Interactive Bible Discovery Course Manual by Davar Partners International

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY COURSE MANUAL

Engaging Oral Learners with the Word of God

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | TRAINER’S MANUAL

Interactive Bible Discovery Course Manual Copyright © March 2015 Davar Partners International Executive Editors: Gerhard Marx Dr. David Swarr Copy Editor: Psalm Swarr & Matthew Meng Version INT-1.0.1 Graphics and Layout: Bolt Creative & Arielle Swarr Compilation Staff: Elize Engelbrecht and Christiaan Bornman Photo credit, front cover: Brad Livengood All Scripture references, unless otherwise noted, come from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV® Text Edition: 2011. Simply the Story content used by permission. Content from Making Disciples of Oral Learners by the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization (LCWE) and International Orality Network (ION) used by permission.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Endorsements Dorothy A. Miller

Executive Director, The God’s Story Project We at Simply The Story thrill at the rainbow of ways innovators in the Body of Christ are incorporating oral strategies. The Interactive Bible Discovery Course Manual is one such resource. It not only clearly presents the apologetics to literate learners for oral strategy, it also starts people on the practical use of stories. Dorothy remained faithful in her kingdom service to engage oral learners with the Word of God up to her last days on earth. She was called into a higher service, to be with the Lord on the 9th of December 2014. Dorothy’s influence through Simply the Story and The God’s Story Project is still making an impact today. We at Davar Partners International honour her for championing this cause, for mentoring us in the development and implementation of Interactive Bible Discovery training and for her profound commitment to the Word of God. Her life serves as an example today to all who are involved in bringing the Word of God to all people.

Bramuel Musya

Founder and CEO, Straight Path Resources, Kenya African Coordinator, International Orality Network From the beginning of their ministry, Davar has shown great commitment to effective audio Scripture engagement. Now, they have assembled another useful resource. This course manual will help you to understand the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of orality. While many have journeyed through years of study and research to understand the subject of orality, this creative and practical tool will guide you to a much faster understanding. It is a wonderful addition to the insufficient endeavors of influencing the church globally to make disciples of oral learners.

Jerry Rankin

President Emeritus, International Mission Board, SBC Since discerning that oral cultures represent a significant segment of people groups yet to be evangelized and engaged with the Gospel, Davar Partners International has served churches and the global mission community in providing resources to reach people without access to the Word of God. Effective evangelistic tools have been developed and utilised in many cultures, but the challenge remains of providing discipleship and nurture that results in reproducing churches among Believers in functionally illiterate societies. The “Interactive Bible Discovery” Course Manual has been developed to move beyond an evangelistic witness to guide Believers who cannot read to be discipled through engaging them with the Word of God. The IBD Manual offers a guide for storying the Bible in one’s heart language in an obedience based mentoring process that will impact cultures and result in church growth through a disciple-making movement. This will be a valuable tool for workers anywhere in the world seeking to engage oral cultures with the Gospel and facilitate movements to Christ.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Table of Contents Acknowledgements 6

MODULE 2 – ENGAGING WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Introduction 7

Building Block 3: The Importance of the Word of God

Purpose and Method 8 Guide to Manual 9 Using Audio Tools and Content in 10 Interactive Bible Discovery Key Terms 11

MODULE 1 – ORAL STRATEGIES Building Block 1: 12 The Need and the Audio Scripture Engagement Challenge Objective: Understanding the need for the Word of God among oral learners globally Topics: i. Global orality facts ii. The relevance of oral methods of Scripture engagement to world evangelisation Building Block 2: Orality, Literacy and Communication Styles

Objective: Realising the critical importance of engaging with the whole Word of God Topics: i. The relationship of consistent Scripture engagement to personal and community transformation ii. The importance of the whole Bible iii. Ancient Israel as a model for oral communities Building Block 4: Language of the Heart

Objective: Understanding the value of communicating in the heart language Topic: The importance of heart language

MODULE 3 – INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY Building Block 5: Learning and Telling Stories

Objective: Understanding orality, oral cultures and the importance of oral communication methods

Objective: Knowing how to implement a discussion based method of teaching Scripture

Topics: i. How oral learners think and learn ii. The Oral-Literate Continuum iii. Differences in the perspectives of the oral and literate learner iv. Effective oral communication

Topics: i. Guidelines in the selection of Bible stories ii. The 5 steps of learning the story (strong hand principle) iii. The 5 steps of telling the story Building Block 6: Obedience Based Discipleship Objective: Acquiring the skills for effective audio Scripture engagement Topics: i. Why stories and questions are important ii. Obedience based discipleship iii. Leading into discovery

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

MODULE 4 – DEVELOPING AN EFFECTIVE OUTREACH STRATEGY Building Block 7: Plan and Frequency

Building Block 11: Accountability and Reporting 36

Objective: Understanding how to develop and implement a regular and consistent audio Scripture engagement plan

Objective: Understanding the importance of accountability and reporting to on-going growth Topic: Essential 6: Reporting and accountability as tools of replication Tools and Resources 47

Topics: i. Systematic engagement with the Word of God ii. The value of chronological Scripture engagement

Notes 48 Works Cited 54

Building Block 8: The 6 Essentials for a Self-replicating Audio Scripture Engagement Movement

Objective: Understanding the keys to facilitating a self-replicating IBD movement in an oral community Topics: i. Overview of the 6 essentials: prayer, access, plan, modelling, replication, reporting ii. Essential 1: Laying a foundation of prayer iii. Essential 2: Identification of an appropriate point of access through a “person of peace” Building Block 9: Designing an IBD Plan for the Whole Community

Objective: Understanding the need for natural affinity groups in order to implement IBD effectively in a community Topic: Essential 3: Planning an IBD strategy tailored for each segment of the community Building Block 10: Modelling and Replication

Objective: Knowing how to create a process of replication through modelling and intentional extension through additional persons of peace. Topics: i. Essential 4: Modelling life lessons ii. Essential 5: Creating a process of replication

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Acknowledgements We would like to extend special appreciation to Mrs. Dorothy Miller of The God’s Story Project and Simply the Story. She is to be credited for her passion for chronological Bible storying and for leading oral learners in discovery of scriptural truths through discussion. She has laboured selflessly to bring awareness of the need for oral strategies and teaching Bible storytelling so that the spoken Word of God can come alive to oral and literate learners alike. Dorothy has helped to lay the foundational understanding of purposefully integrating chronological Bible storying with audio Scripture engagement. Her leadership in this field has helped to fuel a global grassroots movement, making it possible for countless oral learners to have a deeper understanding of Scripture. We would like to also thank Samuel Chiang and the International Orality Network for the use of materials on understanding orality and discipleship for oral learners. We are grateful for people like these from around the world, trainers and practitioners alike, for their dedication and willingness to share freely from their experience and wisdom, thereby providing us with the opportunity for development and growth of this program. This work has been built on the shoulders of many who have gone before us. We have tried to give credit where it is possible. We also recognise that there are many whose prayers for Bible-less oral people have made this work and much more possible. We salute and thank you! Deep is our gratitude to our many oral friends who have taught us so much about the way oral people think and live.

“The IBD Manual offers a guide for storying the Bible in one’s heart language in an obedience based mentoring process that will impact cultures and result in church growth through a disciple-making movement.” Jerry Rankin

President Emeritus, International Mission Board, SBC

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Introduction Each year thousands of outreach teams serve in frontier settings of the world. This has become a global phenomenon involving church, teams and organisations from South Korea, Brazil, Hong Kong, South Africa, Europe, Australia, Israel and many more. U.S. churches alone spend 1.2 billion dollars annually on short-term outreaches. In most of these frontier settings the teams rub shoulders with oral learners, but few are equipped to communicate effectively with them. Samuel Chiang, Executive Director of the International Orality Network, has issued a call for every church and organisation globally to have oral strategies, and that every outreach team be provided with audio Scriptures for oral learners. Imagine harnessing the full potential of this tremendous resource in such a way that every outreach makes a permanent contribution of Bible engagement among a Bible-less oral people. The IBD Course Manual helps to make this possible by assisting the literate thinker in understanding the way oral people think and learn. Utilising a unique but simple method which integrates storytelling and audio Scripture engagement, it trains literate thinkers to empower oral learners to personally engage with the Word of God. The purpose of this training is to create multiplying processes of Scripture engagement. Whether you are a highly educated church planter in an unreached people group, a mission pastor sending out missionaries or a short-term team leader preparing to dig wells or provide medical services, the IBD training will help you and your team be equipped to bring the gift of engagement with the Word of God to an oral community. Dr. David Swarr and Gerhard Marx

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Purpose and method PURPOSE

The steps of implementation are as follows:

This training equips literate thinkers to empower oral learners to personally engage with the Word of God and to create a multiplying process of audio Scripture engagement.

Trainer is equipped with the skills needed through this manual.

METHOD IBD training helps the literate thinker understand the way oral people learn, teaches strategies for bridging into an oral community and integrates storytelling and audio Scripture engagement to create ongoing Interactive Bible Discovery in an oral community.

Trainer then trains outreach leaders or â&#x20AC;&#x153;persons of peaceâ&#x20AC;?.

The IBD program is implemented with the oral people group.

Feedback and follow-up take place and replication begins with the next generation of oral learners.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Guide to manual The manual is designed around a structure of Modules and Building Blocks. • Module = Learning Theme • Building Blocks = Subsections making up the Modules

INFORMATION

Interactive presentation

There are 4 Modules and 11 Building Blocks. Each Building Block is designed so that it can be a stand-alone lesson or as part of an intensive seminar. The 40-60 minute Building Blocks can be presented in a series over a period of weeks, or all can be combined into a 2-3 day seminar. The information section of each Building Block is provided as lesson material for the trainer. It is accompanied by tools, props and additional resources*. The trainer is encouraged to utilise the information and tools in building their own presentation of the lesson. This should be customised to the particular audience based on factors of age, literate-oral orientation, training time frame, and so forth. A goal should be to model orality principles throughout the training. The 4 elements (information, discussion, story and testimony) of each Building Block are designed to enable the trainer in doing so. Though presented as 4 unique parts on paper they are not necessarily intended to be used in a sequential manner, but should be woven together by the trainer in a way that illustrates oral teaching principles and methods. Each of the 4 elements (information, discussion, story and testimony) should be prepared ahead of time and known by heart. The trainer should purposefully engage in a conversation style in presenting each of the 4 elements. In order to facilitate group interaction, the trainer should follow the storytelling principles for each Bible story using the questions: What is the situation? What was said and done? What were the choices involved? What was the result of these choices? What does it say about God? What does it say about people’s relationship with God? What does this mean for my life?

DISCUSSION

Group interaction with the learning principles

STORY

Application of principles using a Bible story

TESTIMONY

Illustrations from practice

* Tools and resources are supplied for each Module either in the main content section or in the supplementary section at the back of the manual.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Using audio tools & content in interactive Bible discovery Audio Tools

Using audio tools is an integral part of the IBD training, whether participants are oral or literate learners. The use of an audio Bible during training will enable the participants to develop listening and training skills appropriate to engaging an oral community. The Audibible® is one such tool. The Audibible is a solarrechargeable audio player about the size of a cell-phone, capable of holding thousands of hours of high quality audio content. It is practically indestructible and ideal for all climates, whether humid or dusty. The Audibible can contain any selection of audio you choose in more than one language at a time: The Full Bible, Old and New Testament passages, chronological Bible stories, drama, songs, sermons, and teaching, as well as health, sanitation and community development materials. Anyone can use the Audibible software to program and directly load content while in the field. Davar works to provide Audibibles directly to Bible-less oral people in their heart language. Find out more at www.davarpartners.com/audibible If you are using the Audibible for the IBD training, it is important to walk through how to use it with the participants. You can do this by: - showing how to navigate audio content on the Audibible - walking through the Audibible® User’s Manual - introducing how audio content can be developed and loaded in the field using the Software User Guide. These are available on the Trainer’s Toolkit as well as on the Davar website.

Audio Content

It is important that the audio content you bring to an oral community be in their heart language. It is best that full spoken Word of God be used, but when it is not available in the heart language, the following can be used: - the audio New Testament - Discovering God’s Plan of Salvation and Bible 3-6-5 - The Story of Jesus, God’s Story or other biblical story sets Discovering God’s Plan of Salvation A first chronological Bible stories set for oral learners, including 30 chronological Bible stories covering essential portions of the Old and New Testament. This story list can be used in the beginning stages of storytelling within Interactive Bible Discovery. The 30 chronological Bible stories are included in the ‘Notes’ section of this manual. Bible 3-6-5 A Davar Partners International project that gives Bible-less oral people the “bread of life” daily for a year in a language 10

close to their hearts and in a form they understand through the translation and recording of 365 chronological stories/ Scripture portions from Genesis to Revelation, resulting in a whole Bible overview. The list of chronological Bible 3-6-5 stories can be found in the ‘Notes’ section of this manual. (For more information see Projects at www.davarpartners. com/projects/bible-3-6-5) The Story of Jesus An audio drama based on the Jesus Film, taken from the Gospel of Luke. (For more information see www.jesusfilm.org) The God’s Story Project “God’s Story: From Creation To Eternity” presents an overview of the whole Bible, highlighting God’s promised plan. The audio is from The God’s Story Project and can be available on the Audibible and other audio devices. (For more information visit: www.gods-story.org)

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Key terms Audio Scripture Engagement (ASE)

Consistent interaction with the audio Word of God in a person’s heart language that provides sufficient opportunity for the Bible to speak for itself by the power of the Holy Spirit, enabling discipleship and discovery of spiritual truth.

Interactive Bible Discovery (IBD)

A method of integrating storytelling and audio Scripture engagement to create ongoing discipleship in an oral community

Person of Peace (also referred to as “entity of change” or “man of peace”)

A person who needs to be empowered to influence a particular affinity group toward regular engagement with the Word of God, and who influences other affinity groups to follow the process. This person should 1) be receptive to the Gospel; 2) possess a reputation to gain attention for the message among family and community; 3) effectively refer the ‘bearers of good news’ to that larger group.

Orality

The quality of being spoken or verbally communicated; preference for or tendency to use spoken forms of language (Oxford English Dictionary)

Oral learner

A person whose mental framework is primarily influenced by spoken rather than literate forms of communication and who therefore learns primarily or exclusively by speech, song, etc. (See more at www.orality.net/what_is_oral_learning)

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

MODULE 1

ORAL STRATEGIES

Introduction Optional: One of the stories can be presented or, alternatively, the Walking with Jesus video can be played as an introduction before workshop begins. Trainer can open with the following: • Requesting silence, as talking will use critical time needed for the workshop • Prayer and greetings • Overview of schedule • Statement to participants: “During this training program you are going to experience the world of an oral learner, and the oral methodology of Interactive Bible Discovery.” • Purpose, method and explanation of the 4 parts of each Building Block: information, discussion, story, testimony • For small group exercises, the larger group should be divided into smaller groups of about 4-6 people. Various creative techniques can be used to divide into smaller groups. The more interactive the technique, the better it will be for illustrating the importance of oral communication. • Before the training commences, it is also important to gauge the expectations of the group and to revisit those expectations at the end of the training. If a whiteboard is available write down some of the stated expectations and keep them up on the board so you can refer back to them. 12

Building Block 1 The Need and the Audio Scripture Engagement Challenge Objective:

Understanding the need for the Word of God among oral learners globally

Topics:

i. Global orality facts ii. The relevance of oral methods of Scripture engagement to world evangelisation

Tools (found in resource section): i. ii. iii. iv. v.

Walking with Jesus video Knock Knock video The Leading Edge ION video Wycliffe Scripture Access Statistics – PDF Extra resource – A Thousand Questions – Youtube video

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Information “[We live in] an age where there’s no canon, where there are so many other forms of information, and where we’re returning to medieval-like oral culture based on television…We should be alarmed, I suppose, but the horse has long since run out of the barn. Two distinct cultures have evolved, and by far the smaller is the one that’s tied up with book and high culture.” Kevin Starr “There are too few strategies and resources committed to the oral learners of the world.”

their heart language • approximately 2 billion people without the Old Testament • too few strategies and resources committed to the oral learners of the world

<130 Languages with the entire audio Bible

850 Languages with the audio New Testament

2817 Languages with Scripture portions

6918 Spoken languages

International Orality Network Show (optional) Knock-Knock video and/or The Leading Edge ION video.

