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Church doctrine – teaching – is largely built upon the inspired Word of God as written down by Paul, who God used to write more of the New Testament than any other person. Consequently, his letters are considered highly significant for the church. In what is possibly his last letter before being martyred for Christ, Paul wrote several important things to his young protégé Timothy. See the image below for what Paul wrote in chapter two, verse two.

Later, in the same chapter, we read the following in verse 15:

¹⁵ Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.

These two verses form much of the basis for why I formed Global Learning Advisers. I’m not a trained theologian. However, I’ve learned from Paul and other Biblical authors through years of Bible study. I’ve also learned from pastors and teachers I regularly listen to. Because of my study, I believe I have something to say. I think I can and should teach others what I’ve heard. I want to do what I believe God is now calling me to do so that when I’m done on this earth I can present myself to God unashamedly.

Although I’m not a trained theologian, I am a trained Educational Technologist. I think God has uniquely gifted me to do what I am doing through Global Learning Advisers.

When I was 30 I went through a major life-changing experience. Part of that change involved me switching jobs and moving half-way around the world. That led me to review who I was and who I wanted to be. For the previous year or so I had been working as an instructor teaching field service guys how to operate and maintain large computer equipment. I had also been living a life that was not pleasing to God. When I reevaluated my life, I decided I wanted to live a life that would be pleasing to God, although I wasn’t sure what that life would look like. I also decided I wanted to once again be involved in teaching others. I wasn’t fixed on what I wanted to teach, but just that teaching others was what I wanted to do.

It took me several years to get back into a full-time training role but I eventually did it. As I wrote on the About page, I’ve been working full-time in training and instructional design since 1997. Also, in 2006 I completed a Master’s Degree in Education with an emphasis in Educational Technology. As an Educational Technologist, I am trained to work with others from a wide range of subject areas. I now have much experience getting information from others and crafting that information into rich learning experiences as part of comprehensive educational programs. I also have experience teaching others how to design and develop their own comprehensive educational programs.

With Global Learning Advisers, I’m putting together my love for God and His Word with my passion for helping other people learn. I can teach others what I have heard about God. I realize, however, that others are much more knowledgeable than I about Biblical principles. Perhaps more importantly then, I can teach those people how to use technology as they teach others. By doing so, their message will have a much further reach. By working together, we can reach many more than we could by working alone.

At the very end of His earthly ministry, as Jesus was about to leave this earth and ascend to heaven, He gave His disciples one last command. It has become known as The Great Commission.

It is found in Matthew chapter 28, verses 18 through 20. Here it is from the English Standard Version:

¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Matthew 28:18-20

We can see from these verses that The Great Commission has three parts or three steps to it. First, the disciples are to go into all the nations and make disciples. Second, they are to baptize the new believers. Third, they are to teach them “to observe all that I have commanded you.”

For the first step, Jesus tells His disciples to go to all the world and make other disciples. The initial stage of making a disciple is the act of leading someone to accept Christ as Lord and Savior. This is salvation. From the time of Christ until now, Christians have been physically traveling to distant lands to make disciples. Although with the advent of the radio it became possible to reach people at a distance, leading people to salvation is still most effectively done face to face. That said, technology can play an important role in helping share information about Christ.

For the second step, Jesus tells His disciples to baptize those new disciples. Even with constant advancements in new technologies, I don’t know a way to do this at a distance. It simply must be done face-to-face.

For the third step, Jesus tells His disciples to teach the new disciples all He taught. Many consider this the process of discipling someone. However, since Jesus listed “teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you” separately, we will cover it as the third step in our process. Naturally, this step can be accomplished very effectively in a face-to-face setting. That is the way it has been done for two thousand years. Nevertheless, this step is where using “technology-enhanced, distance learning” can shine.

On our Home Page, we mention a bit about using technology to enable the spread of the gospel. Although we strongly advocate using technology, we know it can not do everything. Meeting face-to-face is almost always a critical part of spreading the gospel, especially to help build trust with others while leading them to accept Christ. That being said, once someone has made a commitment to Christ, being able to disciple them from a distance can be a very effective way to nurture them to grow.

Using technology can be the best way to teach people who are already committed followers of Christ deeper Biblical truths. We will discuss this more in future posts.