We received a particularly interesting testimony last week of how our Nation -2- Nation Community Development material is being used in the remote mountainous areas of Peru.

Walt and Mary Lynne Wood are missionaries to the Quechua Indians, and they oversee Bible schools in Peru. Last winter they held a small conference for the Quechua Bible school administrators- about 16 men and one woman in total.

The first item on the agenda was the roll out of our Community Development series. To the surprise of the Woods, the men decided to review the series on childbirth first. Within minutes, the whole group was thoroughly  engrossed in the teaching as if it were the most important thing they had ever seen. As the course ended, the men began to discuss it. Most of the men were married and had children. These men had all served as the roll of “doctor” or “midwife” during their wive’s deliveries since there were no doctors available.

They told stories about deliveries that would terrify any expectant mother. One man told how one expectant woman’s husband, gathered three of his friends together and got very drunk in preparation of the imminent delivery. Only after the mother and child miraculously survived their intoxicated “help” did the village medical worker show up. The four drunks became very angry with him for not showing up on time and ran him off saying that they would care for the mother.

The pastor who will first use the Community Development series had himself delivered his first child while he and his wife were traveling down the violent Apurimac River in an open boat in the middle of the night.

The Bible School administrators all expressed how they wished that they had the teaching when they had to deliver their children, how they had known nothing about pregnancy and childbirth previously, and how important this teaching would be in the future.

We are excited to introduce our forthcoming series “Leading When You’re Not the Boss – A Discussion of Middle Leadership” by Pastor Andy Zack. This seven-session DVD series teaches on a particularly unique subject: Middle Leadership. The importance of middle leadership is often overlooked; especially in light of the countless courses, available from a variety of sources, which are designed to train people on how to be the leader.

Leading When You’re Not the Boss teaches the difference between “Middle Management” and “Middle Leadership”, and how to effectively lead others from a position of support for the head leader’s vision and authority. Pastor Andy Zack also teaches how head leaders and middle leaders should relate to one another so that the vision and goals of the head leader can be most effectively accomplished as a leadership team. We believe that this series will train, encourage, and empower both pastoral and lay staff in the church and ministry, as well as leaders in the business workplace.

Rev. Andy Zack has been in pastoral ministry for over 25 years having served as a youth pastor, a senior pastor, and now as the Executive Associate Pastor of Love Joy Church in Lancaster, NY, where he assists the senior pastors in all areas of ministry. Rev. Zack leads ministry training at Love Joy Church as well as facilitating a regular regional gathering of associate pastors. He also serves as an Assistant Area Representative for Elim Fellowship and is an instructor at Elim Bible Institute.

Look for this series soon at the Nation -2- Nation store at winministries.org/store