(Statistics as of March 2014)

Imagine your life, family and community if: • Jesus had never come • there had never been a Bible in your language • the Printing Press had not been invented

1 2 3 4

Why are oral methods of Scripture engagement vital to world evangelisation? Most people don’t realise that over two-thirds of the world (± 5.7 billion people) are comprised of oral learners. Oral learners are found in cultural groups in villages and cities around the world. As such, over 60% of the world’s population can’t, won’t or don’t hear the Gospel when we share it, simply because it is often coming to them through literate means they do not understand and to which they do not relate. They are visually impaired, illiterate or functionally illiterate. Furthermore, 29% of the world’s population remains unreached and unengaged with the Gospel. One of the major factors causing this lack of engagement is because they are oral learners.*

25% Illiterate 35% Functionally Illiterate 19% Oral Preference 3% Blind or Visually Impaired

= 80+ %

of the world are oral learners

To be more specific, the Audio Scripture Engagement Declaration endorsed by the International Orality Network states that there are: • 2.7 billion unreached people resulting in approximately 3,500 unengaged, unreached people groups • 2,252 unengaged, unreached people groups consisting of 350 million people without a single verse of Scripture in * See Notes section for further information.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

We can look back to an example in history to see how Scripture has spread. In the year 1450 in Europe, the Gutenberg Printing Press enabled a print revolution and unprecedented spread of the Word of God. Oral means were available prior to Gutenberg, but a Scripture literacy revolution was empowered by means of making the full Bible available to every person – who could read. We stand today at another seminal point in history where digital technology makes it possible for every oral learner to engage with God’s Word in audio and audio-visual forms (“Audio Scripture Declaration”). We believe that the foundation for life transformation and worldview change is obedience to the Word of God. It is therefore the inalienable right and privilege of every person, including every oral learner, to have access to the Word of God in their own language and in a media format they understand (“Audio Scripture Declaration”). However, how will every person engage with God’s Word unless it comes to them in an appropriate audio form? If this is going to happen, current print-based methodologies of evangelism must change. In conclusion, according to Dr. Avery Willis, “We are missing the target in missions by using literate means to reach the world that have two-thirds oral learners, thus nearly 70% of the people. Targeting oral learners equals smart missions. The key to reach these oral learners is telling God’s stories and could be seen as the last exciting breakthrough in missions in the last 200 years” (Willis).

Discussion Discuss the Scripture access statistics with these questions: • What is one thing that struck you most from this information? • Do you have any questions about the statistics? • Are you aware that two-thirds of the world do not have access to the Word of God because they do not read? • How do you feel about these facts? How are you impacted? • Do we have a responsibility to change this reality? What can we do about it as individuals, families, groups or churches?

Story Inheriting Eternal Life – Luke 10:25-28 Prepare this story using the 5 steps of learning the story/ strong hand principle. (For a full explanation of these steps, please see Building Block 5.) Note: The trainer should tell this story. On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the Law(Torah)?” he replied. “How do you read it?” He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.” (NIV) Ask questions about the story: • What is the situation? What can we learn from the situation? (Example: Who is the man of the law?) • What was said and done? (Example: What was Jesus’ reaction? Note: The man’s response is a summary of the Ten Commandments and focuses on relationship with God and our neighbours.) • What were the choices involved? What was the results of these choices? • What does it say about God? (Example: Does Jesus’ answer challenge our paradigm/view on how we inherit eternal life? What does this say about people’s relationship to God?) • What does this mean for my life? Note to trainer: There is no specific sequence to the questions. Adjust your questions according to the responses from the participants.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Testimony The Blind Lady of Addis Ababa Gerhard and John, cross-cultural missionaries, visited Scripture engagement groups in and around Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. In an industrial area on the outskirts of Addis Ababa, a man lives with his extended family and other people who are renting rooms from him on his property. His mother, who had been blind from birth, lives with him in the same house. When Gerhard and John arrived at his home they were introduced to his mother as well. She is an Amhara person and Amharic speaker.

John was visiting the man of the house regularly in friendship evangelism, sharing stories from the Word with him. As this man was from a Muslim background, he had lots of questions. One day John gave him an audio player with The Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Story (18 stories from the Word). This man was afraid and only listened to the stories in secret late in the evenings in the kitchen. But he underestimated his mother, who with a keen sense of hearing heard the surreptitious sounds in the evening and went to her door to listen. She did so every evening as her son was listening in the kitchen and actually dedicated her life to the Lord Jesus Christ before her son decided to do the same. More people joined in adjacent rooms listening every night. Only after a long time was it discovered that more than 20 people had been listening in secrecy, not knowing that each had dedicated their lives to the one and only Messiah.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Building Block 2 Orality, Literacy and Communication Styles Objective:

Understanding orality, oral cultures and the importance of oral communication methods

Topics:

i. How oral learners think and learn ii. The Oral-Literate Continuum iii. Differences in the perspectives of the oral and literate learner iv. Effective oral communication

Tools (found in resource section): i.

ii. iii. iv. v.

Three pieces of paper with a square, circle and triangle drawn on them. Objects or pictures of objects: knife, plate, mug, fruit, log, hammer, axe, and saw Differences in Worldviews Four pieces of paper with NAAL percentages – 14%, 29%, 44%, 13% US Religious Landscape Study

Information This section is largely adapted from chapters of the book Making Disciples of Oral Learners by the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization (LCWE) and International Orality Network (ION).

While a majority of people ministering in oral communities use literate strategies, these approaches are only effective with a small percentage of the population. Even in developed nations with long-standing literate traditions like the USA, as much as half of the population have a limited range of literacy skills, live day-to-day by oral means and are only able to read simple, brief materials. These people are frequently not able to integrate spiritual truths from the written Bible text into their lives (LCWE and ION, 19).

The Oral-Literate Continuum* The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) defines “reading literacy” as “The ability to understand, use and reflect on written texts in order to achieve one’s goals, to develop one’s knowledge and potential and to participate effectively in society.” There is a broad range of definitions of literacy. According to the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization and International Orality Network, “Survey results from NAAL [National Assessment of Adult Literacy] suggest that there is not a simple black and white dichotomy between illiterates and literates. Other studies give more revealing definitions of literacy that shows a greater polarization between how literate and non-reading people function in society.” The graph on page 13 illustrates this. Another example of the challenge in defining literacy is as follows: A San Bushman from the Kalahari (Southern Africa) can be completely Roman text illiterate while at the same time being highly field/nature literate. Likewise a Chinese person can be highly literate in reading and writing Mandarin script, yet have no proficiency in reading and writing basic English. The levels of literacy can be reflected on a continuum, or scale/range (Slack):

How oral learners think and learn Literate persons who want to communicate effectively in oral cultures need to learn to understand how oral learners think and how to use oral methods and tools of communication Many, if not most, missionaries and Christian workers are literate or highly literate, and are naturally used to communicating primarily through literate means. This makes it difficult for true understanding between themselves and the oral learner they are trying to reach. Understanding the motivations and mindsets in various levels of literacy can help break down this barrier (Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization and International Orality Network, 21)

“Orality is the quality of being spoken or verbally communicated; preference for or tendency to use spoken forms of language.”

1st Level: Illiterates Words do not exist as letters but are related to images of events and situations that are seen or experienced.

2nd Level: Functional Illiterates Have had limited schooling, but can often no longer receive, recall and produce concepts, ideas, precepts and principles through literate means. They prefer to receive information orally.

(Oxford English Dictionary) 16

* See Notes section for further information.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

3rd Level: Semi-Literates Learn primarily by means of narrated presentations.

4th

Level: Literate Learners and Communicators Understand and handle information such as ideas, principles and concepts by literate means.

5th Level: Highly Literate Learners and Communicators Have usually attended college, are often professionals in academic fields, and have a thoroughly print-based culture. To reach illiterates and functional illiterates, highly literate workers face many challenges.

Differences in the perspectives of the oral and literate learner After developing a basic awareness of orality, it is important to understand the oral learnerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s perspective, which is based on life skills and learning by example. Whereas literate learners process information in a pragmatic, often objective and analytical way, oral learners most readily process information that is concrete and sequential, which is presented in a highly relational context (LCWE and ION, 22). As an example, oral learners think and talk about events, while literate learners think and talk about words, concepts and principles. One illustration of this dichotomy is the story of a person who worked for years to take hundreds of Bibles to a tribe in Africa. The tribe took them graciously, nodding respectfully. Later, another person returned to the tribe and saw that after the first had left, the tribe had used the Bibles as fuel for their fires. Not knowing how to read, they could not value the incredible gift they were given. Outside of their own worldview, the book was put to the only use they could find for it.

(Infographic from GMI Missiographics)

Ask the group: By a show of hands, who has encountered similar challenges?

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Plato predicted millenniums ago that a people who rely on printed text systems, as a crutch, will have substandard memories: “This discovery of yours [writing] will produce forgetfulness in the minds of those who learn to use it…they will trust to the external written characters and not the use of their own memories; you give your students not truth, but only the appearance of truth; they will read many things but will have learned nothing” (Freebody, 18).

power to actually change how people feel, think and behave and to change the way they see the world, it is important then to select stories that address the worldview of the listener, and to have a sequential, step-by-step process that leads them to a new biblical worldview. In conclusion, understanding orality and oral cultures gives us the basis for adopting effective oral communication strategies so that the people will embrace the messages from the Bible (LCWE and ION, 28-29). As worldview resides in the heart of a man it is therefore clear that stories, and specifically Bible stories, carry the power to transform worldviews. There is a Native American proverb that says, “Tell me a fact and I’ll learn it. Tell me a truth and I’ll believe. But tell me a story and it will live in my heart forever!”

Effective oral communication* Tools for effective communication in a particular oral culture may be discovered by careful observation and participation in the life of the community. According to the LCWE and ION, “Using existing oral communication forms such as music, drama, poetry, dance, proverbs, and especially story improves the impact of the message. Oral learners enter a story and live it in the present tense – seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling and feeling what the people in the story are experiencing. They hang reality on these sensory experiences” (LCWE and ION, 22). They picture the story and identify mental markers in the story. As oral communicators make use of memory and speech, no extra tools are needed to replicate the message. Oral learners use the storyline to store, organise and communicate information. This results in low-cost training which can be easily replicated and allows every listener to become a disciple-maker. Story is central to oral learners because it is a bridge to the heart, and because it involves the listener when told in an interactive way. This may help us understand why the Bible is so full of stories. The composition of the Bible is: 1. 10% exposition (explanation/teaching/preaching) 2. 15% poetry 3. 75% narrative (story) Storytelling, powered by concrete specifics rather than abstract ideas, lends itself to cross-cultural sensitivity and allows breakthroughs to the core of the culture. It is a strategy well suited to traditional, relational-based oral cultures, e.g. Hindu, Buddhist/Tibetan Buddhist, Muslim, and Animist. In these cultures, storytelling is a communication style already well known and understood, and naturally encourages group audiences rather than individual listeners. As clusters of Believers (local fellowships) emerge, they typically do so already grouped by existing, natural relationships (LCWE and ION, 28-29). Effective communicators in oral cultures should be worldview sensitive. Worldview is the perspective from which a person sees and interprets the world, or a collection of beliefs about the world and a human’s relation to it held by an individual or group. This perspective affects how an oral learner receives any message, teaching or story. Because stories possess the 18

Discussion Share the Differences in Worldviews document with the group. Guide with questions and ask for responses from group members. Exercise 1 Ask participants to describe three pieces of paper with the following shapes. Discuss the assumptions or differences of understanding of these symbols, their names and meanings.

A literate person will see these as abstract shapes. An oral person will see the brick, moon and a house (for example). Note to trainer: Use examples for the shapes that fit the context of the people being trained. If unsure ask for suggestions during a break prior to this session. Exercise 2 Show pictures of a log, a hammer, an axe and a saw and ask which one does not fit. A literate learner will most likely say the log, while the oral learner will say the hammer (because it cannot be used functionally to cut the log). Exercise 3 Show the group the following: a knife, a plate, a mug and a fruit, and ask which one does not fit. A literate learner will likely say that the fruit does not fit, because it does not fit the category of dishes. The oral learner will likely say that the mug does not fit because one needs the knife to cut the fruit on the plate. An oral learner will see the direct purpose of the objects, not the abstract categories. Exercise 4 Say out loud to the group the words: lady, pray, dishes, step, foot, face, blood, daughter, phone, friend. Ask volunteers to try to remember the sequence and repeat it. Then, have them put the words into a story and repeat the list afterward again. Notice if their memories improve when repeating the list. Ask those who got all ten words right how they did it.

* See Notes section for further information.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

The use of markers in a story helps with the retention of information. This can be compared to a literate person using a highlighter pen to highlight key words in the text of a document.

Testimony Moses and Marjorie

Story Context information for listeners: • Nathan is a prophet (2 Samuel 7:2) • David has sinned with Bathsheba and Uriah Prepare this story using the strong hand principle (Building Block 5).

Nathan’s Example - 2 Samuel 12:1-7a And the LORD sent Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds, but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. And he brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children. It used to eat of his morsel and drink from his cup and lie in his arms, and it was like a daughter to him. Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was unwilling to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the guest who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.” Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the LORD lives, the man who has done this deserves to die, and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.” Nathan said to David, “You are the man!” Ask questions about the story: • What was the situation? (Example: Before David heard Nathan’s story, did he know that he had committed a sin?) • What was said and done? (Example: What kind of sermon did Nathan use?) • What were the choices involved? (Example: Could Nathan have used another way to convey the message?) What were the results of these choices? (Example: Had David admitted his sin before or after he heard the story?) • What does it say about God? What does this say about people’s relationship to God?

Moses and Marjorie are young disciples of Operation Mobilization, who live with their baby Joshua in Tongwa, a small fishing village off of Lake Tanganika, Zambia. They had the first Christian wedding in Tongwa and have been through much persecution because of what they believe. They live their lives by completely different values learned from the Bible, and Moses is often called weak because of how he treats his family with love and kindness. However, many young men have been greatly influenced by his example. They are trying to reach out to others through discipleship and setting an example of a godly marriage and lifestyle. The background of Tongwa is traditional religion involving ancestor worship and worship of water spirits. The village is 99% illiterate, and the average life expectancy of the village is 30 years old. Here, a normal ministry approach does not work. Fear controls the village as the headman and witch doctor rule by accusations. The village revolves around fishing and survival, and there is a significant amount of human and animal sacrifice built around the occurrence of fishing crises. The women and children are treated as property, and a man’s status has to do only with fishing and not family or other values. The value structure in general is extremely different. If a man beats or leaves his wife, for example, it doesn’t matter to anyone. But today in Tongwa, interactive discipleship training is continually happening in the local language with the help of Audibibles. Many of the young men and women who became Believers told us that their lives changed when they heard the Word in their own language, and they came to realise that they needed to live with completely different values. The difference in their lives is outwardly evident. Moses told us, “Listening to God’s Word has shown me how important it is to love my wife and my children. I love them so much! I lead a Bible study using the Audibible® with others in my community, and listen to it every morning and evening with my wife and my son Joshua.” Marjorie said, “I first heard the Audibible and the verse in Genesis 1 that we are all made in the image of God. It was then that I realised that I too, as a woman, have dignity.”

• What does this mean for my life?

Moses, Marjorie, and Joshua

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

MODULE 2

ENGAGING WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Introduction “Over the course of the last century, Christian penetration of local cultures has accelerated as never before. The great vehicle of that acceleration has been translation, primarily translation of the Bible into local languages… In a word, the world Christian situation is marked by multiplicity because of how deep the Christian message, translated into local languages, has become part of local cultures.” Mark Noll “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). Literate and oral people need the complete Word of God so that they will become “a treasured possession, a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” in a living relationship with the Lord and with a biblical worldview.

Building Block 3 The Importance of the Word of God Objective:

Realising the critical importance of engaging with the whole Word of God

Topics: i.

T he relationship of consistent Scripture engagement to personal and community transformation ii. The importance of the whole Bible iii. Ancient Israel as a model for oral communities

Tools (found in resource section): i.

Assessing Scripture Use Conditions with Welser Scale ii. Extra resource – Eight Conditions for Audio Scripture Engagement iii. Extra resource – OM Audio Bible Report Malawi – video (If group is tired, play this video first.)

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Information The importance of the whole Bible Individual and community transformation is dependent on consistent personal Scripture engagement. Research by the Pew Foundation indicates that unless people engage with the Word at least 4 times a week, their core values and life practices do not change significantly, even if they have been exposed to Bible teaching in some other way. In the postChristian west, where there has been a movement away from consistent Scripture engagement there has been a marked change in the core values of the general population and even among those who call themselves Christians (“Religion Among the Millennials”). Have you ever accidentally cut yourself with a sharp knife? When did you realise the knife cut you? (When it was too late!) “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). The complete Word of God can be compared to a knife or sword, which penetrates, piercing our roots (deepest beliefs, thoughts and emotions).

