As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to alter our everyday interactions as well as our planning efforts, it has become increasingly difficult to know when or how to re-engage our “life before.” I (Beth) have experienced some of this on a small scale in my own life as I continue to recover from a severe concussion. I find myself lacking motivation, concentration and confidence to re-engage tasks that used to feel second nature to me. Living in a perpetual state of not knowing how long I am going to feel well for in a day (could be an hour or 3 or 15 minutes) has really drained my ability to plan even short term goals.

Perhaps like me you find yourself affected in similar ways. Living with so much ambiguity on a large scale is draining for everyone. Who wants to plan an activity that will probably just get cancelled? How do we move ministries forward with information that is constantly changing? As I was doing a fair amount of reading on Cultural Intelligence (CQ) in the first part of 2020, I thought we could utilize some of those same skills as we seek to navigate our new normal.

A key component to CQ is CQ Strategy. In fact, the more I think about CQ and observe myself and my coworkers, I believe this is an area we could all focus on just a bit more. Most of us have high motivation (CQ Drive) and typically enjoy learning about the cultures we work in (CQ Knowledge) but beyond the initial cultural adjustment, the acts of planning, creating awareness, and checking get lost in the routine of our lives.

As we start to re-engage our lives, CQ Strategy is an effective tool that can help us not only in our cross cultural interactions, but also in “re-engaging” relationships and ministry opportunities and our multicultural teams. Changes have occurred inside of us as well as those we are engaged in ministry with. So how can we re-engage in a culturally intelligent, intentional way?

Think of a real relationship or opportunity you would like to apply CQ Strategy to. Practice developing your CQ Strategy by walking through these three steps.

1) Plan. What challenge are you currently facing in a cross-cultural situation? Create a few “if-then” scenarios and a few cultural intelligent responses you could use in an upcoming interaction.

2) Build Awareness. During your interaction, pay attention to both your observations and interpretations. Perhaps focus on non-verbals. What did you notice that you haven't before?

3) Check In. After your interaction or experience check your initial plan and assumptions. What happened as you expected? What was different than what you expected? Do you have a safe cultural insider you could share your observations with?

Taking a few extra minutes before, during and after a cross-cultural interaction can help us plan better for the next time. If you have been in isolation for a long period of time, reluctance to reengage is normal. Utilizing a CQ Strategy can help build confidence and create more meaningful cross-cultural exchanges.

Are you thinking through educational options for your children, how to transition well as a family or just want to learn more about parenting your MK’s cross-culturally?? Our SEND resident experts on MK care and education have shared their lists of trusted resources which are now compiled in one place on the SEND U wiki for easy access, with no login required. Some examples of things you will find include:

Books:

Third Culture Kids: The Experience of Growing Up Among Worlds by Ruth E. Van Reken and Michael V. Pollock can help you understand the heart and mind of a third culture kid, including the ways living in a cross-cultural setting develops their unique way of seeing and interacting with the world.

Schooling Options:

The wiki site offers information on a variety of educational options. For example, for parents looking for online school options either as a full-meal-deal or as partial help in schooling their middle and high school TCKs, NorthStar Academy is recommended for its flexibility in scheduling, thorough coverage of content, and dedication to cross-cultural families.

Websites:

Michéle Phoenix’s website– particularly the “MK articles” section – for parents and teen/adult MKs has helped many parents with perspective on raising their children as cross-cultural + ministry kids. Also, many adult MKs have found her articles insightful and helpful in understanding life and identity as an MK.

In addition to great resources like these, you will also find tools like a Parent-Led Family Debrief which might be helpful for those transitioning during this season of COVID-19. Find these resources and many more on the new MK/TCK page on the SEND U wiki: https://senduwiki.org/mks_tcks

Ted Szymczak has been part of the SEND U team for the past 10 years. But starting in July, Ted is transitioning into more of a full-time role with our SEND Diaspora ministry in Michigan. We want to express our deep appreciation to Ted for his faithful contribution in gathering church planting resources, coaching new missionaries and church planters, and developing online courses (to name a few). We are thankful that Ted will continue to be available as a coach and lead learning communities. Ted is a life-long learner, and has already been contributing to the online training sessions organized for the members of the Diaspora area. We look forward to hearing how God will be using him in engaging unreached peoples in Michigan. You can write him at tszymczak@send.org to ask him more about the people group he is planning to engage and the strategies he is planning to use.

Gary Ridley will be leading another edition of the online course "Living on Mission in Times of Crisis“ from August 10-21. This 12-day online course is designed to address five key elements that are critical to how we move forward as spirit-led believers as opposed to those who are driven by fear, anxiety, hopelessness, etc. A number of SEND people signed up for this course back in May and highly recommended it. The five core topics covered in this course are: Living by Faith, not Fear, Hope in the Midst of Disappointment, Persevere in Suffering, Listening to God and Compelled by Love. You can sign up for the course at this link.

There are several additional online learning opportunities coming up in the next few months.

A series of Church Planting Courses that were developed by World Team and SEND U:

• Evangelism: Abundantly Sowing the Seed - Sept 16 - Oct 21
• Discipleship: Growing Mature Followers of Jesus - Sept 16 - Oct 21
• Church: Nurturing Communities of Faith - Sept 23 - Oct 28

Note: SEND workers can get more than a 50% discount on these 3 online courses if you use your send.org email address when you apply. The World Team course administrator will send you a coupon code when you need to pay.

For a more complete list of recommended and upcoming training events, visit our wiki page titled SEND U Training Events.