• Learn language
  
• Explore and research a new area and ethnography
  
• Discover obstacles and openness
  
• Create a path
  
• Involve others in the work (volunteers, nationals, workers from other agencies)
  
• Share the Gospel
  
• Disciple new and existing believers
  
• Nurture small groups into churches
  
• Initiate church-planting movements (CPMs)
  
• Record information for those who come behind
  
• Intentionally mobilize someone to finish the task
  
  

1. Learn language: Your team’s objective is to become effective verbal communicators in order to sow the seeds that will lead to CPMs. You will receive three months of intensive language study. If there is no formal language program, you will be trained in barefoot language learning. The majority of language learning will be done as you interact with people in your community.
   
   
2. Explore and research a new area and ethnography: Through your growing proficiency in language and your developing relationships, you will begin to explore the worldview of your people. This is done largely through listening to their stories, asking lots of questions and increasingly identifying with their world. Your goal is to understand their needs, discover key areas of concern and anxiety, pinpoint crucial worldview concepts and look for redemptive analogies that will be helpful in communicating the Gospel.
   
   
3. Discover obstacles and openness: As you venture into new areas, you will intentionally share the Gospel and look for people of peace (see Luke 10) in order to determine the spiritual openness. This requires a balance of boldness and sensitivity that is only possible as you walk in the Spirit day by day. You may experiment with tracts, Bible passages, storytelling the Gospel, etc. You will also note obstacles that you encounter as you share in order to learn and adapt the way you present the Gospel.
   
   
4. Create a path: Although your team may be the first to venture into some areas, the hope is that you will not be the last. You will want to lay a path that others can follow. One way of doing this is by having a Christ-like attitude towards those you meet so that their impression of Christians and foreigners will be a positive one. It is difficult to follow behind someone who left a bad impression.
   
   
5. Involve others in the work (volunteers, nationals, workers from other agencies): You will need to be a self-starter but not a lone ranger. You will be expected to lead others to join in the task. It is often through these efforts that God will call someone to finish what you have started.
   
   
6. Share the Gospel: In order to believe, people must hear the Gospel. You will need to learn to clearly communicate the Good News to your people group and do this on a regular basis.
   
   
7. Disciple new and existing believers: As people come to faith or you come across believers among your people group, you will be responsible for investing your life in them and teaching them to obey all that you have been taught.
   
   
8. Nurture small groups into churches: The goal for new believers is always to meet together as a local church. You must be intentional about this even from the beginning. It is through local churches that CPMs will start.
   
   
9. Initiate church-planting movements: Your understanding of and commitment to facilitating CPMs will be of the utmost importance as you influence other believers. It is through your passion to see God glorified in this way that others will catch hold of the CPM vision for your people group.
   
   
10. Record information for those who come behind: You must be able to communicate to others what you discover so that your effort will not be wasted. This will include a people group profile, maps, trip logs, contacts, and anything that will aid those who walk the trail you blaze.
    
    
11. Intentionally mobilize someone to finish the task: If your people group is receptive to the Gospel, it will be important that you look for those God is calling to carry out to completion the work that He started through you. This may require writing another job request, returning as a career missionary to your people group, or training and entrusting the task to nationals.
    

Extreme Edgers will likely spend some time establishing identity or platform. This might be tourist, student, ESL teacher, or community development specialist. You should not see this as time away from your major assignment, but as another legitimate way to build relationships and help the people.

Throughout your term, there will be periodic times when Edgers will meet together for sharing, fellowship, additional training/equipping and rest. Our hope is that you and your supervisor will meet in person at least four times a year and communicate frequently through email, phone calls, and Skype (instant messenger).

After some initial orientation and cultural adjustment, your supervisor will begin discussions with you concerning the direction of your assignment. In most cases, our assumption is that you will work with one people group during your entire term. You may stay on as front-liners among the people with the continued objective of sharing your faith, discipling believers and starting churches that can multiply. You may become Strategy Coordinator interns who will combine what you have learned about the people with strategic concepts they will learn from special training to develop an overall strategy to reach your people group. This decision will be made in open dialogue between you and your supervisor. Our desire is to help you maximize your strengths in order to make the greatest impact on people who have never heard the Gospel.