Mission history reveals that in many parts of the non-literate world the Gospel message was readily received. But while people responded quickly to the Salvation message their worldview was not significantly impacted. Jesus was added to their prior set of beliefs resulting in a form of syncretism, or blending of beliefs. For example, in Animistic settings they continued to believe and honor the spiritual essence of animate and inanimate creation. Where the people formerly worshipped other gods, Jesus Christ was added to the list. Only where the people have been able to engage with the Scripture in depth has there been consistent and prolonged worldview change. The key lesson learned is that worldview change is directly related to Scripture engagement. Historically, some translation and Scripture recording agencies have focused on providing the New Testament, at times to exclusion of the Old Testament. There are many good reasons for this, including the fact that since the New Testament is so much shorter than the Old Testament, it can be provided more quickly. However, everyone needs access to the whole Bible. Imagine discipling children without the stories of Joseph, Esther, Daniel or David. Many oral cultures identify closely with stories of the Old Testament. Workers among Africa tribes have found that Creation is often the stated reason for coming to faith. Knowledge of the Old Testament is very important to changing the worldview of those from Animist, Muslim, Hindu or Buddhist cultures. A basic knowledge of the Old Testament is important to fully understanding the New Testament. God’s

self-revelation in human history began with the Old Testament and proceeded much later to the New Testament. This was a deliberate and intentional strategy. Galatians 4:4 states, “In the fullness of time, God sent his Son.” (In other words – In the old the new is concealed, in the new the old is revealed.)

Engaging with the whole Bible is essential to: • understanding God’s character and ways • family and community life • knowing how to raise and discipline children • governance and leadership in every sphere of society • characteristics of effective leadership • change in worldview

Both Old and New Testaments are important to building and sustaining church planting or disciple-making movements in oral communities. Mission experience has shown that one without the other can lead erroneous and even heretical teachings in the church. According to Samuel Chiang, “No church planting movement has been sustained long term without access to the whole Bible.” Literate movements need the written Word. Oral movements need the spoken Word. The Word of God is the standard, whether it is a written or spoken form. We are committed to that standard, which stands apart from the one who is reading or telling it. Ultimately it is God’s Word, not man’s. This is fundamental to audio scripture engagement during the IBD training. Audio Scripture, just as text, preserves God’s Word in a way that does not change, regardless of the one telling it. It also allows for oral people to have their own trusted reference copy of God’s Word independent of any human. If we understand this, we will look differently at Scripture and at our preparation of Bible stories for oral communities. In Africa, people respond to stories that deal with the issues that are in their community, and this is typical of oral communities globally. The stories of the Old Testament are ideal for relating to their circumstances. But how are we going to prepare the stories if the Old Testament is not yet translated in the heart language of the people? If it is not available, the community of Believers should make it a prayer goal.

Biblical Israel as a model for oral communities In literate cultures it is often not realised that ancient Israel was an oral community. God was the first writer in the Bible, and Moses was the first scribe (Exodus 31:18). It was only much later that the Levites could read and write the Torah scrolls. It is estimated that even in the time of Jesus only about 5% of the world population was literate. The Bible shows us that God puts a premium on Scripture engagement and had a very specific and practical strategy for the oral community of Israel to engage with the Word.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Davar Partners International is working to provide the full audio Bible for Bible-less oral people in their heart language by targeting audio production of more than 300 languages where there is existing written Scripture but no audio. These are prioritised by need, demand, availability and accessibility. Production is done in partnership with Bible agencies and with cost-effective single voice narration. However, because translation of the whole Bible takes a long time, new disciples in unreached people group discipleship movements normally wait 10-20 years for access to more than a few story sets, a Gospel and Psalms. Bible 3-6-5 supplies them with the scriptural building blocks necessary to sustain a self-replicating disciple-making community while ongoing translation of the rest of Scripture takes place. We are challenging translators to work on translation of the chronological Bible 3-6-5 story sets in order to speed up access to both Old and New Testament content and to help every oral person to see the whole story of God. God’s 3-pronged strategy included: • Daily and continuous engagement by every individual utilising tangible visible symbols. Every segment of the community was included: young and old, rich and poor, men, women, children, the citizen and the alien. No one was excluded (Deut. 11: 18-21; Deut. 31: 9-13). • Scheduled corporate listening, discussion and application. All Israel was to gather before the Lord three times per year for extended days of celebration and oral learning (Neh. 8: 1- 9:3). • Strategically dispersed learning centres focused on application in life (Num. 35; Levitical Cities). The Levitical cities were strategically located throughout the territory of Israel so that there was one within no more than a few hours walk for every Israelite. In those days these towns served as the educational, judicial and religious centres for their region. There were roughly 22,000 Levites in the time of Moses, but not all of them could serve simultaneously in the Tabernacle. The Levites were therefore put on rotational duty that took them to the Tabernacle or Temple on a regular basis where they would learn together and from the priests. Upon return to their towns, this learning was passed on to the people of their region.

Discussion Questions for discussion: If it was your first time engaging with Scripture, would you choose to begin with the Old Testament or New Testament, and why? Did the people who lived during the time of Jesus and the early church have the New Testament? (Answer: No) From which Old Testament book did Jesus quote the most in his teaching? (Answer: 75-80% of his Old Testament quotations were taken from the book of Deuteronomy, which in Hebrew is Sefer Dvarim, meaning the “Book of the Words”). When did you last listen to or read Deuteronomy? Have you made a study of the book of Deuteronomy to really understand and explore it? Exercise: In small groups use specific parts of the Old Testament to list some of the practical life skills or values you can find as they relate to relationships, community, family, etc. Share your findings with the larger group.

Story Prepare this story using the strong hand principle (Building Block 5).

Jesus on the Road to Emmaus from Luke 24:13-27* That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing him.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” And he said to them, “What things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. Ask questions about the story: • What is the situation? • What was said and done? • What were the choices involved? What were the results of these choices? • What does it say about God? What does this say about people’s relationship with God? • What does this mean for my life?

Testimony The Mursi People of Ethiopia** The Mursi people, a Nilotic pastoralist people group, live in the Omo valley, which is a remote, least accessible area of Southwestern Ethiopia. When a British anthropologist visited them for the first time in the early 1970s, they had never even heard of the country Ethiopia. Now, many of the cattle herders carry AK-47 guns to protect their livestock from the raiding Banna and Bodi tribes. When a Mursi girl reaches the age of 15 or 16, her lower lip is pierced so she can wear a lip-plate. The larger the lip-plate, the more cattle her price will bring her father. Since the mid 1980s, SIM (Serving in Mission) has worked among the Mursi. Three workers now live among the Mursi. In partnerships with other agencies, the Jesus Film, the Gospel of Luke, and the Book of Jonah, as well as story sets have been recorded (The God’s Story). A Davar staff member visited the Mursi to document and record their interaction with audio Scriptures. The same feedback was received from one small village to the next on the question, “What has led you to believe in our Lord and Messiah?” The answer every time was, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was void and without form. Darkness covered the face of the deep and the Spirit of God hovered over the waters. God said, ‘Light be,’ and light was...” Many would continue reciting the Scripture portions that they had heard and accepted in their hearts.

* Alternatively, the trainer can use the story of All the People Come Together as One - Nehemiah 8:1-12 ** Alternatively, ask a person in the bigger group to share a personal testimony of worldview change that happened as a result of a Bible story.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Building Block 4 Language of the Heart Objective:

Understanding the value of communicating in the heart language

Topic:

The importance of heart language

Tools (found in resource section):

i. Tongwa Group video (can be played as intro) ii. Bibles in Hebrew, Greek, Chinese or any language unknown to participants (Bibles in three languages)

The importance of heart language In which language do you pray, dream and communicate at home? A heart language (sometimes referred to as mother tongue) is: • learned from parents • a local language • a language we speak fluently • a language in which we dream • an expression of our hearts (Samuel Chiang, “The Passion for Orality”) According to T.W. Dye, “Hundreds of millions live in two worlds. The first, of great importance to them, is that of intimates who speak the same language; the second, of relatively slight importance, is that world of a strange tongue in which we trade and work with outsiders. In the first, the medium of communication is the language of the heart, in the second, the language of confusion is a trade language or standard language, good enough for buying and selling, taking orders and finding one’s own way, but pitifully inadequate for the things that really matter. People fight, make love and mourn in their mother tongue” (Dye). These conclusions give us two types of languages: • Language of intimates – spoken in close circles. It is the language of the heart, in which spiritual truths can be communicated. • Language of strangers – spoken in a world of outsiders. It is a language of wider association that for oral learners can be a language of confusion. Often this language will be the business language of the country/region. Even when oral people can understand the Bible in their second language (or language of wider association), the truth often loses its impact because they perceive God as distant and irrelevant to their daily lives. Using a person’s heart 24

language increases the opportunity to see changed lives, as it communicates that God speaks to each individual intimately and that His Word is not a foreign gospel. Good Christian living involves interaction with one another in deep personal relationships, so as to find Jesus’ healing and redemption in our everyday lives. Teaching the Word in a second language may inadvertently suggest that Christian living is only for one’s public persona, and internal spiritual growth is seriously hindered. It is thus essential to share, tell stories, teach, sing, praise and pray in the heart language of the people (Scriptures in Use). T.W. Dye summarizes by writing, “The vitality of Christian faith depends on the Bible being understood and its teaching brought into daily life. Both are hindered when only a language of wider communication is used with people who are most at home in their local language. This hindrance can be tragic, because when the Word of God does get into their lives, people are transformed” (Dye). Stories in the heart language are the way to the heart. The mother tongue is the language in the heart. Story is the language of the heart.

Discussion Exercise 1: Note to Trainer: Bibles should be specifically chosen and given out in order that the group will not understand that particular language. (This is not communicated to the groups.) In small groups, turn to Luke 18:35, the story of blind Bartholomew. Instruct one person per group to read the story to the rest of the group. Question: What was the first challenge that you encountered in your group? (Possible answers: Language, could not find the chapter in the Bible, or could not read the text, etc.) Explain that for audio Scripture engagement it is vital to consider both the language and form in which the Word is presented. It is important to ask whether there is audio Scripture available in the heart language of the person to whom it is being presented. A full printed Bible that is not in the heart language could be given, but could be worthless if he/she cannot read. However, even if he/she can read, it is unlikely to lead to personal transformation because it is not their heart language. Exercise 2: Divide the small groups in terms of their heart language (the language in which they speak and pray in). Ask the small groups to brainstorm about the availability of the audio Word of God in their language or the language of the people among whom they will serve. Are the following available in their own mother tongue/language? Have the groups give feedback to the larger group to illustrate the challenges of accessibility either in form or heart language.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

1. Complete Bible 2. New Testament 3. Scripture portions 4. The God’s Story 5. The Story of Jesus 6. Story sets

Story Prepare this story using the strong hand principle (Building Block 5).

Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch – Acts 8:29-39 Note to trainer: Use Acts 8:26-28 as an introduction/ background to the story. And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this: “Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he opens not his mouth. In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth. And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being

baptized?” And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. Ask questions about the story: • What is the situation? • What was said and done? • What were the choices involved? What were the results of these choices? • What does it say about God? What does this say about people’s relationship with God? • What does this mean for my life?

Testimony God of My Heart A pastor in Bihar, India shared this story about a village where he was evangelising: A local gang member had kidney stones, and a doctor told him he would have to travel far away to a big city to undergo a very expensive surgery. He did not have the funds and was worried and crying. The pastor gave him an Audibible® in his heart language, and the gang member began listening in his home. As he listened to the stories of Zacchaeus and the Samaritan woman, his worry left him. However, he refused to give up the Audibible when the pastor asked him to pass it on to others. After 11 days of listening he was totally healed from his kidney stones. He then traveled 35 kilometers to where the pastor was and told him, “You are my god.” The pastor said “I am not, it is Jesus.” After that, about 30 people from the gang member’s village also gave their hearts to Jesus and were baptised.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

MODULE 3

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY

Introduction Interactive Bible Discovery (IBD) is a method integrating storytelling and audio Scripture engagement to create ongoing discipleship in oral communities. IBD is a participatory based way of engaging Scripture where questions are used to promote discussion, and is founded on the principles of obedience based discipleship which applies the practices of listening diligently, finding treasures in the spoken Word, and applying those treasures to our daily lives.

Building Block 5 Learning & Telling Stories Objective:

Knowing how to implement a discussion based method of teaching Scripture

Topics:

i. Guidelines in the selection of Bible stories ii. The 5 steps of learning the story (strong hand principle) iii. The 5 steps of telling the story

Tools (found in resource section): i. ii. iii. iv.

Daniel Tells the Jonah Story video IBD English Genesis video Extra resource â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Bible Storying Handbook AudibibleÂŽ or other audio Bible

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Information Guidelines in the selection of Bible stories • Pray that the Holy Spirit will guide you in the selection of a story that will contain the truths the listeners need to hear. • Pick stories with content that is appropriate for the age of the listeners and of a length that fits the time available. • The Bible is supra cultural – in other words, its content transcends cultures. Thus, in every story there will be something of spiritual value for all people. You need not be overly concerned about picking the wrong story. Further, there are no specific stories that are pre-selected for evangelism or teaching. All stories can disciple and bring people to faith in God. • If you have multiple opportunities to tell stories to the same listeners, it is best to start at the beginning of the Bible. Many stories are built on information in the stories that preceded them and therefore a chronological order is of importance. If stories are skipped, it is best to do an introduction to the next story to make the connection smooth. Even when you do not skip any stories, at times, it is wise to prepare listeners for the story you are about to tell by giving a reminder of the previous story you told. This is done very effectively if you have a regular frequency of meeting with the group. • If the story is very long, or contains a long list of cities, names or over 25 verses, you may want to tell the story in 2 parts. Stop the first story at a natural break. Then, in the introduction to your second story, use any hardto-remember information in a way that will be easy to remember. The 5 steps of learning the story (strong hand principle)

3 2

When learning how to tell a story, you can use the “strong hand principle”, gesturing with the fingers to remember 5 simple steps. Note to trainer: To reinforce the principles, repeat the steps with a show of hands as often as possible, asking the participants to do the same. 1) Pray 2) Listen 3) Tell 4) Retell 5) Step-through

Pray Listen through the story once. Pray for the ability to remember and understand the story and to tell it accurately and with enthusiasm.

Listen Listen to the story again. As you go through, you may want to change some of the wording. Select words for your story that your listeners would use to express themselves. For instance, instead of saying “fearful”, you might decide to say “afraid” or “scared”.

Tell Tell the story out loud from memory. Try to recall as much of the story as you are able, and if you forget parts, don’t stop. If the information comes back to mind, you can add the missed information. Remember, it is not memorisation, it is storytelling.

Retell • Listen to the story another time. Note any information you may have added or left out. Remember the story by following the pictures in your mind, not remembering the exact words. • Again, tell the story out loud. This time, you will be able to recall even more of the story than the first time. Once more, return to the story and listen again to it to see if you added or left out any information. Even small parts need to be correct, the way God gave it to us. • When you tell a Bible story, trust God’s Word by adding no information, leaving out nothing, and not preaching or explaining the story’s contents. 27

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

5) Ask Questions *Note to Trainer: These steps are designed for groups to tell the story to one another or to another group.

Step-through Select your beginning and ending statements. Establish the path of your story, where you will start your story and how your story will end. Your selected story may be easy to remember, which means it is one straight path, beginning to end. Very often your story will have some hard spots, junctions that you will miss unless you make a mental mark on your path. • Use mental markers. After you repeat the retelling and check yourself a few more times, you may discover a few parts that are difficult to remember. Use images or rhymes that bring to mind the difficult name or situation. Use key words in a particular scene/sentence to capture the main intention of that section of the story. • Tell and check until you can go through accurately. Repeat these steps until you know the story well. Keep telling the whole story out loud, and then return to listen again to see if you covered all of the information. • Guard against adding facts to the story, even facts found in some parallel passage of this Bible story! Keep the slight differences of stories that are told more than once in the Bible separate from each other. In time, as more stories are told, the truths found in each story and the way they fit together, will be discovered.

Learn Learn the story using the previous five steps in the strong hand principle, and teach others to do the same.

Tell

Note to Trainer: Ask each group to appoint a facilitator. The facilitators then allow for each participant to tell the story to the group. Stand up to tell the story you have learned. • Introduction to the story: Before you start a story, if there is some information that will help them understand the story, share that. It might be things like words they would not understand, events that took place earlier that have a bearing on the story, etc. Keep it short. The focus is to learn the story. When using a chronological Bible story set, the introduction can also be used to bridge to the previous story learned. • Show your audio Bible and say, “This is where our story begins”. Tell the first sentence or two and then put the audio Bible down so that you can use actions for the rest of the story. Be an accurate storyteller. Do not add anything to the story and do not leave anything out. Make your stories interesting to hear with the use of meaningful actions. Don’t just wave your hands. Guard against making fun of the story if it is not funny.

The 5 Steps of Telling the Story (weak hand principle)

3 2

4 5

Example: The woman was pouring oil. Make a motion of pouring oil. Then, when you do the “lead-through”, you can say, “The woman was ___________.” Use the action of pouring and the students should respond. (This is a mental marker.) • At the end pick up the audio Bible and say, “This is the end of our Bible story.”

