BUILDING A TEAM

I want to give you, our Partners, an overview of what Mike does to lead our team in Peru.

Mike comes from a sports background. He understands team play and team work. He has, as many of you have said, street smarts. He is astute and wise, and learns from what is going on around him. He is willing to work and work hard. He sees the big picture of why God has us in Peru and he understands our goals. He has been able to translate our strategies into actions and successfully lead our team.

Tim Coop has said of him, "Mike knows how to speak the truth in love." Many know how to speak the truth, but they do damage when they attempt to do so. Many love, but hold back and don't speak the truth out of fear. Mike is good at being honest, upfront, calling it as it is, without destroying the person he is talking to or his relationship with them. They know he loves them. That makes it easier to be told the truth.

Oh, he gets frustrated, and tired, and discouraged at moments. But like a great coach, team leader, and servant of Christ he learns from those moments and leads with greater passion to serve our Lord.

I have several conversations each week with Mike. I visit Peru every couple of months to have face to face time with him. There are also a couple other Christian men (Tim Coop and Mack Jennings) who speak with him weekly and who travel to Peru throughout the year. They help encourage and coach Mike in a number of areas. Dale Pyne, a supporter of PNHI, had Mike take the Birkman test, which will help him flourish in his work. I tell you this, so that you know, that we are a team - working together to carry out the Mission in Peru

Mike has taken his life experiences, the training and coaching he received and has developed his own style of team leadership. And it is a very good one. Below is a short list of some of Mike’s character strengths and his ability to lead:

1. 1) He is open to hearing new ideas
   
2. 2) He is teachable
3. 3) He is sincere and humble
4. 4) He is wise. Beyond his years
5. 5) He understands why we are in Peru and is committed to training our team to carry out the task
6. 6) He gives our team freedom to carry out the task and does not 'ride' them to get it done. He lets them do their job.
7. 7) He disciples the team and individual key leaders
8. 8) He takes a personal interest in their work, their effectiveness and their personal live

What does Mike do with our team? Let me list just a few items:

Team Building:

a. He has team meetings every Tuesday morning

b. He has pulls the team together for a 'praise, prayer and sharing time' every week. Having different team members lead each week.

c. He has established a "TeamWork" time when they talk about their jobs. Mike shares concepts and tools with them.

d. Every Friday he meets with our Key Leaders; those who are helping lead their smaller teams within the team. They go over their work and their team’s progress.

e. He regularly evaluates the entire team’s ministry/mission work. This helps them see where they are, what they are doing well and how to improve their work. Each week his Leaders are required to turn in a statistics report covering all activities in their barrios.

f. He has Team Goals, where the Leaders are required to work together, each doing their part to help the TEAM reach the common goal.

g. He has established monthly training with the team to help them learn how to be more effective in their roles.

h. He has set up discipleship studies with the entire staff to help them grow spiritually. They are currently studying "Experiencing God". He told me, “After just a few weeks of this study, he has seen an increased positive attitude in the entire team.” He has previously taken them through studies on leadership, personal living, finances, and marriage. As a result of all of these discipling activities he gets involved in the Team’s personal lives; coaching, encouraging, counseling and at times confronting them.

i. He invites others, mainly visitors from the U.S., to share with the team when they are in Peru. I just spent 4 mornings with the team teaching “Dragon Slayers”. Jim Larsen, another partner with PNHI, will be teaching the team "How to Listen" in an upcoming seminar. Jim also tries to get out and about to see what the team is doing 'on the ground' during his visits. He then shares with Mike any suggestions of improvement he can offer.

Mike also has to deal with financial issues, budgets, public relations, visiting teams, and individual visitors. And even with all he does for others he makes sure to carve out time to be with our Lord and Savior, and care for and love his family.

This is HARD work folks, being 4500 miles from all that he grew up with in the U.S., his family and friends, leading a team of people in another language, with a different culture. Mike and his family know that they couldn’t do all that needs to get done without God’s involvement in their daily lives.

Mike is an amazing man, steward, Christian, servant; please keep him and his family in your prayers.

Also, please keep our team in your prayers. Lastly, please pray that God will continue to provide all that PNHI needs to continue to be a blessing in Peru. We would like you to know that we pray for each of you, our partners, that God will pour out His mighty blessings on you and through you. Thanks be to God and each of you, our partners, for making it possible to do what God has called us to do in Peru.

In Him

John Hendee