I recently had the joy of participating in an orientation for a distance education program at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. I serve as a mentor for a deaf student in the Deaf Institute of Theology (DIT) and met several colleagues and friends who mentor others in the Ethnic Immigration Institute of Theology (EIIT). For the week, I was surrounded by men and women who were training for ministry. They came from Ghana, Togo, the Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Zambia, Sudan, Brazil, Mexico and many other nations. It was truly a joy for me to see God’s hand at work in so many ways in the lives of these students (many of whom are entering ministry as a second career) and the people they have served. The boundaries of language and culture were overcome as we found ways to understand and support each other.

As we gathered, we learned about the various ways we communicate the good news of God’s love and forgiveness shown in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The African men and women spoke of having a song for everything, and wow, could they sing! We rejoiced that God brought all these nations together to be further equipped for the work of ministry. Ephesians 4:11-15 reminds us, “God gave some to be apostles, some prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry for the building up the body of Christ.” In order to be equipped, we need some tools.

What tools are in your toolkit? If you are a carpenter, for example, you may use hammers, nails, and squares to help you accomplish your goal. In the church, there are tools for use in accomplishing the goal of the Great Commission (to make disciples through baptizing and teaching...) In the early church, the apostles had the Old Testament as a tool to help people understand how Jesus came in fulfillment of the promises about Messiah. They also had opportunity to speak at public forums (such as Paul visiting the Aereopagus in Acts), synagogues, personal interaction (Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch), even transportation that was used for missionary trips. Today, our tools include technology, leadership skills, volunteers, homes (for bible studies) and more. To be sure, these tools are not the ministry, but are a means of ministry. In the end, the mission of making disciples is the aim, though the tools we use may vary.

In the DIT & EIIT programs, course work is carried out as students work with a pastor-mentor in their local churches. Students use a seminary-based website to download lectures and videos, network with other students, submit homework and assessments, and engage in discussion with their instructors and peers. It is an amazing process, using the available technology (Tools!) to equip the saints for the work of ministry. I am so happy to be part of a program that utilizes the available tools to better communicate the gospel of Jesus Christ. If he would have come today, what tools do you imagine Jesus would have used: transportation? Desktop publishing? ‘E-vangelism’?

What tools are in your toolkit? How do you communicate with others or ‘get the job done’: e-mail? website? Cell-phone? PowerPoint? Personal Conversation? Whether you engage in Outreach or “E-vangelism,” take stock of the means God has provided you to communicate the good news of Jesus Christ and put your tools to work as a kingdom-builder!