Retell You can use your opposite hand to remember the five steps of telling the story: 1) Learn 2) Tell 3) Retell 4) Lead-through 28

Let the facilitator lead the group by giving each one of the participants the opportunity to tell the story to the whole group.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Lead-through • Tell the story accurately again leaving blanks (the mental markers) for people to fill in with the right words. A gesture or action will help them know what the right word is. If participants use the wrong word, or do not have the sequence right, allow it to be corrected by the process of ‘retelling’. Praise them for every good effort.

Ask Questions • During discussion, do not let the conversation go to, “In Romans we see that…” Always bring them back to the current story and stay in it. There are many treasures there! If an answer seems unfounded, ask, “Can we see that in the story?” • Start at the beginning of the story and walk through the story chronologically scene by scene. Ask any of the questions below that are appropriate to the scene: • What can we learn from the situation? • What can we learn from what (fill in the blank with a name of a character in the story) said? • What can we learn from what (fill in the blank with a name of a character in the story) does? • The characters had choices. What other choices (good or bad) could he/she/they have made? • What was (or could be) the result/impact of the choices? • What can we learn about God? What characteristics of God can be seen, such as patience, mercy, anger, power, love and concern? Is God encouraging, warning or teaching? • What does this say about people’s relationship with God? • What does this mean for my life? Parts of this material adapted from the STS Handbook, with permission.

Story The Five Loaves and Two Fishes – John 6: 5-14 Note to trainer: See 2 Kings 4:42-44 the story of the Feeding of the Hundred for an introduction/background to this story. Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.” One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!” Ask questions about the story: • What is the situation? • What was said and done? • What were the choices involved? What were the results of these choices? • What does it say about God? What does this say about people’s relationship with God? • What does this mean for my life?

Discussion Have the participants break into groups to prepare the Bible story below using the strong hand principle. Then have each group select two people to go as “Bible story-tellers” to tell the story to one of the other groups using the weak hand principle. Instruct each group to “commission” their Bible story-tellers and send them out. Allow 5 minutes at the end for the Bible story-tellers to return to their group and give a report back on their experiences. Remember, it is important that the story you will tell to a group has had an impact on you before you can truly share the story! Many times in an oral community they will also ask you what the story has personally meant to you. 29

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Benjamin attended training for telling Bible stories in Nairobi, Kenya. During the week-long training he mastered the art of telling Scripture accurately and leading people to discovery, interpretation, and application of biblical principles by asking Spirit-led questions.

One day he was summoned to the local police station. Benjamin was frightened as he was unsure what he had done wrong. To his horror he saw that the police men of the region were gathered at the station and that the regional chief of police was present. The chief told him that he had heard from the people that he is a “Story-man” and that he has therefore gathered his people to listen to a story. The chief instructed him, “We are all present, now tell us a story!” Benjamin was still a bit unsure what to do, afraid that he might get into trouble. He then remembered the audio Bible in his pocket. He took it and allowed The God’s Story to play to the end.

Benjamin returned to his home country, Uganda, to continue with his ministry, eager to implement what he learned. It was not very long before everyone talked about the “Story-man”. From village to village people could not wait for his next visit so they could hear a new story.

At the conclusion, the chief called him into a separate office. The chief then told him, “I now have heard about God and His Son, Jesus Christ. I want to follow Him as well. What must I do?” There in the police station Benjamin led the chief to accept Jesus Christ into his life.

Testimony Benjamin and the Chief of Police

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Building Block 6 Obedience Based Discipleship

about God and His Son, Jesus Christ, the Living Word. A trainer or storyteller should therefore have the same hunger to learn more about Him as well through the stories in the Bible.

Obedience based discipleship* Objective:

Acquiring the skills for effective audio Scripture engagement

Topics:

i. Why stories and questions are important ii. Obedience based discipleship iii. Leading into discovery

Tools (found in resource section): i.

Audibible® or other audio Bible

Information Why stories and questions are important How did Jesus teach? Out of the roughly 190 times in the New Testament when Jesus was asked a question, there were only 3 times when He responded with a direct answer. All of the other times, Jesus responded by asking a question or telling a story or parable. He also usually told a story and then afterward asked a question and invited discussion. Jesus himself is the master storyteller. As His example shows us, stories speak to the heart and engage people interactively. As such, providing biblical stories in the heart language of an oral people group leads to a hunger to hear more. Even more specifically, asking questions is also vital to the success of Bible storytelling because: • When people answer the easy questions correctly, they are encouraged to look for more answers. • Purposeful questions are used to move people toward discovering spiritual truths for themselves. • It helps the listener to develop the skill of listening to the story as a whole. Most Believers are not accustomed to carefully looking at the words and meanings in a Bible story. Learners may realise that they have misconceptions about certain truths and might become more interested in truly listening and learning. • It helps those that had no idea that the path of a story held treasures that they could find. In following Jesus’ example, the intention of the storyteller should be to create a hunger in the listener to learn more * See Notes section for further information.

Interactive Bible Discovery is a participatory based way of engaging Scripture modelled after how Jesus taught, where questions are used to promote discussion. Jesus showed us how to use the principles of obedience based discipleship which applies the practices of listening diligently, finding treasures in the Word, and applying those treasures to our daily lives. There are 3 Hebrew words used in the Old Testament that describe the way we are to relate to the Word of God: Shma; Shmar, and Asah. These three Hebrew words capture the essence of obedience based discipleship. Shma means to listen diligently. It is the word used in Deuteronomy 6:4-5 which states, “Hear [listen diligently] oh Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your strength.” Shma means valuing the relationship and the words of the one speaking above all else. Shmar means to keep and cherish. The root word means to diligently defend, to guard, to keep watch over, to protect, to cherish, to treasure, and to save. Beyond listening diligently we are to treasure the Word, keeping it in our hearts and minds, making it part of us. Asah means to do or to apply. The emphasis is upon making something which is said (invisible energy) into something acted upon and which is real, concrete and meaningfully applied in everyday life. The below chart represents how the three Hebrew principles can be enacted. We first listen diligently (shma) with our hearts. Then, we use our heads to find treasures and cherish (shmar) what we have heard. Lastly, we apply (asah) the principles we have learned to our own daily lives.

Shma

Heart

Listen diligently

Shmar

Head

Find treasures

Asah

Hands

Apply

The process of obedience based discipleship must begin with the heart. If it begins in the head there is the danger that it will simply lead to a philosophical understanding and knowledge. If it begins with the hands it can lead to having only a complete humanistic approach.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Listen diligently

What does it say about God and people’s relationship to God?

You are not just investigating the story as a piece of history, you are also seeking to discover what is happening spiritually. God always has a plan for everyone in each Bible story. From what those characters in the story learn (or do not learn) we can discover what God wants us to learn.

Once we have a greater understanding of these treasures we can begin applying those principles to our daily lives.

You need to live a story through what each character says and does, and then you will notice also how God works in the story. This “living in the story” helps you to discover some of the story’s spiritual truths. Take some time to look at what is said about each individual or group of people in the story. God will be working with everyone in the story to teach them something. If audio Scripture is available that precedes your story, go back to it. Consider the information that comes just before your story. Is there anything that might help you understand who the characters are, what they know and have experienced?

Apply After looking at a story, we want to know what it could mean to us today, and how we can put the truths we understand into action. Ask yourself questions, such as: • The situation that I observed in the story: Does anything like this still happen today? If so, in what ways does something similar happen? • Has this ever happened to me or to anyone I know? • Is it happening right now and if so, how is it happening? • What can I do to apply what I have learned?

Find treasures Finding treasures, or “shmar”, is based on cherishing something entrusted to us by the one whose words we cherish. In order to do this, we must gain a deeper understanding of the character of God, our relationship to Him, and the values presented to us by His Word. After listening diligently by understanding the context, situation and what was said and done in the story, we can go deeper to discovery the story’s principles and values by asking these questions: What were the choices and results of those choices?

Exodus 19:5-6a: “Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Example Questions

Leading into discovery

You can ask leading questions about the Bible stories using the following categories that are based on the principles of obedience based discipleship. Questions can be chosen and refined to suit the context of your listeners.

It is important to find the treasures in a specific story yourself before you can lead others to discover them. At the same time, you also need to be open that the Holy Spirit may reveal another treasure to one of the people in the group. If you are preparing a story and are not impacted by it, it is a good time to go back and seek God for the truths of the story. Until you find the story’s treasures for yourself, you are not yet equipped to tell it to others.

Listen Diligently What is the situation? • Describe the situation. What came before that would help us understand the context of what is happening? • Live in the story. How might those in this story feel as they experience that situation? What was said and done? • In each scene in this Bible passage, what is said or done that gives spiritual information about the people in the passage? • What do the responses in each section, such as anger, trust or doubt, show you about these people spiritually?

Find treasures What were the choices involved? What were the results of those choices? • Most passages carry choices. Do you see times in this passage when God or characters make choices? • Examine those choices. Do the decisions made, show feelings such as pride, forgiveness, humility, hate, kindness, fear or respect? Can you think of other choices (good or bad) that could have been made? What results do you see from each choice made? Who was impacted, either directly or indirectly, by each choice and how? What does this say about God? What does this say about people’s relationship to God? • What characteristics of God do you see, such as patience, mercy, anger, power, love or concern? • Is the Lord encouraging, warning or teaching? How does God respond to people? How do people respond to God?

Apply What does this mean for my life? • Have I or someone I know been in a similar situation? • If this happened to me before, what did I say? What did I do? Did I have any choices, and what choice did I make? • What could I have done? What was the result of my choice? Who all was impacted by my choice, and in what way were they impacted? • How do I see God working in my situation or in the life of someone I know who may be in this position? What did I learn or what should I have learned about God and about His character? • What can I do right now to apply what I have learned in my life? What can I change in my relationship and choices with God and others?

The Holy Spirit is the great teacher in storytelling. As questions are asked, the storyteller trusts the Holy Spirit to guide the discussion and to speak to every heart in the room. The Holy Spirit might prompt unexpected questions that may be seen as opportunities for truth to be discovered. Occasionally, questions will come from your listeners that must be answered from other Bible stories and information in the Bible. If you know the answer and can give a biblical source, you need to seek God for wisdom on whether to give a complete answer then or to just give a short overview response. You may be led to just say, “Good question. Let’s wait as that is a whole new direction. But another time I plan to tell a whole Bible story that deals with your question.” As the listeners begin to find their own treasures, the storyteller can stop giving obvious clues and slowly allow them to do more and more of the discovering. One vital key in success in storytelling is to show love. Most people are frightened when they have to stand in front of a group of people and you need to be encouraging in your treatment of them or when you correct them publicly. Gentleness and affirmation is needed when corrections are made. Keep in mind that it is not your skill that matters most, but the love shown to the people as you use your skills.

Discovering God’s Plan of Salvation A first chronological Bible stories set for oral learners, including 30 chronological Bible stories covering essential portions of the Old and New Testament. This story list can be used in the beginning stages of storytelling within Interactive Bible Discovery. Bible 3-6-5 A Davar Partners International project that gives Bible-less oral people the “bread of life” daily for a year in a language close to their hearts and in a form they understand through translation and recording of 365 chronological stories/Scripture portions from Genesis to Revelation, resulting in a whole Bible overview. (See the Notes section in the back of this manual for the full list.)

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Discussion Exercise: In small groups, practice finding the spiritual truths in the story below using the obedience based discipleship questions and tools learned in this Building Block.

Testimony Theo from the Ivory Coast

Repeat the process of selecting, commissioning and sending out new “Bible story-tellers” to tell the story using the 5 steps of telling the story. Allow 5 minutes at the end for the Bible story-tellers to report back to their groups on their experience in another group.

Story The Good Samaritan – Luke 10:30-37 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

During a training session in Ghana, a trainer told the story of the Good Samaritan and asked the group, “What have you learned for the first time today from the story?” A man named Theo immediately raised his hand and said, “I am the priest. I am the Levite.” The trainer asked, “Can you tell us why you identify yourself with the priest or the Levite from the story of the Good Samaritan?” He replied with this story: “I live in Yopougon – the biggest municipality of Abidjan, and have been in tough circumstances there for several years. I have been waiting for the results of the panel of presidents to come in to help my country to find a solution for the post election crisis, and have been hoping there would not be war. This morning, I decided to visit a friend of mine. I got in a taxi to join my friend in another area of the same municipality. As soon as we got into Sicogi (another neighborhood of Yopougon) a terrible thing attracted our attention. We saw a mob – a lot of people beating, insulting, and swearing, and saw that they had arrested a rebel. The taxi driver drove slowly because of the crowd. I saw one man within the crowd being beaten by the mob. It was hard for me to see this situation. I knew this period was so sensitive, and my heart was beating fast, expressing my incapacity to intervene to save or help this person. Thirty minutes to an hour later, when I was going back home, I saw on the road at the same place, the man totally burnt with a piece of wood in his head. The taxi driver just tried to avoid the corpse on the road and I smelled the odor. I was unable to eat for days, downcast because of what I saw about what human beings can do because of politics.” Theo knew that he had been like the Levite in the Bible story. After telling his story, the whole group prayed for him to receive the Lord’s forgiveness.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

MODULE 4

DEVELOPING AN EFFECTIVE OUTREACH STRATEGY

Building Block 7 Plan and Frequency

Information Systematic engagement with the Word of God

Objective:

Understanding how to develop and implement a regular and consistent audio Scripture engagement plan

Topics:

i. Systematic engagement with the Word of God ii. The value of chronological Scripture engagement

Tools (found in resource section):

i. Listen through the Bible Sample Calendar ii. Scripture Engagement Graph iii. Audibible® or other audio Bible

A major reason that people do not engage in the Word is that they are too busy. You will never “find” time for Scripture engagement, you have to “make” time. Once you have determined to make time to engage with the Word, the next main factor that determines success or failure in Scripture engagement is whether you have a plan and follow it. The Hebrew people gave us the Word of God. Jewish people today are still reading exactly the same portions of Scriptures at the same time around the world, and have followed the same plan for thousands of years. Based on the established pattern in the times of Moses, this plan involves daily reading in every home, as well as weekly and yearly readings. According to tradition, the Hebrew king was also obliged to write the first 5 Books of the Torah in his own handwriting (Deut. 17:18) over the course of his life. The Hebrew style weekly reading plan starts after the 8th day of the Feast of Tabernacles every year, usually falling in October. Portions are read from the following: 5 Books (Torah), History, Prophets, Poetry, Apostolic. This same plan or similar can be followed by oral learners using audio Scriptures.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

The value of chronological Scripture engagement It is important to listen through the stories of the Bible in chronological order in order to understand each story within it’s historical context and God’s overall redemptive plan. A number of yearly listening plans can be followed in order to listen to the full Bible in one calendar year. However, it is important to acknowledge that not all oral preference communities understand and follow the Gregorian calendar, but might be on a lunar or sun (or a combination), and to adjust the plan accordingly.

Oral learners are in great need of tools that can help them engage with the Bible systematically. Listen through the Bible (LTTB) is a simple spoken Bible guide for oral learners, produced by Davar Partners International. This guide instructs listeners to begin with the full or new moon and listen to an assigned portion of Scripture every day, thus enabling listeners in an oral culture to be led through the entire Bible in a year. Additionally LTTB enables them to personally engage with the Word by providing questions that the listeners can ask themselves or others as they listen which help them to understand and apply the Word. This tool is a companion to any spoken Bible. (For more information see Projects at www.davarpartners.com)

Below is a sample lunar listening schedule used in the Listen through the Bible guide: Day 1 – Day 2 – Day 3 – Day 4 – Day 5 – Day 6 – Day 7 – Day 8 –

Genesis 1:1-25 Creation Genesis 1:26-2:3 Creation, man, and the 7th day Genesis 2:7-8 The first man, Adam Genesis 2:15-25 One man and one woman Genesis 3:1-24 Fall in the garden: sin Genesis 4:1-16 Cain and Abel Genesis 6:9-22 Noah’s ark Genesis 7:7-10 The ark

Day 9 – Genesis 9:1-17 Blessings and covenant with Noah Day 10 – Genesis 11:1-9 Tower of Babel Day 11 – Genesis 12:1-4 Abram’s calling Day 12 – Genesis 12:10-20 Abram and Sarai Day 13 – Genesis 13:1-18 Lot, conflict and choices Day 14 – Genesis 15:1-6 Abram’s faith Day 15 – Genesis 18:1-15 Sarah promised a son Day 16 – Genesis 18:16-33 Abraham’s plead for Sodom’s people Day 17 – Genesis 19:12-26 Lot saved Day 18 – Genesis 20:1-18 Abraham repeats Day 19 – Genesis 21:1-8 The birth of Isaac Day 20 – Genesis 21:9-21 Hagar and Ishmael Day 21 – Genesis 22:1-18 Sacrifice of Isaac Day 22 – Genesis 24:10-27 A wife for Isaac Day 23 – Genesis 25:27-34 Jacob and Esau Day 24 – Genesis 27:14-29 Esau sells his birthright Day 25 – Genesis 28:1-22 Jacob’s deception and blessing Day 26 – Genesis 32:24-32 Jacob’s ladder vision Day 27 – Genesis 35:1-5 Jacob wrestles with an angel and name change Day 28 – Genesis 37:1-8 Back to Bethel for Jacob Day 29 – Genesis 37:9-28 Joseph’s dreams Day 30 – Genesis 39:1-23 Joseph loved, then sold

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Discussion

Story

In small groups, discuss: • How many times a week do you sit with the Word of God (Bible study) for at least an hour at a time? (Ask one person from each group to report back.) Trainer – Give an example: At an event in Nairobi, Kenya, out of a group of 257 people, only 5 people indicated that they spend more than an hour every week engaging with the Word of God. • In small groups, name the factors that hinder you from engaging with the Word of God. (Ask one person from each group to report back.) Trainer: Discuss the following graph: What hinders you from reading the Bible regularly? 40

30 25

0.3%

0.4%

0.7%

1.7%

2.5%

2.6%

6.2%

6.7%

7.7%

8.5%

11.4%

12%

38%

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

Testimony The Storyteller of Mfango Island Group

Ask the group: If you need to teach people a hunger for the Word of God, what do you need to teach them? (Answer: Time management)

Sight or other reading problem

Don’t know

Don’t like to read

Not sure where to start

Difficulty understanding

Unresolved heart matters

Lack of desire, interest or motivation

Laziness

It’s not a priority to me

Nothing

Fatigue/tiredness

Family duties

Work obligations

Too many distractions

Too busy

5 0

Which Counsel? – Psalm 1:1-6

Ask questions about the story: • What is the situation? • What was said and done? • What were the choices involved? What were the results of these choices? • What does it say about God? What does this say about people’s relationship with God? • What does this mean for my life?

