Evaluating Youth With A Mission

cross-cultural teams can function. It's like anytime you don't have that, I don't think there's going

to be much success down the road." Then he continues,

“The greatest problem with multiculturalism is just the misunderstandings and the

miscommunications. And so the way one culture values the individual can be offensive to

another. the same way one culture functions in a team can be really frustrating for another.”

I-5 gave a different perspective, "I think the onus is on those who are not the host culture

to learn and to assimilate. You can create a space for them. But if I'm going to go to Afghanistan,

the onus is on me to learn certain protocols." Later on, he states, "I think it's the person who is

visiting that culture who has to learn the most."

Evaluating Youth With A Mission

The next set of questions focused on evaluating YWAM on the application of the values

being addressed in this thesis in a multicultural setting. The questions were, “How well do you

think the YWAM values of the individual, working in teams, and servant leadership work in

multicultural settings? What are the hindrances?”

When asked these questions, seven of the participants focused on YWAM International

while three of them focused on their local context. Those who focused on their local context did

not feel qualified to evaluate YWAM as a whole.

From those participants who focused on YWAM International, five (three individualists

and two collectivists) felt that YWAM is doing well, but for different reasons. C-3, who believes

we are doing well puts it this way,

"I think it's because we worship together, and we have a fear of God. When there's something

wrong, we have the Holy Spirit convicting us, and we act on that. If it wasn't for that, we

would not have gone far. I tell you, I give the holy spirit the thumbs up here because I think if

it wasn't for Him in our lives, YWAM would never have been where they are because we

don't value those things as high as we should." (Feb. 10, 2021)

I-5 addressed it this way,

“I think we do really well as a mission. Better than most other organizations. Although I

think the lines are a lot more defined because of salaries and employment in organizations,

where people stay in their lane. It's a lot easier, but I don't know if it's genuine or not. I think

if you really can achieve unity and cooperation in a YWAM setting, it's the way the body of

Christ was meant to function. So I think we are doing very well. I love the way it's set up

because we don't get a salary. It really does kind of even the playing field.” (Feb 4, 2021)

The focus of I-4 was leadership. "I think we're incredibly intentional to try to blend all

those things of valuing the individual, functioning as teams, in a cross-cultural setting." Later on,

he states, "I think the senior leadership of YWAM is very intentional also. I think they're very

aware of it, in my opinion."

C-5 focuses on Loren Cunningham and our gatherings,

“So he always brings this international gathering. Why? to retain our diverse multicultural

organization. That's why you have an area circle leadership team. You have the European

circle leadership team. and when we come together. We call it YWAM Together. And we all

merge from all nations from different backgrounds we come from. And that's still

functioning; if we're no longer doing that, we lost our edge. That would be the baseline, I

would say that you can put your parameter in looking at our effectiveness as an international

multicultural organization. Once one nation disassociates itself from international gathering,

that's a danger. (Feb. 11,2021)

I-1 felt we are doing well in some places and others we are not for the other two. "In

some settings, it works really well. in other settings; it doesn't really work well. I think in the

settings that work really well, it's where the leader has been able to make that adjustment with

the whole collective individualistic mentality." (Feb 4, 2021) He, later on, shares the importance

of learning the language, "Not saying proficient, not saying A grade, but stumbling along,

demonstrating to the (Asian people) that, hey, your language is important, your culture is

important." He then later shares how many Westerners could not adjust to the culture, and

therefore many left.

Later on, I-1 said,

"Much of the way YWAM led is very western. Even though they talk about being flat, they

talk about eldership; they're still very western and how they're doing everything. And until

that changes, I think there's always going to be an incredible tension there. And we've got to

learn how to give voice to those that aren't western.”

He continues later on when he addresses putting collectivists into leadership,

“Not parading them around and saying, look, I've just put in a Latino teacher a leader, or I've

just put in an Asian leader. It's how we do it day to day. And so just changing the color isn't

going to change the ethos of what is going on. Because to me, it's a heart issue.”

I -1 closes off the interview with this statement, “I know the heart of YWAM is very

much to be inclusive and, to you know, change things a bit. But I think it's still very western in

its flavor and the way things are done.”

Being an Asian, C-2 believes.

“We could be better, because the whole power distance - lower distance is still very strong.

That's why most of our leaders are westerners, just because they talk more. That doesn't mean

there's content. There is the lower distance- margin that are thinkers, that are actually more

heavy in their thoughts with more wisdom in the words that come out of their mouth. So

YWAM can learn more to identify those. You know not because you're chatty. Not because

you're a westerner. It's implied that you are always better. So there is still that stigma that I

see over the last 31 years that I've been with YWAM.” (Feb.9, 2021)

Afterward, C-2 addresses the intimidation, "It's not that they're trying to intimidate you,

but it's just like you kind of like automatically goes to your corner because I am Asian- because I

don't have a lot of financial support." Later on, he shares how both sides, individualists and

collectivists, need to address the problem. It talks about how collectivists need to rise up, and

individualists need to make way. "I'm hoping that we could be better at that as well so we can

nurture less dominant cultures to be taking on leadership roles… As because we've always been

intimidated, we have always been the lesser important in the organization. I think it has a lot of

pride behind it."

C-2 who focused on YWAM in his local context. Being discouraged he said,

“There's even was one base in (Asian location) now that's really struggling because they don't

even staff. People left those potential foreigners left because, and this is my personal

assessment, because it's really poor leadership. Not having a real understanding of what team

dynamic is—not even valuing individuals—not even demonstrating servant leadership to the

people.” (Feb. 10, 2021)

C-3, after that, addressed the importance of applying the values. "If you don't really leave

out these values; you might memorize it actually, but you don't really understand." He later

expresses that if we do not learn how to apply the values, there will be "difficulties in the future."

Speaking about one of the challenges of hearing more voices from collective cultures,

“I think we've all recognized this over the years just so often; the financial challenge of

amazing leaders, maybe with lack of resources being able to get to meetings, can hinder the

voice and the influence, which plays into the functioning as teams and the multi-generation

or the multicultural thing. I think there are probably amazing leaders in YWAM that are

undiscovered treasures just because of the lack of resources.” (Feb. 23, 2021)