scaffolding is removed and set up elsewhere for another building. Our long-term goal is always to train and launch national leaders.
Great Commission Institute training has been running in Mongolia since 2001, and approximately 70% of Mongolia's church leaders have attended one or more of the levels of training. The training is unique in that it is mobile; the trainers go to the provinces, rather than having the trainees leave their churches in order to attend.
In Mongolia, Great Commission Institute training has four levels:
Level One - focuses on personal spiritual growth and discipleship
Level Two - focuses on developing church leadership skills
Level Three - focuses on developing more advanced church leadership skills
Level Four - focuses on challenging the church to engage their communities effectively, addressing the social needs of their towns, to bring about effective and long-lasting societal change.