Prepare the story below using the strong hand principle then repeat the process of selecting, commissioning and sending out new “Bible story-tellers” to tell the story using the 5 steps of telling the story. Allow 5 minutes at the end for the Bible story-tellers to report back to their groups on their experience in another group.

Emmanuel was taking care of AIDS orphans on an island on Lake Victoria. He battled with the challenge to take care of the orphans in one centre. Emmanuel was looking for a sustainable way of supporting the children and the only way he knew was to ask local Kenyan ministries and churches for support. He met with a chief Bible storyteller from Nairobi who trains people in using Bible stories to engage with Scripture. He told Emmanuel, “Silver and gold I have not”, but invited him to attend the oral Bible school for trainers. Emmanuel joined the school and over the course of 18 months he learned how to get chronological Bible stories into his heart. Every time he had to attend the school, he travelled from his island via boat, and then via taxi and back again. He had a captive audience! His boat and taxi audiences invited him to tell stories in their villages. He used questions to allow listeners to discover spiritual truths and to apply it in their lives. Groups were formed, and soon they were Believers of the Living Word. They also became interested in his work and as a result he saw new Believers delivering fish, vegetables and food to the orphans. At the graduation ceremony Emmanuel 37

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

testified that he went in search of support for one orphanage, but with the help of new Believers he was able to start 70 new orphanages on the islands.

Building Block 8 The 6 Essentials for Enabling a Selfreplicating Audio Scripture Engagement Movement Objective:

Understanding the keys to facilitating a self-replicating IBD movement in an oral community

Topics: i.

Overview of the 6 essentials: prayer, access, plan, modelling, replication, reporting ii. Essential 1: Laying a foundation of prayer iii. Essential 2: Identification of an appropriate point of access through a “person of peace” or “entity of change”

Tools (found in resource section):

iv. Unreached people groups statistics – UUPG Map; Wycliffe Map - Languages with Likely Need with no Active Program in Place v. Prayer profiles on unreached people groups – 52 Prayer Profiles vi. Extra resource – Lake Tanganika – video vii. Extra resource – The Current Status of the Unreached viii. Audibible® or other audio Bible

Information For Interactive Bible Discovery to take place, storytellers working in oral preference communities must understand and apply the requisites of prayer, access, plan, modelling, replication and reporting. 1. PRAYER 2. ACCESS

6. REPORTING

3. PLAN

5. REPLICATION 4. MODELLING

Essential 1: Laying a foundation of prayer We can only work and move where the Spirit of God is working and moving. Our part in the preparation phase is to pray for the: • Spirit of God to confirm our direction • applicable Bible story to be used as a point of contact • preparation of the telling of the Bible story • affinity group to be used • point of access to the affinity group • person of peace or entity of change • listeners in the oral preference people group • Spirit to use the spoken Word of God to address the issues He wants to address Essential 2: Identifying an appropriate point of access through a “person of peace” or “entity of change”* (The following is adapted from the article “Biblical ‘Man of Peace’ Approach is Key to Effective Outreach ” by Erich Bridges.) When Jesus sent out the 70 to preach the good news, He commanded, “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house’. If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him… Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you… Do not move around from house to house...Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God is near you.” (Luke 10:5-9, NIV). The Roman centurion Cornelius was such a person, “a righteous and God-fearing man… respected by all the Jewish people” (Acts 10:22, NIV). Encouraged by a divine vision, he invited Peter into his home, warmly welcomed him and called together his family and friends to hear the apostle’s words. [As a] result, Cornelius, his family and many others believed and were baptized. Thom Wolf contends that Cornelius’ “sphere of influence”, his “oikos” as the Greek New Testament calls it, was the normal focus for the first evangelists. Michael Green, author of “Evangelism in the Early Church, “agrees that the oikos”, consisting of blood relations, slaves, clients and friends, was one of the bastions of Greco-Roman society. Christian workers made a deliberate point of gaining whatever households they could as lighthouses from which the Gospel could illuminate the surrounding darkness.” Further, Psalm 37:37 promises: “Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright: For the man of peace will have a posterity.” That posterity may include the salvation of many people. Look for the “person of peace” or “entity of change” in the particular group or community. This will be the person who needs to be empowered in order to continue to influence a particular affinity group toward regular engagement with the Word of God, and to also influence other affinity groups to follow the process. It is important to note that the person of peace may not be a believer, but simply a person of influence in the community.

* See Notes section for further information.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Discussion Exercise 1: Prayer Divide into groups for prayer. Have each group pray for a Bibleless oral people group or the oral people group among which the groups are or will be serving. Exercise 2: Person of Peace In small groups, listen to Luke 10 as a reference. Then, discuss the following: • How will you identify a person of peace? • What characteristics does such a person need to display? • Why is this important in the process of audio Scripture engagement? • What other examples are there in Scripture of a person of peace? • Can you think of a potential person of peace in the community you want to serve? Give a summary after feedback from the groups. As a large group, go over the 3 “R’s”. How to identify a man of peace by the 3 “R’s” (Thom Wolfe): • Receptive to the Gospel • Possesses a reputation to gain attention for the message among family and community • Effectively refers the bearers of good news to that larger group

Story

So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again. Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”

Story 2: Person of Peace – Luke 10:2-11 And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road. Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you. And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’ Ask questions about the stories: • What is the situation? • What was said and done? • What were the choices involved? What were the results of these choices? • What does it say about God? What does this say about people’s relationship with God? • What does this mean for my life?

Have each group prepare one of the stories below using the strong hand principle, then repeat the process of selecting, commissioning and sending out new “Bible story-tellers” to tell the story using the 5 steps of telling the story. Allow 5 min. at the end for the Bible story-tellers to report back to their groups on their experience in another group.

Li, the Person of Peace

Story 1: Garden Prayer – Matt 26: 36-46

(This testimony is from “Biblical ‘Man of Peace’ Approach is Key to Effective Outreach” by Erich Bridges.)

Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.

Testimony

A missionary in Asia discovered the power of [the advice of looking for a person of peace] when he entered a potentially hostile unreached village with a co-worker: “We prayed, ‘God we know you’re at work here or we wouldn’t be here. We need a man of peace who will take care of us until we can feel our way around this village and know if it’s safe or unsafe.’ I started my stopwatch. We walked into the center of the village where the well was. A person approached me out of nowhere and said, ‘Have you eaten?’ We said, ‘Not yet.’ He said, ‘Well, come to my home.’ His name was Li, and he was the person of peace we wanted. I stopped my watch: three minutes, 21 seconds. Li fed them, then properly introduced them to the village’s hard-faced leader – who might otherwise have ordered the 39

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

strangers killed with long knives. Li told the village [leader], who was ill, that the newcomers’ God ‘is a great God, and they will pray for you.’ They prayed; the leader got better. He soon became a man of peace in his own right, opening his heart – and the whole village – to the Gospel.

Building Block 9 Designing an IBD Plan for the Whole Community Objective:

Understanding the need for natural affinity groups in order to implement IBD effectively in a community

Topics:

Essential 3: Planning an IBD strategy tailored for each segment of the community

When one works within the social fabric of the community the introduction of new ideas can be made more easily. Selecting appropriate stories for each segment or affinity group It is important for the disciple-maker to choose Bible stories that apply to the context of an affinity group and allow the person of peace to model biblical examples within that group. The disciple-maker can then select chronological Bible stories to be used in the group as the first “set” of stories*. The first set of stories are used in context and according to the training presented to the disciple-maker. The affinity group should have the opportunity to: learn more stories (made available on an audio player) and engage with the stories through the principles of obedience based discipleship. This should be done through discussion, allowing the Spirit of God to direct each listener to make adjustments within their context about their behaviours.

Discussion Divide into small groups and discuss the following: 1. What are some of the affinity groups in your community? 2. Develop an outline of a plan to enable every part of the community to engage with the Scripture, and share it with the group.

Information 60% - 80% of those who will become part of a church, house group, or affinity group may not read. How will they be discipled? Essential 3: Planning an IBD strategy tailored for each segment of the community. For example: • men • women • youth • children • outcasts • shut-ins/handicapped • socio-economic segments • linguistic groups • military • tradesmen • business people Look for natural affinity groups in the community In many situations the most effective strategy is to work within already existing groupings in the community. These can be called “affinity groups”. They may be divided by activity, gender, age or work, but the key is that they already relate to one another on a regular basis. Starting audio Scripture engagement is generally much easier within an existing affinity group than starting a group from scratch, which is outside of the normal patterns of the community. Trust, leadership and communication patterns are already established within an affinity group, making the individuals less resistant to change.

Story Prepare the story below using the strong hand principle then repeat the process of selecting, commissioning, and sending out new “Bible story-tellers” to tell the story using the 5 steps of telling the story. Allow 5 minutes at the end for the Bible story-tellers to report back to their groups on their experience in another group.

**Acts 17:22-34 – Paul Preaches on Unknown God Note to trainer: Use Acts 17:10-21 as an introduction/ background to this story. So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of

*Please see page 68 in the Notes section for a suggested set of stories **Alternatively, the trainer can use the story of The Wise Man & The Foolish Man from Matthew 7:24-27

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

us, for ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’ Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”

A group of visiting Believers went to the neighborhood one afternoon. As the group drove through the neighborhood, they noticed a significant difference between the section where work had been started and everywhere else. The section where the weekly sessions took place was clean with no trash lying around, and had neat gardens and smiling faces. They asked the coaches why there was such a difference between the two sections, and they replied: “It is the kids!” On arrival at the training venue, the kids greeted the group by shouting in a single voice, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…” and they continued until they had recited the Creation story. This was their verbal report on the progress they had made. The group asked the families why their section was so neat and clean. Some parents even cried when they also said, “It is the kids!” The parents then explained that when the kids started to attend the weekly Bible study sessions, they had afterward discussed together what they learned and how they could put it into practice.

Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, “We will hear you again about this.” So Paul went out from their midst. But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them. Ask questions about the story: • What is the situation? • What was said and done? • What were the choices involved? What were the results of these choices? • What does it say about God? What does this say about people’s relationship with God? • What does this mean for my life?

Testimony

The kids had noticed that there was a lack of care for the neighborhood and decided to start a cleanup program every week after the sessions. In the beginning they cleaned the trash from the streets, but soon found that others had begun to clean them. They moved on to cleaning the individual yards of the neighborhood by removing weeds and trash. After a couple of weeks, not only were the streets taken care of, but also the gardens were regularly weeded. It is then that they decided to begin to help with the cleaning of the homes of the families and assisted every family in cleaning their homes on a weekly basis. The parents told the group, “We have not taught this to them. They attended the weekly sessions and they must have picked this up from listening and discussing the Word of God!”

Community Transformation through Kids About 90,000 people reside in the neighborhood Makululu in the town of Kabwe, Zambia. There are also approximately 146 taverns in the town. Ubabalo Africa coaches have divided the neighborhood in four sections, beginning the discipleship process with youth in one section through kids’ games and Discovery Bible Studies each week.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

Building Block 10 Modelling and Replication

Tools (found in resource section):

Questions that can be used in a group setting to model life lessons: • What are you thankful for? • What worries you? • What are the needs of the people in your community? • How can we help each other in these areas? Questions that can be used to assist with replication: • With whom will you share the story? • Where is there a group that needs to hear this story?

Information

Discussion

Objective:

Knowing how to create a process of replication through modelling and intentional extension through additional persons of peace

Topics:

i. Essential 4: Modelling life lessons ii. Essential 5: Creating a process of replication

Church Planting Method

Essential 4: Modelling life lessons Life lessons are frequently more “caught” than “taught” and this is definitely the case in oral communities. Children absorb the behavioural patterns of their parents and peers through observation. In order for discipleship to take place, the person of peace must be shown what to do. This applies both to the practice of Interactive Bible Discovery and to replication of the process to a new group. People follow people, good or bad. The apostle Paul fully understood this principle. In 1 Corinthians 11:1 he said, ”...follow me as I follow Christ…” Essential 5: Creating a process of replication Note to trainer: If you have the Walking with Jesus video, refer back to the example set by the teacher. The person of peace becomes the influencer of change in a particular community, challenging others to be the agents of change. When the IBD process is well established and working on a regular basis within a community and replication has already taken place through the person of peace, it is time to broaden the circle and allow replication among other affinity groups and in other communities. • Discuss with the person of peace who they have already assisted in forming an IBD group; help them to establish a regular plan for meeting with that group, and allow them to implement it. • Structure for follow-up and reporting is critical among all storytellers, and is just one of the areas which must be mentored and practiced with them if it is to be replicated. • Establish a regular schedule of meeting to follow through with the person of peace (asking how the meetings went, etc.) • Mentor the new storytellers and live by example.

In small groups, discuss the IBD church planting method and discuss it as an example of replication. Is this something that will work in your setting, or what would work for you and your particular community and affinity groups? Have one person from each group report back.

Do the Word – James 1:22-27 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing. If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

After every story, we pause and discuss what we heard. As we listen, discuss and ask questions they begin to understand. We also leave these audio Bibles in the same house that we originally met, giving them the opportunity to discuss the questions all night. We always try to schedule a follow-up meeting for the next day to meet again to find if they have any questions that they want to ask. When they do, we spend time with them in order for them to discover the answers in these Bible stories. Often, they will come to us and say something like, “This is what we’ve heard from John 3:16. What does it mean? Would you explain to us?” It helps us and gives us a platform to discuss those things with the people and allow them to find the answers. In many villages we are able to only place one audio Bible, and everyone then wants to borrow it to listen, because for them it’s more than an electronic thing. It’s a Bible, it’s God’s Word, and they really treasure it so much. These people are now understanding the Scriptures, and many people have access and engagement with the Word of God. They are being discipled, and Bible studies are taking place story by story.

Building Block 11 Accountability and Reporting Objective:

Understanding the importance of accountability and reporting to on-going growth

Topics:

Essential 6: Accountability and reporting as tools of replication

Testimony Muandu from OM Sportslink, Malawi We have been using audio Bibles for quite some time now. Since we’ve received them it has been a blessing for various reasons. People in southern Malawi are uneducated and only very few can read. Even when the literate people get a written Bible, they do not really see, because they are so ‘blind.’ With a small audio Bible we help people who cannot read, as well as those who can to understand and listen. Some cannot understand by themselves and we help them with questions, and this proves to them that the Scriptures are true. In the villages we have started Bible clubs using the audio Bibles. In every village we look for a person of peace. This is someone who will accept us and receive us, and we use their house as a place where we can meet. We charge the audio Bibles with the sun, because in these villages there is no electricity – we just put them in the sun and allow them to play. The advantage of the audio Bible is that it is in the local language so people understand and can discuss the stories.

Information Essential 6: It has been said that how we finish is more important than how we start. Accountability and reporting are the essentials of finishing well.

