An introduction on the importance of communication and this web site

-by Debra Buenting

Communication is not just an aspect of life; it is central to life.  Communication is right from the beginning of the Bible. God spoke our world into existence!  The Bible contains stories of the wonderful dance God has had with humankind since the beginning of our existence.  Jesus was a master storyteller, bringing healing not only to people's bodies, but to their ability to communicate as well.  He did not preach as much as he asked questions and told stories.

You probably know that the job of the human nervous system is to conduct stimuli between the brain, the spinal cord and the rest of the body.  So too, communication is the pathway for various parts of our mission and world to be truly connected.  Like the nervous system--which operates at both the center and peripheral levels of the body--so YWAM communication must also function at many, many levels and serve as a key component in being effective for The Kingdom.

A campaign was launched last year to elevate communication as an essential value in YWAM.  This campaign is an initiative of CRIT (Communication Research and Information Technology), an international group of YWAMers who are working to improve communication from and within YWAM to help us be whole and effective for the Kingdom of God.  Soon a Value Communication web site will be launched, and next year, a Wikipedia-type site will be unveiled.  It will be a site where YWAMers all around the world will be encouraged to post their stories, photos and videos, in their own language and from their own perspectives.

“Communication comes from the Latin word communis which means to share, to make common, or even to have possession of a common faith.  When we communicate, we create, maintain, and even change shared ways of life…Every time we communicate we creatively exercise God’s gifts by contributing good or bad practices of culture…Ultimately all communication is a form of worship, a love ballad.” – Schultze, Quentin, J. (2000). Communicating for life: Christian stewardship in community and media. Grand Rapids: Baker