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CTG's Len Geddert, above left, and Wycliffe Canada president Don Hekman sign their names
to the partnership agreement.

Wycliffe Bible Translators of Canada (Wycliffe Canada) and CrossTraining Global (CTG), both located in Calgary, signed a missionary agency agreement on March 10, 2010. This agreement will see Wycliffe working in partnership with the CTG, an organization that links churches, mission agencies and Bible colleges to provide cross-cultural training for prospective missionaries.

 “The importance of CrossTraining is that the organization unites a range of schools and passionate students, to a range of mission and Christian humanitarian agencies and significant needs in the world,” says Wycliffe Canada President Don Hekman. “CrossTraining fills the gap of cross-cultural training that no one school or agency can do by themselves. This agreement is significant to Wycliffe Canada because it allows us to participate much more effectively in engaging, training, and deploying interns to places where they can make a difference.”

Len Geddert, CrossTraining Global executive director, is also enthusiastic about the partnership CTG has developed.

“The beauty of partnership is that it breaks down barriers and facilitates working together in unity and harmony, things that are very close to God’s heart and strategic in the advance of the gospel and the Kingdom,” he says, quoting the verse from (John 17:23):  ‘…May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me…’  He goes on to say, “The partnership between CrossTraining Global and Wycliffe is an opportunity to make the plan of God known and visible.”

After working toward getting this agreement into place for the past 18 months, director of Wycliffe Canada’s NextGen Ministries, Derryl Friesen, is excited to see the agreement signed.

“I strongly believe my role in Wycliffe is not about recruiting.  It’s about discipling. Christ told us to make disciples, not recruit for missions,” explains Derryl. “ Jesus told his followers, ‘Ask the Lord of the harvest therefore, to send out workers into the harvest field’ (Luke 10:2 NIV), so it's actually His responsibility to recruit workers —not ours! Our job is to have our eyes and ears open to see who the Lord is mobilizing and then walk with them, encouraging them, empowering them and equipping them.  I am excited to partner with an organization that not only believes this but practically lives it out day by day."

 Friesen sees the following as ways the partnership will be beneficial:

• NextGen Ministries staff often meet young people with a heart for missions but with little or no training or experience. CTG affords a wonderful two-semester opportunity where Wycliffe can confidently send young people for pre-service cross-cultural and missionary training.

• One of the major Calgary churches requires all their missionary candidates to complete CTG before committing to support or send them out.  Through this partnership young people from the church who plan to join Wycliffe will have the opportunity to be supported by their church.
  
  
• One of the major components of CTG is the three-month overseas internship with a partner organization.  By partnering with CTG, Wycliffe has the opportunity to place young people into real life ministry situations on the field as a first step to long-term engagement.
  
  
• CTG has become the overseas internship program of choice for schools like Millar College of the Bible.  Partnering with CTG provides an open door to strategically partner with Canadian Bible colleges and build deeper relationships with students exploring career missions.

 Those present at the signing were Don Hekman, Len Geddert and his wife Marrian, CrossTraining Global Founder Jean Barsness, Derryl Friesen, and Bob Lever, Vice President of Personnel for Wycliffe Canada.