David Livermore draws the essential material written for people on cross-cultural ministry. The main distinction of the book is that the approach it is using for cross-cultural interaction originates neither from unnatural political correctness nor from information but the transformation from within. 1 The goal for people should not just be about acquiring more knowledge concerning different cultures; it should be about progressing into more multicultural people hence be able to show love across cultures. 2 He explains that expanding one’s information and changing behavior is not as difficult as having an inward transformation. 3 This starts with self-realization and understanding one’s culture then move to outward and inward adjustment to different cultures. 4 Cultural Intelligence (CQ) and expresses how CQ is a method of showing love for others. The book states that CQ is the potential to operate well across organizational, ethnic, and national cultures. 5 He suggests that love is the main reason why CQ is a crucial competency in the twenty-first century.
Livermore’s information concerning cultural intelligence is crucial in the current ministry context in sharing the gospel. 6 He emphasizes the importance of planning before someone embarks on the journey of interacting with people from different cultures. This is applicable when one is planning to start sharing the gospel with people from different cultures. 7 CQ knowledge is critical when planning for a project or an interaction happening in a separate cultural environment. Alteration of the usual approach is a necessity when there is a change in cultural dynamics. 8 One should determine what and how to communicate when they are supposed to interact across cultures. New places come with new challenges and rules, but the more they interact with different environments, the more they become adept. 9 Planning is significant when one has to visit different cultures to spread the gospel. One needs to know the appropriate language to use while interacting with new people. If the person involved in the mission of sharing the gospel does not understand the language of the people they are visiting, then it is a recommendation that they organize for an interpreter. 10 Things like the best mode of transport to employ in this mission is also a necessity.
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Livermore also emphasizes that self-awareness is an essential dimension of cross-cultural interaction. 11 With an excellent sense of self-awareness, people surpass being defined by their frustration or irritation and try to find out what is behind it. 12 The understanding of one’s cultural contexts determines the level of their self-awareness. When one becomes aware of how culture is shaping their behavior, and how other people perceive them considering their cultural background, they can learn to accommodate for such perceptions. Self-awareness provides people with better authority over plenty of dollars and hours people invest when working with partners around the world. 13 Fatigue and burnout are some of the negative consequences people incur when they operate across many cultures and time zone. 14 Being self-aware shows that an individual can appreciate their weaknesses and strengths. Self-awareness is an essential factor for a person with intentions of spreading the gospel cross-culturally. When one knows more about their desires, habits, needs, failings, and everything else that makes them unique, the easier it is for them to cope with the changes in life. 15 Besides, this aspect is essential because it enables one to accommodate other people’s weaknesses since they realize that it is normal for a human being to have flaws.
Being aware of other people and their surroundings is crucial in cross-cultural interaction. One can establish more valid interpretations when their awareness is inspired by CQ knowledge. 16 One should not assume that they understand why people are behaving the way they are using their perceptions. When one notices strange behavior in a different culture, they are supposed to define it and make the necessary decisions. 17 The decision-making process should not be rushed because cultural variation is involved. 18 Ways of becoming more aware of different cultures include; enquiring from associates in various places what is going on there and ensuring not to miss out on the forefront observation, checking out different newspapers that the people one is about to visit used to be able to collect additional information, and making consistent appointments with the ministry leaders in the places one is about to visit to know their insights. 19 Being aware of others is a significant aspect when planning to spread the gospel to people of a different culture. 20 When one understands other cultures, it becomes easy to interact with them without judging or taking offense unnecessarily.
During a cross-cultural interaction, it is also critical to do what is known as CQ checking. 21 “Checking” refers to the extent to which one goes to ensure that their assumptions, plans, and expectations are accurate acknowledging aspects such as diversification and multicultural influences. 22 A proper improvement of “checking” requires one to be ready to change how they evaluate situations. Reframing requires one to determine whether whatever they are feeling is confusion, fear, happiness, ambiguity, or embarrassment. 23 Once one identifies the emotion, they can decide whether it is reasonable or warranted. Stopping to find out that a situation can be demonstrated by cultural differences or diversity can assist one reframing and improving decision-making. It is also crucial to check with others who are more experienced in cultural issues. Checking can be applied to spreading the gospel cross-culturally. When planning for cross-cultural missionary works, they need to ensure that they gather facts about the respective places. 24 It is wrong to come up with decisions based on mere assumptions. One is supposed to carry out a prior survey to come up with accurate information. 25 One can do this by making questionnaires and requesting the members of that culture to fill them before making an official visit. This can also be done by contacting the relevant authorities to come up with facts.
Bibliography
Chennells, Abigail. "Servant Learners: Short-Term Missions as an Effective Strategy." (2018).
Hendrickson, Craig S. "Interpretive Leadership and Cultural Intelligence." In Pathways for Ecclesial Dialogue in the Twenty-First Century , pp. 101-114. Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2016.
Hertzke, Allen D., Laura R. Olson, Kevin R. Den Dulk, and Robert Booth Fowler. Religion and politics in America: faith, culture, and strategic choices . Routledge, 2018.
Kim, Matthew D. Preaching with Cultural Intelligence: Understanding the People Who Hear Our Sermons . Baker Academic, 2017.
Livermore, David. 2015. Leading with Cultural Intelligence: the real secrets to success. New York, New York : American Management Association.
