Snapshots from Inside

Posted on: 
January 1, 2018

What happens at our annual ABT Board and Advisor meetings?

Each year has been different! This year for the first time we met on Friday at noon and started the weekend out with two subcommittee meetings. The first committee wrestled with the question of how to continue providing adequate training and equipping for the sending churches we partner with. The second committee worked toward finishing up a review of ABT’s Policy Handbook. Both groups transitioned to meeting around 3:30 to continue methodically working our way together through ABT’s Translation Policy (presently in draft stage).

Then on Friday evening all the Board Members' and Advisors’ wives were invited to join us for supper followed by a time of worship and prayer. We prayed together over each field-region and team by name. After that we broke up into three smaller groups to pray for each member-in-training and sending church partnership.

Following this the Executive Team reported on what they, by the grace of God, accomplished in 2017. Aaron Crider presented a couple of graphs to portray the estimated percentages of time spent in various tasks (communication with members, strategic planning, training, prayer, team meetings, etc.)

What was the highlight of Friday evening? Two 15-20 minute speeches by ABT Advisor Paul Weaver (from Christian Aid Ministries) and Steve Sanford (a consultant from Ethnos360, formerly NTM) with each session followed by a time of Q&A.

- Paul Weaver lectured on the subject of “Effective Interaction Between a Board and Executive Committee.”
- Steve Sanford addressed the topic of “The Reason Behind the Big Picture Methodology of Ethnos360.”

Most of us stayed overnight at the cabin. The following morning began with prayer, worship (the men of the ABT board really like to sing), a devotional and eventually a formal meeting with reading of minutes with a typical agenda. This always includes a financial report, re-appointments for advisors, discussing various big-picture questions, etc.

And finally, it wouldn’t be permissible to forget to mention that in the middle of everything else that happened Saturday, we enjoyed an extremely generous brunch catered by Rebecca Sauder!

*ABT Board of Directors meets with the ABT Executive Committee twice quarterly (once in person and once via conference call). The ABT Advisory Council joins us annually each January.

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  • “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Romans 10:17
  • “Repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And you are witness of these things.” Luke 24:47, 48
  • “Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations.” Matthew 28:19
  • “In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Genesis 12:3
  • “That the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the Gospel.” Ephesians 3:6
  • “That they all may be one; as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You, that they also may be one in Us; that the world may believe that You sent Me.” John 17:21
  • “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations’?” Mark 11:17
  • “Ask of me, and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance.” Psalm 2:8
  • “Behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes.” Revelation 7:9
  • “Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified.” 2 Thessalonians 3:1
  • “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16
  • “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Psalm 119:105
  • “As cold water to a weary soul, so is good news from a far country.” Proverbs 25:25
  • “More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” Psalm 19:10
  • “All the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship before You.” Psalm 22:27
  • “Truly, as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD.” Numbers 14:21
  • “Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples. For the LORD is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.” Psalm 96:3, 4
  • “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” Habakkuk 2:14
  • “That all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God; there is no other.” 1 Kings 8:60
  • “For from the rising of the sun, even to its going down, My name shall be great among the Gentiles; in every place incense shall be offered to My name, and a pure offering; for My name shall be great among the nations.” Malachi 1:11
  • “All nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, O Lord, and shall glorify Your name.” Psalm 86:9
  • “For as the earth brings forth its bud, as the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.” Isaiah 61:11
  • "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" Psalm 46:10
  • "This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." 1 Timothy 2:3, 4
  • "You are worthy. . .; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God." Revelation 5:9, 10