The importance of accountability A commitment to be part of an accountability structure for follow-up and reporting is critical to effective implementation of the IBD method. The trainer should personally be part of an accountability structure and should model that accountability to those being trained. He or she should work with the person/s of peace to create a system of accountability for everyone. An effective leadership process always includes monitoring and checking for fruitfulness so that encouragement and corrective action can be applied when appropriate.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

As part of this training we will challenge you to find a person in your group to help you with accountability. This person will keep you accountable on what you have learned in this training in areas such as: • With how many people have you shared the Bible stories? • How many groups have you helped a person of peace to begin? • How many other people have you trained in using the Interactive Bible Discovery training?

Sample discussion areas for accountability with the person of peace: Personal: • Personal growth, struggles • Family life • Faithfulness in personal Scripture engagement • What is he/she learning? IBD group: • How is the group doing? • What questions or issues have arisen? • What is the application in their lives? • What is the frequency of the meeting? • Who are the emerging leaders? • Are there other natural affinity groups to which this might be extended? Sample questions for accountability among the IBD group members: • What Bible story did we discuss the previous time we met? (review) • What change has happened in your life as a result of obedience to the discovered principles? • What was the feedback when you shared the story with someone else? • If you have identified an area of need, did you address it?

Reporting as a tool of replication Reporting is a key to spreading the vision, keeping the local church engaged and mobilising additional workers. Telling firsthand stories of what God has done and how He has answered prayer is a source of encouragement and excitement. Prayer groups and individuals need to see the fruit of their labours, and contributors need to hear the results of their investment. Young people need to know how God is at work so that they might catch a vision of how they might become involved. A disciple-maker’s family and local fellowship are his or 44

her lifeline. Without prayer, oversight and emotional and economic support the disciple-maker cannot be sustained for long. Develop a reporting plan that takes into consideration each segment of your accountability, support and relationships of influence.

Discussion Exercise 1: Give each person a few minutes to themselves and then ask each to share the following with their small group: • What accountability process do you currently have in place? • How effective is it? • Do you think it should change to improve your accountability? Then, ask each person to think through how they can form part of an accountability structure and process with the outreach/training group they will use for IBD. Share these in small groups and have each group report back. Exercise 2: Devise an initial reporting plan and then share with the small group about how you will implement it. Try to be creative and keep your audience in mind. Your plan should answer the questions: • What are your circles of accountability, support and influence? • How, when or how often (frequency) and with whom will you share your experience and what the Lord does through your work? • How will you assess or measure your effectiveness? Exercise 3: • Pray and determine who in this group you will ask to keep you accountable to what you have learned. • Ask that person now. (Refer back to page 43 for the accountability questions.)

Story Prepare the story below using the strong hand principle, then repeat the process of selecting, commissioning and sending out new “Bible story-tellers” to tell the story using the 5 steps of telling the story. Allow 5 minutes at the end for the Bible story-tellers to report back to their groups on their experience in another group.

Report of the Spies – Numbers 13:25-33 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” Ask questions about the story: • What is the situation? • What was said and done? • What were the choices involved? What were the results of these choices? • What does it say about God? What does this say about people’s relationship with God? • What does this mean for my life?

Testimony Freedom from Fear A testimony from a field worker in Papua New Guinea: “We started to meet because of the fear of death. Sorcery and witchcraft was strangling the normal patterns of life in my family and relatives and community,” said Penias, and then he shared more about how fear was affecting his family. My heart went out to him, and the power of the Scriptures in Psalm 23:4 came to my mind as I took out an Audibible® and handed it to him. “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” As soon he heard the first few lines in his language, he kissed the audio player and stared at me for a few minutes without uttering a single word. He then sat for two hours listening to it. I decided to let him have it for the night. He showed his wife Beryl and they both listened to it until the battery went out. The next day, they got it charged in the sun and listened to it again for hours. In the end, I had a hard time trying to decide to give away my sample. Penias and Beryl started a small Bible study group in their community in Papua New Guinea to help their family and relatives focus away from the fear of evil that was affecting them, and onto Jesus. The spoken Word now helps them, and because of their own transformation, they are beginning to reach out to others around them. After hearing the report of this testimony, a couple in the US were so moved that they decided to devote their time and resources to advocating for Bible-less oral learners around the world.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

TOOLS & RESOURCES Building Block 1

Building Block 6

1. Walking with Jesus – video link 2. Knock Knock – video (ION) 3. The Leading Edge ION – video 4. Wycliffe Scripture Access Statistics – PDF 6. Extra resource – A Thousand Questions – Youtube video

1. Audibible or other audio Bible

Building Block 2 1. Three pieces of paper with a square, circle, and triangle drawn on them (respectively). These should be made by the trainer and be large enough for the group to see – provided by trainer. 2. Objects or pictures of objects: knife, plate, mug, fruit, log, hammer, axe and saw – provided by trainer. 3. Differences in Worldviews – PDF 4. Four pieces of paper with NAAL percentages: 14% illiterate, 29% functional illiterate, 44% oral preference, 13% highly literate. These should be made by the trainer and large enough for the group to see. Reference: 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy – PDF 5. US Religious Landscape Study – PDF (Pew Research)

Building Block 3 1. Assessing Scripture Use Conditions with Welser Scale - PDF (Welser) 2. Extra resource – Eight Conditions for Audio Scripture Engagement – PDF (Dye) 3. Extra resource – OM Audio Bible Report Malawi – video

Building Block 4

Building Block 7 1. Listen through the Bible Sample Calendar – PDF 2. Scripture Engagement Graph – PDF 3. Audibible or other audio Bible

Building Block 8 1. Unreached people groups statistics – UUPG Map – PDF; Languages with Likely Need with no Active Program in Place Map – PDF (Wycliffe) 2. Prayer profiles on unreached people groups – 52 Prayer Profiles – PDF 3. Extra resource – Lake Tanganika – video 4. Extra resource – The Current Status of the Unreached – PDF (Wycliffe) 5. Audibible or other audio Bible

Building Block 10 1. Church Planting Method – PDF

Extra Resources ION Orality Journal V2 - PDF Audibible General Brochure – PDF Audibible User Manual – PDF Audibible Software User Guide – PDF

1. Tongwa Group – video 2. Bibles in Hebrew, Greek, Chinese or any language unknown to participants – provided by trainer

Building Block 5 1. Daniel Tells the Jonah Story (STS) – video 2. IBD English Genesis – video 3. Extra resource – Bible Storying Handbook – PDF 4. Audibible® or other audio Bible

All tools and resources, unless otherwise noted, are available to download online at: www.davarpartners.com/ibd or as a part of the IBD External Resources Toolkit Folder & DVD.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

NOTES Building Block 1: The Need and the Audio Scripture Engagement Challenge Scope of orality Oral learners include primary, traditional and secondary communicators. An example of each would be: • Primary – someone from a traditional background or who can represent one • Traditional – someone with a phone • Secondary – someone with a tablet/iPad Primary oral communicators: • No written language • Little to no familiarity with reading or writing Traditional oral communicators: • Know that reading and writing exists • May have literacy skills (to some extent) • May be oral preference even if they are literate • May have attended written/text literacy classes Secondary oral communicators: • Depend on electronic media such as TV, movies, videos, radio or music • May include people with widely carrying literacy skills

Building Block 2: Orality, Literacy and Communication Styles Literacy levels and the Oral-Literate Continuum (Making Disciples of Oral Learners, pg. 20-22) 1st Level: Illiterates • Cannot read/write • Have never seen a word (The Indonesian word for illiteracy means “blind to letters”.) • Words do not exist as letters but is found related to images of events and situations that are seen or experienced. 2nd Level: Functional Illiterates • Have been to school • Did not continue to read or write regularly after dropping out of school • Within 2 years for those who have even gone to school for 8 years, often can no longer receive, recall and produce concepts, ideas, precepts and principles through literate means

• Prefer to get information orally • Their functional level of literacy as opposed to published data determines how they learn, how they develop their values and beliefs and how they pass along their culture including religious beliefs and practices. 3rd Level: Semi-Literates • Function in gray transitional area between oral communication and literacy • Have normally gone to school for up to 10 years and are classified in every country of the world as literate • Learn primarily by means of narrated presentations. 4th Level: Literate Learners and Communicators • Understand and handle information such as ideas, principles and concepts by literate means • Tend to rely on printed material as an aid to recall. 5th Level: Highly Literate Learners and Communicators • Have usually attended college and are often professionals in the liberal arts field • They are a thoroughly print culture, meaning reading and writing oriented individuals. Trying to reach the first three categories using customary means presents two major problems: 1. Almost all missionaries and Christian workers are literate or highly literate and they communicate primarily by literate means. So, they use the method they have mastered to try to communicate with oral learners who do not hear them. They think that if they can just simplify their outlines and exposition, oral learners can grasp what they are saying. When missionaries try to reach illiterates, they believe that one of their primary tasks is to train a core of literate nationals who then face the same problems communicating. For these reasons it is essential that literate church leaders seek to understand orality as the first step in ministering effectively in oral cultures. 2. Different countries have different definitions by which their governments determine literacy. Malaysia, for example, counts anyone age 10 or over who has ever enrolled to school as being literate. Other countries simply ask people if they are literate. Many people say they are literate but their reading skills are too limited to handle text from the Bible. Many people who can write their name or who can read a simple sentence, can qualify as literate for census purposes, but they cannot read unfamiliar or lengthy materials with understanding. Their values are not changed by what they read. 47

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

In assessing the orality of a people group, it is important to keep in mind that literacy rates often vary greatly from one group to another within a single nation. Minority language groups, many of whom who are unreached peoples, are less likely to be literate. Many of them have little interest in becoming literate. Those who intend to work with unreached people groups would be wise to be sceptical of

government literal statistics when it comes to functional literacy. Mission groups such as the International Missions Board Southern Baptist Union, Scriptures in Use, and others have developed materials in understanding orality and oral cultures. A selection of these materials are available at www.chronologicalbiblestorying.com.

Differences in the perspectives of the oral and literate learner ORAL PERSPECTIVE Event Relational Functional Word is bond Truth dynamic Life skills practical Memory: history, legends, stories Morality: personal integrity

LITERATE PERSPECTIVE Task/goal Pragmatic Factual knowledge Word is 3rd party Truth objective Life skills informative Information: recorded & collected Morality: fulfilling, formal

ORAL, TRADITIONAL CULTURES LITERATE, BOOK CULTURES Listen Analyze Repeat what they have heard and seen Explain Learn by example Outline Use holistic worldview Summarize Speak for extended periods Divide information into parts Learn by memorization Study Use narrative, oratory, recitation, drama and Preach music Use expository Are event and community orientated Emphasize individuality (The Ancient Paths DVD by Scriptures in Use)

Effective oral communication (Making Disciples of Oral Learners, pgs. 22-26)

Other aspects for an effective communication style for a particular oral culture may be discovered by careful observation and participation in the life of the community. Using culturally appropriate oral forms, improves the impact of the message. Oral learners enter the story and as they absorb sensory data, they live the story in the present tense – seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling and feeling what the persons in the story are experiencing. They hang reality on these sensory experiences. Having identified the communication forms that the culture uses, it is then crucial that ministries use the existing oral communication forms that the culture already uses such as story, music, drama, poetry, dance, proverbs and the like. There are many examples of the impact of Bible stories as time and freedom of expression are given in order to develop a culturally sensitive storying strategy. In addition to the decision of what language form to use, the choice of what language to use is also crucial. The most effective ministry strategies among oral cultures occur when the communication is done in the heart language/mother 48

tongue. Many of the people groups that are still awaiting God’s Word in their heart language have a long history of being a minority people in their own country. When the Bible has come to them in the past, it has often been in a printed form that they cannot read or in a language that does not speak to their heart. In fact, it might be the language of a people they feel have oppressed them for many years. However, when they hear the stories from God’s Word in their own language they are often amazed and have an immediate heart response and cultural identification with that message. They may respond that indeed God has remembered them and that He is for them. When they hear the message in their heart language, the Word speaks to them in an indescribable way because it is in their own language. It captivates them and they want to hear more. Stories heard in the mother tongue are easily memorized and retold to others. Oral learners can often recite large portions of scripture when they hear these passages in their mother tongue and packaged in the stories they can easily learn and reproduce. Effective ministries amongst oral cultures should be worldview sensitive in order to build bridges of understanding and confront barriers to the Gospel message. Because stories possess the power to actually change how people feel, think

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

and behave and to change the way they see the world it is important to have a sequential, step-by-step process that leads them to a new Biblical World View. What is effective in such situations is the oral communication of a set of chronological set of Bible stories that will evolve a set of similarities between a cultures world view and a Biblical world view. The power of storytelling and audio Scripture engagement (Adapted from The Ancient Paths DVD by Scriptures in Use) • Story is central to oral learners because it is a bridge to the heart, and because it involves the listener when told in an interactive way. • It is based on a low-cost training/replication model that allows the individual to actually begin to quickly and effectively start “telling the story” of the Good News. • It turns defeated, marginalised, yet high-potential, semiliterate Believers into powerful evangelists/disciples with great impact, providing them with a sense of fulfilment, personal value, and new hope. • It can accelerate Bible translation in languages that are predominantly found in oral cultures. • It can address the full continuum of spiritual growth from stone clearing and watering through commitment, discipleship and leadership development. • Storytelling the Good News is cross-culturally sensitive and allows breakthroughs to the core of the culture – powered by concrete specifics rather than abstract ideas. • It is a strategy perfectly suited to traditional, relationalbased oral cultures, e.g. Hindu, Buddhist/Tibetan Buddhist, Muslim, Animist, etc. • It is a communications style already well-known, understood, and widely used by the “receivers” of the message. • It communicates the message in a setting of concrete realities (understanding) in contrast to the more traditional Western approach rooted in abstract ideas and principles. • It is a communications approach accessible to, readily understood by, and powerfully usable for the large numbers of men/women “on the bridge” who have a modest (4-7 years) formal education. These local, grassroots, “ordinary” individuals are normally left out of traditional evangelism/church planting strategies which call for higher levels of education and, frequently, a considerable length of time/maturity in the individual’s spiritual journey. • Naturally, it encourages group audiences rather than individual listeners. As clusters of Believers (local fellowships) emerge, they typically do so already grouped by existing, natural relationships. This contrasts with the traditional, individualistic information/reception/response model which requires extraction and re-formation of these individuals into new, artificially-grouped relationships (local fellowships).

Building Block 6: Obedience Based Discipleship Obedience based discipleship As we spend time listening to the Scriptures we allow the Spirit of God to write His words on the tablets of our hearts. “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds”. (Hebrews 10:17) What God has ordained for us is a life of action, not mere meditation and philosophy. It is therefore not surprising that when He calls us into relationship with Him, the language He uses is the language not only of belief but of action. “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead”. (James 2:14, 17) What specific action words does God use to describe the essence of how we can engage with Him, the Living Word? In the English translations of the spoken Word, the verbs used to characterize and form the basis for our lives and interaction with our Father are: Listen diligently Treasure Apply The verbs in the language in which the original instruction was given – Hebrew, are: Listen diligently – sh’ma: The focus of the word “listen diligently” or “sh’ma” is on vital relationship. It is valuing the relationship and the words of the one speaking above all else in life. The Hebrew word our English Bibles translate as “listen” is “sh’ma” (shin, mem, ayin). It can sometimes be translated as “he listens”, “he hears”, or “he obeys”. The first usage is in Genesis 3:8, where we are told of Adam and Eve after the Fall: “And they heard [sh’ma] the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden [in the cool of the day]: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Holy One God amongst the trees of the garden”. Cherish or treasure – sh’mar: The focus of the word “obey” or “sh’mar” is on treasuring, guarding, and cherishing (not legalistically performing), something entrusted to you by the one whose words you treasure. To “sh’mar” is virtually impossible unless one has first committed his of her life to “sh’ma”. The Hebrew word our English Bibles translate as “observe” or “keep” in most instances is “sh’mar” (shin, mem, resh, sh’mar, pronounced shaw-mar). This verb root means to diligently defend, to guard, to keep watch over, to protect, to cherish, to treasure, and to save. The first usage is found in Genesis 2:15: “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the Garden of Eden to dress it and to keep [i.e., sh’mar] it”. Do or apply – asah: The focus of the word “do” or “asah” is on building – making something which is said (invisible energy) into something which is real and concrete and meaningful in everyday life, and for all to see (visible motion in response to the invisible energy of the words which were said). The Hebrew word our English Bibles translate as “do” is “asah” 49

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

(ayin, shin, hey). This verb paints a hebraic picture of a potter fashioning something recognisable and useful from a lump of clay. It involves application of creative energy to build – to take something from a raw state to an improved and vastly more functional or artistic state. It means to bring out the potential in raw materials – to make them conform to the image in the mind of the Creator like the clay conforms to the image in the mind of the potter.

It is a continually ongoing and progressive process which depends upon the principles of listening attentively to the Word, treasuring it, and applying it in our daily lives. As we allow the Word to penetrate us we achieve small victories or rather deliverances from our old nature. This deliverance is locked up as a treasure in every Bible story, but it can have no effect unless it is observed, discovered and applied.

