“As a missiologist, it brings me joy to see the Church lead in seeking to better reflect the imago dei (image of God) by uniting believers across cultures...”
8 in 10 churches are made up of one predominant ethnic group.
Your church can take steps to change this. God has called the bride of Christ to embrace a biblical vision of diversity — one that embraces and bridges across lines of difference in ethnicity, class, and culture.
It’s difficult ministering and welcoming across lines of difference.
Scripture calls us to minister and live cross-culturally and the Spirit delights to give us the means. The three areas of focus below are the anchors of our work.
Understand and articluate a robust theology of unity in diversity.
Develop cross-cultural competence for engaging across lines of difference.
Grow in leadership skills to faithfully disciple others.
The ICCM Approach
The Institute for Cross-Cultural Mission has developed a comprehensive strategy designed to train ministry leaders for effective cross-cultural engagement.
Learner-Centered Training
Participant-directed, experiential learning that incorporates active, problem-based, and task-oriented approaches to engage adults in meaningful content discovery.
Contextualization
A continuous professional development plan that is applicable to each participant's context and community, and aided through mentorship.
Research
Programmatic elements and techniques implemented as a result of consulting scholarly sources.
Endorsements and Testimonials
Throughout history, the church’s silence on issues of justice and reconciliation has spoken quite loudly. As a Pastor serving in Washington, D.C., I am keenly aware of the divides that limit the church’s ability to minister to the very communities they are called to serve. Thankfully, GOD is raising up leaders that are passionate, skilled, and qualified to address these realities. Dr. Irwyn Ince is such a leader. The work of justice and racial reconciliation is the work of Christ and calls for the courage and determination of Irwyn Ince. Dr. Ince’s life experience and training has prepared him uniquely to equip the church in the process of connecting to GOD and one another. The Grace Institute for Cross-Cultural Mission is to be congratulated for this mission and its appointment of Irwyn Ince to this assignment. There is no doubt that the ICCM agenda and the Kingdom of GOD will advance through work of Dr. Irwyn Ince.
Dexter Nutall
Pastor of New Bethel Baptist Church
The pursuit of racial reconciliation and justice is not some sort of trendy, new thing for trendy, new churches. Rather, it is an essential aspect of neighbor love, and of being intimately connected to Jesus through the gospel. Paul urges, both through his example and teaching, a ministry of reconciliation between God and sinners and between the mosaic of people groups that God has made. In the Great Commission, Jesus (a middle eastern, brown-skinned, Aramaic speaking Jew) urges that the gospel be carried to all nations — ta ethne — quite literally, to all ethnicities. This is why I'm so glad that my friend Irwyn Ince has taken up the task of leading the Institute for Cross-Cultural Mission. I pray that ICCM's efforts will have a lasting effect on us all and that as a result, millions more will experience the belonging which, by virtue of the stamp of God's image upon them, is owed to them.
Scott Sauls
Senior Pastor of Christ Presbyterian Church and Author of Jesus Outside the Lines and Irresistible Faith
I've been stretched and changed in the best ways by this program. The teaching on culture helps me to realize how my dominant-culture church might feel to those from another culture. The teaching on race helps me see how this human concept has unjustly twisted God's vision for a unified, beautiful human family. Through it all, my mentor loves and guides me, and the ICCM family supports me with truth and hope. I'm so excited to bring this back to my church.
Beta Cohort participant
I'm delighted that Irwyn Ince will continue to serve the local Body of Christ and the church at large through the GraceDC Institute for Cross-Cultural Mission. His leadership will be critical as we strive to contextually reach and train followers of Jesus in our diverse, rapidly changing world. I believe God will use Irwyn's spiritual maturity, pastoral and administrative gifts, and cross-cultural skills to develop and deploy the Institute in powerful ways.
Maria Garriott
Resource Coordinator at Parakaleo
Whether one wants to welcome new people groups traveling to America through college and employment opportunities, or simply better understand America’s many indigenous cultures, the need is greater than ever to prepare Christians to fill cultural gaps with the welcoming love and truth of Christ. ICCM is not only strategically placed geographically where many cultures connect, it’s strategic in its design by educating at the grassroots level - in the pews, with the people. From the view of God’s intention to gather people from all nations, ICCM presents an exciting opportunity.
K.A. Ellis
Director, Center for the Study of the Bible & Ethnicity at Reformed Theological Seminary
The ICCM workshop is exactly what I've been looking for to help me articulate the theological reasons for unity in diversity. We are all different, and so I really valued seeing the diversity even in the ways we explain and apply the theology of unity in diversity when we had time to practice that.
Participant
ICCM Christian Foundations for Cross-Cultural Love Workshop
Request our free ebook to start becoming a church that welcomes all as Christ welcomes us.
Learn More About the Institute for Cross-Cultural Mission
Would you like to work with the Institute for Cross-Cultural Mission? Fill out the form below and schedule a discovery call to help us learn more about your church or organization. The form also allows you to submit questions related to enrollment, partnership, and press inquiries related to ICCM.