The Practice of Wayfinding

Ivan Martinez is the Dean of Studies of the Knox Centre for Ministry and Leadership, based in Dunedin.  Originally from the USA, Ivan migrated to Aotearoa in 2012, and has served in a variety of contexts in the USA, Japan and New Zealand.  He teaches Mission at KCML, and given his background brings unique insights into the topic of mission and evangelism.   

Lea McEwan: Once upon a time, I was employed as an evangelism catalyst. This was primarily because of my previous work in community ministries focusing on families and people with little to no experience with the Christian worldview. I researched, studied and practiced classic forms of evangelism primarily from an evangelical perspective. I  brought many people to salvation but observed that this was often not sustainable or elicited transformation for people but was a done and dusted event. Over time, I began to question much of what I previously had such confidence in and began to seek a more Christ-centered view of evangelism. I discovered that evangelism could be more than convincing people to be saved, but this was time-consuming and could not be quantified by the number of baptisms or church attendance. This led to a career change with a return to teaching, where I could practice evangelism focused on relationships with God and with others where all are included and accepted as they are. I still have questions and doubts, and that’s where my journey continues today.