These three Hebrew verbs are some of the most oftenrepeated words in the entire Bible. They represent nothing less than the paving stones of a biblical walk with the Creator of the Universe. An understanding of these verbs is essential for obedience based discipleship. Every one of the hearers of His spoken Word needs to seek His instruction and teaching on what the action of these verbs would look like in their lives.

With every deliverance from our ‘old ways’ there must also follow a period of soul-searching, of questioning everything that has happened, of pondering what is to come next, and of wondering what it all means. Each and every story from the Bible should be allowed to play a part in this process. Thus it is vitally important that we always make time for the trainer, storyteller or group to process the impact of each story being told.

Because God speaks to each of us in the language of the heart, it is imperative that His Word and stories be made accessible to the hearer in their heart language. God’s spoken Word needs to come to the heart first (listen) in order to bring change to a worldview (cherish/treasure), and in order for personal transformation to take place (do).

Throughout this process it is inevitable that negative thoughts and attitudes will surface, that sarcasm will issue forth, and that ugly emotions repressed for years will find expression. This is a natural outflow of exposure to His Word. His Word penetrates where no man can see and will bring to light the things we often try to keep hidden.

The Word of God should be allowed to pierce our hearts. (Heb 4:12 ESV) For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

It is important to understand that this rather unbecoming stage is an absolutely necessary part of transitioning from a ‘slave mentality’ to that of a ‘free man’. Without this step we will never be able to move from the coerced surrender of one’s will unto the dominance of another human being -- to a point where one can freely and voluntarily surrender one’s will to the Father.

The battle for the hearts of men and women is the most important challenge of our age. The world and God’s enemy know this and constantly batter us with words aimed, like poisonous arrows, at our hearts. In light of this we must continually be allowing the Word of God to penetrate our hearts in order to properly evaluate the foundations/roots of our belief systems. This penetration is not of our intellectual understanding, rather the Word must pierce our hearts. To allow the Word of God to only influence our minds can lead to making superficial changes. This is because worldview, belief systems, and emotions are situated within our heart. As such, when our mind is challenged, it searches our heart for the root. If, however, that root has not been addressed to be in line with a Biblical worldview, our mind will simply revert back to whatever worldview resides within the heart. In I Corinthians 4:5 Paul of Tarsus says: “Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, Who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts...” This process of deprogramming the heart, is often referred to in many a literate approach as the ‘renewing of the mind’. It is a process which every person must undertake if they are serious about setting their heart on the things of the Kingdom of God.

As we engage with His Word, the Lord uses a particular mechanism to bring this necessary but unpleasant stage about. He knows that it is not celebrating freedom, which brings people to the point of overcoming the slave mentality, but facing a crisis. In a crisis we have the opportunity to make a decision between two pathways – the narrow and less travelled path or the broad and frequently travelled path. In the midst of this it is important to remember that ‘revisionist history’ and ‘spin’ are not limited to the pagans. Even those who claim to be in relationship with the Father and those whom He has redeemed often engage in ‘spin’ – turning the truth 180 degrees. Our memories can and often do play tricks on us. Thus it is imperative that we learn to rely not upon what men say or upon what we ‘believe’, but solely upon the Words, deeds, and covenant faithfulness of our God. His Words need to be written on the tablets of our hearts, replacing the old ‘beliefs’. Contrary to popular opinion, beliefs will not get you through a real crisis. Neither will faith. Only our God through His life-giving Word has the power to deliver us. Therefore, we must help people in this time of soul-searching to turn their attention away from the “spin” of the revisionists and blameplacers in our midst and focus their gaze back upon our Saviour, where it belongs.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

Discovering God’s Plan of Salvation First Chronological Bible Stories Set

This story list can be used in the beginning stages of storytelling within Interactive Bible Discovery

First Chronological Bible Stories Set

No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Scripture Passage Genesis 1:1-25 Genesis 1:26-2:3 Genesis 2:4-2:25 Genesis 3:1-24 Genesis 4:1-16 Genesis 12:1-7 Genesis 15:1-6 Genesis 22:1-18 Exodus 12:1-28 Exodus 20:1-21 Joshua 6:15-27 1 Samuel 17:31-52 2 Samuel 12:1-14 Isaiah 53:1-12 Luke 1:26-38 Luke 2:1-20 John 1:29-34 Luke 5:17-26 Mark 4:35-41 Luke 10:25-28 Luke 10:30-37 Luke 10:38-42 Luke 15:11-32 Luke 22:14-23 Luke 23:32-49 Luke 24:1-12 Luke 24:36-53 John 3:1-21 John 21:15-17 Acts 2:1-8

Story Creation The beginning The first man and woman Sin comes into the world The first brothers The call of Abram God’s covenant with Abram Abraham’s obedience and God’s provision The promise of Passover The Ten Commandments Joshua, Jericho, and deliverance Goliath’s defeat David and Nathan God’s righteous servant Jesus’ birth foretold The birth Jesus is baptized Jesus forgives and heals Jesus calms the storm Inheriting eternal life The Good Samaritan Martha and Mary The Prodigal Son The Last Supper Jesus is crucified Jesus conquers death Jesus appears and ascends We have a choice Being a servant Filled with the Spirit

Discovering God’s Plan of Salvation First Chronological Bible Stories Set

This story list can be used in the beginning stages of storytelling within Interactive Bible Discovery 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

Genesis 1:1-25 Creation General Genesis 1:26-2:3 Creation Man and 7th day Genesis 2:7-8 The First Man, Adam Genesis 2:15-25 One Man and One Woman Genesis 3:1-24 Fall in the Garden: Sin Genesis 4:1-16 Cain & Abel Genesis 6:9-22 Noah’s Instructions Genesis 7:7-10 The Ark Genesis 9:1-17 Blessings & Covenant With Noah Genesis 11:1-9 Tower of Babel Job 1:1-22 Job Loses Everything Job 2:1-13 Job Loses Health

13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23.

Job 38:1-21 God Calls Job to Answer Job 40:1-14 God Compared to Job Job 42:1-17 Job’s Humility, God’s Response Genesis 12:1-7 Abraham’s Calling Genesis 12:10-20 Abram & Sarai Genesis 13:1-18 Lot, Conflict & Choices Genesis 15:1-6 Abraham’s Faith Genesis 18:1-15 Sarah Promised a Son Genesis 18:16-33 Abraham’s Plead for Sodom’s People Genesis 19:12-26 Lot Saved Genesis 20:1-18 Abraham Repeats

24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34.

Genesis 21:1-8 The Birth of Isaac Genesis 21:9-21 Hagar & Ishmael Genesis 22:1-18 Sacrifice of Isaac Genesis 24:10-27 A Wife for Isaac Genesis 25:21-26 Jacob and Esau Genesis 25:27-34 Esau Sells His Birthright Genesis 27:14-29 Jacob’s Deception and Blessing Genesis 28:10-22 Jacob’s Ladder Vision Genesis 32:24-32 Jacob Wrestles With an Angel & Name Change Genesis 35:1-5 Back to Bethel for Jacob Genesis 37:1-8 Joseph’s Dreams

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62. 63. 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75. 76. 77. 78. 79. 80. 81. 82. 83. 84. 85. 86. 87. 88. 89. 90. 91. 92. 93. 94. 95. 96. 97. 98. 99. 100. 101. 102. 103. 104. 105. 106. 107. 108. 109. 110. 111. 112. 113. 114. 115. 116. 117.

Genesis 37:12-28 Joseph Loved, Then Sold Genesis 39:1-23 Joseph Lifted/Imprisoned Genesis 40: 5-23 The Butler and the Baker Genesis 41: 1-8 Pharaoh’s Dream Genesis 41:15-32 Joseph Explains the Dream Genesis 41: 33-37 Joseph’s Counsel Genesis 41:38-49 Joseph Appointed Genesis 42:1-14 Joseph and His Brothers Genesis 45:1-24 Joseph Reveals Himself Genesis 45:25-46:1-5 Jacob Moves to Egypt Exodus 1: 15-22 Shiphrah and Puah Exodus 2:1-10 Birth of Moses Exodus 2:11-15a Moses Kills an Egyptian Exodus 2:15b-22 Moses in Diaspora, Gets a Wife Exodus 2:23-25 God Remembers and Care Exodus 3:1-12 Moses‘ Calling & Burning Bush Exodus 4:10-17 Doubt of Moses Exodus 6:1-8 God’s Proposal Exodus 7:14-22 First Plague Exodus 8:1-15 Second Plague Exodus 8:16-19 Third Plague Exodus 8:20-24 Fourth Plague Exodus 9:1-6 Fifth Plague Exodus 9:8-11 Sixth Plague Exodus 9:18-26 Seventh Plague Exodus 10:12-15 Eight Plague Exodus 10: 21-23 Ninth Plague Exodus 11: 4-7 Tenth Plague Exodus 12:1-20 The Passover Instituted Exodus 12:21-28 The Passover Communicated Exodus 12:30-38 The Exodus Exodus 14:5-14 God, Pharaoh, Moses Exodus 14:21-31 Crossing the Red Sea Exodus 15: 22-27 The Waters of Mara Exodus 16: 13-18 Quails and Manna Exodus 17:1-7 Moses Rock One Exodus 17:8-16 Aaron, Hur & Moses Exodus 20:1-17 The Ten Commandments Exodus 24:9- 11 The Meeting on the Mountain Exodus 31:12-18 Importance of the Sabbath Exodus 32:1-14 Golden Calf Exodus 32:30- 35 Moses the Intercessor Exodus 33:18-23 Moses & The Rock Exodus 34:4-10 The God of Mercy Leviticus 5:14-6:7 The Guilt Offering Leviticus 6:8-13 The Burnt Offering Leviticus 6:14-18 The Grain Offering Leviticus 6:24-30 The Sin Offering Leviticus 7:11-21 The Peace Offering Leviticus 10:1-7 Death of Nadab and Abihu Leviticus 24:10-23 The Blasphemer Numbers 6:22-27 The Blessing Numbers 12:1-16 Moses God’s Leader Numbers 13:25-33 The Report of the Spies Numbers 14:20-33 Generation of Exodus Dies Numbers 14:36-45 Slow Learners Numbers 20:1-13 Moses Rock Two Numbers 21:4-9 Brass Serpent Numbers 22:21-35 Balaam and the Donkey Numbers 33:50-56 Drive Out Dwellers Deuteronomy 6:4-25 Remember God Deuteronomy 8:1-20 God Gave You the Power Joshua 2:1-24 Rahab & Spies Joshua 5:12-6:5 Joshua Meets Captain Joshua 6:6-19 Jericho Joshua 6:20-27 Joshua, Jericho and the Deliverance of Rahab, the Prostitute Joshua 7:1-15 Defeat at Ai Joshua 24:16-27 Renewed Covenant & Rock of Witness Judges 2:1-13 New Generation Forsakes Judges 3:7-11 Othniel Judges 4:1-14 Deborah and Barak Judges 4:15-23 The Promise of Barak Judges 7:1-25 Gideon’s Battle Judges 13:24-14:4 Birth of Samson & Marriage Judges 14:5-20 Samson and the Lion Riddle Judges 15:1-5 Samson and the Foxes Judges 16:4-15 Samson and Delilah Judges 16:16-22 Samson Tricked and Bound Judges 16:23-31 Samson’s Last Deed Ruth 1:1-22 Ruth Follows Naomi Ruth 2:1- 23 Ruth Gleans Ruth 3:1-18 Ruth & Boaz Ruth 4:1-22 Ruth Redeemed

118. 119. 120. 121. 122. 123. 124. 125. 126. 127. 128. 129. 130. 131. 132. 133. 134. 135. 136. 137. 138. 139. 140. 141. 142. 143. 144. 145. 146. 147. 148. 149. 150. 151. 152. 153. 154. 155. 156. 157. 158. 159. 160. 161. 162. 163. 164. 165. 166. 167. 168. 169. 170. 171. 172. 173. 174. 175. 176. 177. 178. 179. 180. 181. 182. 183. 184. 185. 186. 187. 188. 189. 190. 191. 192. 193. 194. 195. 196. 197. 198. 199. 200. 201. 202.

1 Samuel 1:9-19a Hannah’s Prayer 1 Samuel 1:19b-23 Birth of Samuel 1 Samuel 2:27-36 Eli’s Loss 1 Samuel 3:1-20 God’s Message to Samuel 1 Samuel 5:1-12 Ark in Ashdod 1 Samuel 8:1-22 Israel Demands King 1 Samuel 13:4-14 Saul Loses Kingdom 1 Samuel 15:7-35 Saul Obeys Part 1 Samuel 16:1-13 David Chosen by God 1 Samuel 17:4-14 The Champion Goliath 1 Samuel 17:15-37 David Goes to Fight 1 Samuel 17:38-52 Goliath’s Defeat 1 Samuel 24:1-7 David & Saul’s Robe Psalm 121: 1-8 My Help Comes from the Lord Psalm 128:1-6 Blessing for the Household Psalm 130:1-8 Wait on the Lord 2 Samuel 2:1-7 David Anointed King of Judah Psalm 6:1-8 Repentance Lament Psalm 19:1-14 The Word of the Lord Psalm 93:1-5 Your Throne is Everlasting 2 Samuel 5:1-5 David Anointed King of Israel Psalm 133:1-3 Brotherly Love Psalms 1:1-6 Which Counsel? Psalm 23:1-6 Shepherd’s Care Psalm 47:1-9 He is Above All! Psalm 29:1-11 The Voice of the Lord 2 Samuel 9:1-13 Mephibosheth 2 Samuel 11:1-12 David, Bathsheba, & Uriah 2 Samuel 11:13-27 The Murder of Uriah 2 Samuel 12:1-7a Nathan & David Psalm 122:1-9 Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem Psalm 3:1-8 Personal Lament: He Can Help Psalm 12:1-8 Corporate Lament: Ungodliness Samuel 22:29-32 David’s Song Psalm 139:1-13 You Know Me Psalm 139:14-24 God’s Design & Way Psalm 111:1-10 Great are His Works 1 Kings 1:28-40 Solomon Anointed as King 1 Kings 2:1-4 David’s Words to Solomon 1 Kings 3:5-14 Solomon’s Dream 1 Kings 3:16-28 Solomon and the Two Women Proverbs 1:7-19 Sinning Brings Grief Proverbs 2:1-5 Seek Wisdom Proverbs 3:5-12 Trusting Life Honored Proverbs 6:6-11 Lessons from the Ant Proverbs 10:22 The Blessing of the Lord Proverbs 11:1 Righteous Scales Proverbs 12:5 The Advice of the Righteous Proverbs 14:12 The Way Psalm 127:1-5 What is a Full Life? Psalm 134:1-3 Come Praise the Lord Psalm 150:1-6 Praise the Lord! I Kings 9:1-9 Promise and Implications for Solomon Ecclesiastes 11:9-10 Enjoy Responsibly Ecclesiastes 12:1-8 Remember Your Creator Ecclesiastes 12:9-14 Serve and Obey God 1 Kings 10:1-13 Queen of Sheba Proverbs 31:10-31 A Precious Wife 1 Kings 18:1-16 Brave Obadiah 1 Kings 18:17-46 Elijah & Prophets of Baal 1 Kings 19:1-18 Fear After Success 2 Kings 2:1-15 Elijah Taken to Heaven 2 Kings 4:1-7 Jars of Oil 2 Kings 4:8-17 Prophet’s Chamber 2 Kings 4:42-44 Feeding of the Hundred 2 Kings 5:1-27 Naaman, Elisha & Gehazi 2 Kings 6:1-7 Lost Axe Head 2 Kings 8:1-6 Elisha, King & Lady Jonah 1:1-17 Jonah Runs Jonah 2:1-10 Jonah in Fish Jonah 3:1-10 Nineveh Repents Jonah 4:1-11 Jonah’s Dark Heart Isaiah 1:9-20 Be Willing & Obey or Lose Isaiah 6:1-13 Vision of God Isaiah 40:25-31 God, Knows and Cares Isaiah 44:6-20 We Cannot Make God Isaiah 53:1-12 Coming Willing Savior Isaiah 58:1-14 God’s Great Offer Isaiah 64:1-7 Mankind Rebels Isaiah 65:13-25 Future Peace Promised 2 Kings 20:1-11 King Hezekiah Healed. 2 Kings 23:1-3 The Covenant With the Lord Jeremiah 1:1-10 Call of Jeremiah Jeremiah 18:1-10 Potter’s House/Nations Jeremiah 36:20-32 Burning The Scroll

203. 204. 205. 206. 207. 208. 209. 210. 211. 212. 213. 214. 215. 216. 217. 218. 219. 220. 221. 222. 223. 224. 225. 226. 227. 228. 229. 230. 231. 232. 233. 234. 235. 236. 237. 238. 239. 240. 241. 242. 243. 244. 245. 246. 247. 248. 249. 250. 251. 252. 253. 254. 255. 256. 257. 258. 259. 260. 261. 262. 263. 264. 265. 266. 267. 268. 269. 270. 271. 272. 273. 274. 275. 276. 277. 278. 279. 280. 281. 282. 283. 284. 285. 286. 287.

