Bryant L. Myers

Christianity Today Book Award WinnerOutreach Resource of the Year (Multicultural)ASM (American Society of Missiology) Book of the Year AwardGlobalization is speeding up our world, extending our relationships globally and bringing us closer together in positive and not-so-positive ways. The church and many Christians, however, remain largely unaware of its seductive power, resulting in a failure of vision for mission in today's world. This up-to-date resource by a veteran leader in global development work with World Vision orients readers to the history of globalization and to a Christian theological perspective on it, explores concrete realities by focusing on global poverty, and helps readers reimagine Christian mission in ways that announce the truly good news of Christ and God's kingdom. Diagrams and sidebars that incorporate the voices of global partners are included. This is the second book in a new series that reframes missiological themes and studies for students using/featuring the common theme of mission as partnership with Christians.

International development work is a largely secular discipline that distances itself from faith concerns; even many faith-based groups seem to go out of their way to minimise the relationship between their religious convictions and their work. Secular groups often see faith-based agencies as "irritating marginal players" in the global development scene. But what if much of the value of these groups is exactly the result of that sense of religious mission? Mitchell posits that, contrary to popular perception, church organisations have long been major players in international development work, and that many of these organisations do take the relationship between their work and the faith that underpins it very seriously. Instead of apologising for their faith roots and expression, they should celebrate them-and recognise the value they bring to every development enterprise, secular or not.