Habakkuk 3:17-19 Praise Amidst Challenges Ezekiel 37:1-14 Ezekiel’s Dry Bone Vision Daniel 1:9-21 Daniel Holds Firm Daniel 3:14-30 Three in Fire Daniel 4:18-37 King’s Tree Dream Daniel 6:16-22 Daniel in Lion’s Den Zechariah 14:1-9 Jesus’ Return Nehemiah 4:1-18a Building and Defending Nehemiah 8:1-12 Hearing the Word Read Nehemiah 13:1-12 Clean Out the Room Luke 1:57-66 Birth of John John 1:1-14 The Word Became Flesh Luke 2:1-7 Birth of Jesus Luke 2:8-16 Shepherds Find Jesus Matthew 2:1-18 The Wise Men Luke 2:42-52 Jesus at Age 12 Matthew 3:1-17 John Baptizes Jesus Matthew 4:1-11 Temptation of Jesus Mark 1:21-28 Jesus Casts Out Demon Mark 1:40-45 One Leper Luke 5:1-11 Peter Goes Fishing John 1:43-51 Jesus, Phillip, Nathanael John 2:1-11 Marriage & Wine John 3:1-21 Jesus & Nicodemus John 4:6-42 Woman at the Well John 4:46-54 Nobleman’s Son Healed Mark 2:1-12 Crippled Lowered Down John 5:10-16 Carrying His Bed Mark 3:1-6 Hand Luke 6: 6-11 Healing on a Sabbath Luke 6: 12-16 Calling of the Twelve Matthew 5:1-16 How to be Blessed & Bless Luke 7:1-10 The Centurion of Capernaum Luke 7:12-17 Widow’s Son Raised Luke 7:19-23 John Baptist Investigates Luke 7:36-50 Much Forgiven Luke 11:2-4 The Lord’s Prayer Luke 11:33-36 The Lamp of the Body Luke 8:16-18 Parable of the Lamp Mark 4:35-41 Storm & Jesus Mark 5:1-20 Demoniac of Gerasenes Mark 5:21-42 Lady/Jairus’ Girl Matthew 10:5-16 Two’s Sent Matthew 13: 3-23 Parable of Sower Matthew 14:22-33 Walking on Water Mark 6:1-6 Jesus Visits Home Town John 6:2-14 5,000 Fed Mark 7:1-16 Tradition or God Matthew 16: 13-28 Prediction Matthew 17:1-9 Transfiguration Luke 9:46-48 The Greatest in the Kingdom John 8:2-11 Woman Found in Adultery John 9:1-7 The Blind Man John 10:7-18 Jesus the Good Shepherd Luke 10:1-12 Person of Peace Luke 10:25-28 Man of the Law Luke 10:30-37 Good Samaritan Luke 10:38-42 Martha & Mary Luke 13:10-17 Bent Woman Luke 15:1-10 Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin Luke 15:11-32 Prodigal Son Luke 16:19-31 Rich Man & Lazarus Luke 17:11-19 Ten Lepers Luke 18:9-14 Two Prayers Mark 10:46-52 Blind Bartimaeus Luke 18:15-17 Jesus and the Children Luke 18:18-27 Rich Ruler Luke 19:1-10 Zacchaeus Luke 19:45-48 The Money Changers John 12:1-10 Mary Anoints Jesus John 12:12-16 Jesus Enters Jerusalem Mark 12:41-44 God’s Values Matthew 26:6-13 Precious Ointment Matthew 26:36-56 Garden Prayer Luke 22:7-13 Preparation for the Passover Luke 22:14-23 The Last Supper John 13:1-17 Jesus Washes Feet John 14:1-7 I Am The Way John 14:8-15 Believe & Work John 14:16-26 Guard His Word John 15:1-14 Jesus is Vine, We Are Branches John 15:15-27 World Not Love Jesus’ Friends John 16:1-13 Comforter to Come John 17:1-8 Jesus’ Prayer to the Father Matthew 27:35-54 Crucifixion

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD 288. 289. 290. 291. 292. 293. 294. 295. 296. 297. 298. 299. 300. 301. 302. 303. 304. 305. 306. 307. 308. 309. 310. 311. 312. 313.

Luke 23:32-49 Father Forgive Them Matthew 28:1-15 Resurrection Matthew 28:16-20 Great Commission John 20:24-31 Thomas’ Doubt John 21:15-17 Being a shepherd Acts 1:1-11 Jesus’ Last Words Acts 2:1-8 Filled With Holy Spirit Acts 2:14-40 Peter’s Sermon Acts 2:41-47 3,000 Believe Acts 3:1-10 Silver & Gold Lame Healed Acts 4:13-22 Peter & John Preach Acts 5:1-11 Ananias & Sapphira Acts 5:12-21 Arrest & Rescue Acts 5:22-33 Peter’s Boldness Acts 5:34-42 Persecution of Apostles Acts 6:8-15 Stephen Before Council Acts 8:27-35 Philip and Eunuch Acts 9:1-19 Paul’s Conversion Acts 10: 9-23 Cornelius and Peter Acts 12:5-17 Peter’s Release From Prison Acts 14:8-18 Lame Man at Lystra James 1:22-27 Do the Word James 3:1-18 Using Our Words Acts 16:16-24 Fortunetelling Girl Acts 16:25-34 Philippian Jailor Galatians 3:1-14 Just Live by Faith

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Galatians 4:1-8 Son Serve True Father Galatians 4:19-31 Children of the Freewoman Acts 17:1-12 Paul Preaches -Two Cities Acts 17:16-34 Paul Preaches on Unknown God Acts 18:4-11 Change for Paul Acts 18:24-28 Apollo’s Dedication Acts 19:13-20 Seven Sons of Sceva Acts 19:23-41 Diana of the Ephesians 1 Cor 2:1-16 Spirit Teaches (vs 9-14) 1 Cor 10:1-14 Learn from Israel’s Example 1 Cor. 13:1-13 Above All, Love 2 Cor 5:1-15 Absent From Body, With Lord 2 Cor. 9:6-12 Sowing Roman 1:16-25 All Know, but Twisted Roman 4:1-8 Abraham & David Types Romans 8:28-34 Destiny God’s Children Romans 11:16-25 Branch Grafted In Acts 20:7-12 Fall Out Window Acts 24:24-27 Paul & Felix Acts 27:14-44 Paul & Prisoners in Storm Acts 28:1-6 Paul Shipwrecked Ephesians 5:15-33 Redeeming the Time Ephesians 6:1-9 Respect in Relationships Ephesians 6:10-20 Armor of God Philippians 2:1-18 Humble Like Jesus Philippians 2:19-30 Paul as a Friend

Building Block 8: The 6 Essentials for Enabling a Self-replicating Scripture Engagement Movement A person of peace (From the article “Recognizing a Person of Peace” edited by J. Fokker, based on the source of George Patterson and Gallen Currah of Mentor and Multiply.) God often prepares family leaders to receive the Gospel. In a European context the family bonds are mostly not that tight as in other cultures. Instead of looking for family leaders, you could find people of influence among different social groups. An example would be within sports clubs, hang gliding clubs, business people and many other places. Such persons are often quite devout in their non-Christian religion. Note: A child of peace might not be peaceful in the way that one would expect. Cornelius, for example, was a professional soldier, trained to lead troops to kill enemies of Rome. Also, the Philippian jailer prior to the earthquake had Paul and Silas tormented, putting their feet in stocks. Be prepared for God’s surprises! • God arranges for praying Believers to meet children of peace that he has prepared. • Most of the children of peace provide you with an entrance to their web of relationships, to start a new church in their home. • Such persons will often invite Christians to explain the Gospel to them. • Christians must be willing to overcome cultural barriers to share the Gospel with them. Note: It took a special revelation from God for Peter to accept his Christ-given assignment to share the Gospel with Gentiles within their own cultural surroundings. • Christians must be prepared to speak about the Lord Jesus and the Gospel. • Such new Believers can be baptized in their own homes. • When invited to eat or stay a few days in the home of a new Believer, Christians should do so.

340. 341. 342. 343. 344. 345. 346. 347. 348. 349. 350. 351. 352. 353. 354. 355. 356. 357. 358. 359. 360. 361. 362. 363. 364. 365.

Philippians 3:13-17 Followers of Christ Philippians 4:16-19 Joy in Hard Time 1 Timothy 3:1-16 Qualifications of Leaders 1 Timothy 6:1-21 God’s View of Money Titus 2:1-15 Tasks & Keep Looking Up 1 Peter 5:5-7 Be Humble Hebrews 4:12-13 The Word as Sword Hebrews 4: 14-16 Jesus is Our High Priest Hebrews 11:1-31 All Came by Faith Hebrews 12: 1-29 Run Our Race Patiently 2 Timothy 2:1-15 Soldiers of Jesus 2 Timothy 3:14-17 The Value of the Word of God 1 John 3:1-4 Children of God 1 John 5:1-5 Love and Faith 1 John 5:18-21 The Only God Revelation 1:7-8 He is Coming Revelation 2:1-7 The Prophet’s First Love Revelation 2:8-11 The Servant’s Crown Revelation 2:12-17 The Teacher’s Manna Revelation 2:18-29 The Ruler’s Rule Revelation 3:1-6 The Exhorter’s New Clothes Revelation 3:7-13 The Giver’s Pillar Revelation 3:14-22 Mercy’s Victory Revelation 19:11-16 Rider of the White Horse Revelation 21:1-8 Future Joy & Judgment Revelation 22:17 All Who Are Thirsty – Come!

Note: Christ’s servants must be willing to receive hospitality from such seekers, and not feel that they have to offer payment, which in some cultures is an offence. • Such new Believers can host a “church” in their home. Note: In pioneer fields most new “churches” are born in the homes of children of peace. A child of peace and his family should not be brought into an existing “church”, unless for some reason it is impossible to start a new “church” in their home. Bringing them into an existing “church” usually stops the process of “church” reproduction. • Church planters in pioneer fields should, if invited, remain in the home of the child of peace following the baptism of the family, like Peter and his helpers from Joppa did in Caesarea, to disciple the new Believers and mentor their leaders. Note: Often a child of peace, if mentored the way the apostles did it, will become a shepherding elder who serves the new “church”. You, as his mentor, may have to make repeated visits, and to mentor one or more children of peace together. • Although such children of peace may appear somewhat rustic in their dress and manner, and will lack theological sophistication, others listen to them, and they know how to influence their households and friends. Western mentors must allow their national co-workers to try first to work with children of peace before rejecting them as unsuitable for leadership. Other biblical examples of a person of peace: From Acts 16:29-34 – When the Philippian jailor learned that his prisoners had not escaped following an earth tremor, he humbly begged of the apostles how he could be saved. They offered salvation by faith to him and to his household. He brought them into his house and cared for him. They spoke the Word of the Lord to the household and baptized them. From Acts 18:7 – Justus, a devout man whose house was located next door to the Synagogue, hosted Paul for a time at Corinth.

INTERACTIVE BIBLE DISCOVERY | COURSE MANUAL

WORKS CITED “Audio Scripture Declaration.” International Orality Network. The International Orality Network. Web. 10 Feb 2014. <http://www.orality.net/sites/default/files/oral_media/IONAudio-Scripture-Declaration-1331881058.pdf>. Bridges, Erich. “Biblical ‘Man of Peace’ Approach is Key to Effective Outreach.” Ethnic Harvest Ministry Resources. Ethnic Harvest, 1999-2011. Web. 7 Feb 2014. <http://www. ethnicharvest.org/links/articles/bridges_man_of_peace.htm>. Chiang, Samuel. “The Passion for Orality.” Orality Breakouts. 1st. Hong Kong: International Orality Network and Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization, 2010. pg. 5. Print. <http://www.orality.net/sites/default/files/Orality Breakouts 2010.pdf>. “Definition of functionally literate.” Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 25 Sept. 2001. Web. 7 May 2014. <https://stats.oecd.org/glossary/detail.asp?ID=1536>. “Definition of orality in English:.” orality: definition of orality in Oxford dictionary(American English)(US). N.p., n.d. Web. 7 May 2014. <http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/ definition/american_english/orality>. “Definition of reading literate.” Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, 5 Jan. 2003. Web. 3 March 2015. http://stats.oecd.org/glossary/detail.asp?ID=5420 Dye, T.W. “The Eight Conditions of Scripture Engagement.” International Journal of Frontier Missiology. 26:2.Summer (2009): 89-98. Print. <http://www.ijfm.org/PDFs_IJFM/26_2_ PDFs/89-98_EightConditions.pdf>. Fokker, J, ed. “Recognizing a Person of Peace.” Simple Church Europe. Simple Church, 23 Mar 2010. Web. 10 Feb 2014. <http://simplechurch.eu/index.php/toolbox/full/recognizinga-person-of-peace/>. Freebody, Peter. Literacy education in school: research perspectives from the past, for the future. Camberwell, Vic.: ACER Press, 2007. Print. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV® Text Edition: 2011. Is Your Audience Understanding Your Message. 2013. Infographic. GMI MissiographicsWeb. 13 Mar 2014. <http://www.gmi.org/infographics/missiographic-Literacy. pdf>.

Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization and International Orality Network. Making Disciples of Oral Learners. 1st. Lima, New York: International Orality Network in cooperation with Elim Publishing, 2005. 18-27. Print. <http:// www.orality.net/sites/default/files/Making_Disciples_of_Oral_ Learners (English).pdf>. Miller, Dorothy. Simply the Story Handbook. Draft 6/16/10. 2006 The God Story Project, 2010. Print. <www.SimplyTheStory.com>. “2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy.” Florida Literacy. U.S. Department of Education: National Center for Education Statistics, n.d. Web. 7 Feb 2014. Noll, Mark. “Faith and Conflict: The Global Rise of Christianity.” Religion and Public Life Project. Pew Research, 2 Mar 2005. Web. 7 Feb 2014. <http://www.pewforum.org/2005/03/02/ faith-and-conflict-the-global-rise-of-christianity/>. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Glossary of Statistical Terms: “Literate, Functionally.” 2001. <http://stats.oecd.org/glossary/detail.asp?ID=1536>. “Religion among the Millennials.” Pew Research. Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion and Public Life, 17 Feb 2-10. Web. 7 Feb 2014. <http://www.pewforum.org/2010/02/17/religionamong-the-millennials/>. Slack, James. “The International Mission Board, SBC Faces Issues Related to Orality, Literacy, and Oral (Non-Print) Communicators and Communication.” Unpublished, distributed at the Non-Print Media Consultation, Nairobi. (June 11-14, 2000). Print. Starr, Kevin. “Reading at Risk Report.” New York Times. July 13 (2004). The Ancient Paths: Communication Bridges to Oral Cultures. Scriptures in Use, 2004. DVD. 10 Feb 2014. <http://www. siutraining.org/training-storytellers/resources/dvdvideo/theancient-path>. Welser, Marcia. “Assessing Scripture Use Conditions with the Welser Scale.” Forum of Bible Agencies International. (2009). Web. 7 Feb. 2014. <http://www.scripture-engagement.org/ content/assessing-scripture-use-conditions-welser-scale>. Willis, Avery. Following Jesus. Module 1: “Making Disciples of Primary Oral Learners”. Progressive Vision, 2003. CD Series. <http://www.fjseries.org/low/home.html>.

ENGAGING ORAL LEARNERS WITH THE WORD OF GOD

The Interactive Bible Discovery Course Manual helps the literate learner understand the way oral people think and learn. The training teaches literate thinkers to empower oral learners to personally engage with the Word of God, using a unique but simple method that integrates storytelling and audio Scripture engagement.

Davar Partners International is a global non-profit organisation that connects oral learners with audio Scripture & life messages in their heart language.

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John Yip Global Facilitator for Ubabalo If you are a movement leader or a ministry strategist desiring global impact through disciple-making, then you must give serious consideration to orality needs and processes. I love the fact that orality keeps Bible discovery and obedience right in the centre! This Course Manual is a compelling tool that will launch your thinking and ministry implementation to new levels both strategically and practically.

Tom Elliff President Emeritus, International Mission Board, SBC Ours is a world that is remarkably illiterate! It is estimated that as much as 70% of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s population is functionally illiterate, depending primarily on the oral transmission of information. The desperate cry for the hour is for greater access to the Word of God, access that must take into account the need for oral transmission and study of the Scripture. Davarâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s IBD Manual is an excellent tool for any individual eager to share the Word and train others using principles proven to be effective among oral learners. This is a sharp, innovative method for oral trainers.