Mission Training International

 Mission Training International. PO Box 1220. Palmer Lake, CO 80133

Street address for packages: 421 Hwy 105. Palmer Lake, CO 80133

800-896-3710 / 719-487-0111.    Fax 719-487-9350

www.mti.org/about/history/

Accessed 2-13-15

Our programs offer a balance of practical insights and spiritual development. Through this intentional, dynamic combination, you’ll gain both confidence through learning new skills and peace through developing healthy heart attitudes that will prepare you for the mission God has for you.

International congress on language learning

The purpose of ICLL is to enhance the effectiveness of those charged with ‘helping language learners succeed’. ICLL is a triennial event that brings together (from all over the world) Christian language coaches, language teachers, language school administrators, pre-field and on-field trainers in language acquisition skills and techniques, linguists, academicians, college professors, etc., to gain perspective, share concerns and get updated on what is currently happening in the field of language learning. Those responsible to supervise others in language learning greatly benefit by face-to-face conferencing with likeminded colleagues in other agencies.

Testimonials

“My thinking has been challenged about how we orient our language learners to the task of language acquisition.  What we say can either send them out to the ‘job’ of language study or to the ‘joy’ of building relationships cross-culturally.”

“For the first time ever, I have had a chance to be around others who are involved in the same thing I am—helping others learn language to be better equipped.  It’s given me affirmation and encouragement.”

“I am returning to my assignment with so many great ideas to share and creative ways to encourage the people I serve.  Also appreciate awareness of resources and opportunities for training that I hadn’t had before.”

“As a worker, it was such a blessing to be reminded that my performance is not enough. Only God’s grace is enough. Also, the spiritual emphasis throughout was such a good motivator for the language coaching job.”

“Getting input from other regions of the world was tremendously helpful – a fresh global perspective.”

“I loved the worship times and the devotionals and being in the combination of Christian and Academic presentations!”

Mission Training International’s vision is to see cross-cultural messengers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ experience effectiveness, endurance and personal vitality. MTI accomplishes this through two main programs: Compass and DAR.

Doing cross-cultural ministry is difficult and requires more than a sense of calling. It requires a broad set of skills and a healthy approach to life and ministry. A large majority of cross-cultural workers aren’t adequately prepared for their calling, which leads to frustration, burn-out, or more destructive patterns.  This is where MTI can help.  For 60 years, MTI has been providing relevant, practical, in-residence training on the make-or-break issues that help make cross-cultural messengers of the Gospel more effective. There are three dimensions to our unique approach to training:

Life-sharing Community

Our programs are immersive—participants come and live in a community of other cross-cultural workers going to the field, or returning, for the duration of their training. A major make-or-break issue for cross-cultural workers is unhealthy relationships or unresolved conflict on their own team, or family.  MTI’s interactive community-enhanced training focuses on creating strong team relationships and living in a healthy Christian community, which means engendering depth and vulnerability in relationships and resolving conflicts when they arise. This experience of living in true Christian community shapes each person individually while also creating an internal desire to replicate that community wherever they go.

Paradigm-shifting Tools

Missionaries need practical tools to help them thrive long term. The tools we provide—in language acquisition, communication, and leadership—help to shift the paradigm of each participant. Many arrive with idealistic expectations and need to understand the reality of the difficulties they will experience and how to navigate them effectively.  By the end of the program, they have a quiet confidence that comes from realistic expectations and a framework for how to live and serve well for the long haul.

Heart-healing Process

We do not simply give skills, we deal with heart issues. How do you deal with conflict? How do you react when things do not go as planned? Have you developed healthy attitudes and behaviors personally and within your family? These questions, and many others like them, must be addressed in order to succeed long term. We help singles and families confront brokenness and find healing in a safe place, inviting them into an ongoing process of formation and freedom. This allows them to truly live the message of hope and transformation found in Christ, which will lead to effectiveness and thriving in ministry.

These three dimensions of our programs work together in powerful ways to prepare you to fulfill your calling and thrive long-term in ministry

History

Mission Training International began in the hearts of Phil Armstrong, R.E. Thompson, and Clyde Taylor. In 1954, Missionary Internship was incorporated in Michigan. In 1955, 30 adults from five mission sending agencies completed the first 7-month internship session.

The unique focus of Missionary Internship grew from the concern for young missionary applicants that were well qualified academically, but had little practical experience in church work and were not prepared to thrive in a new culture. The goal of this new organization was to reduce the rate of first term drop-outs by offering internship experiences that provided practical training in ministry and preparation for the stresses and adjustments of living and working in a different culture.

In 1961, God directed Missionary Internship to a beautiful wooded site on the outskirts of Farmington, Michigan. On the rolling, heavily-wooded 26 acres, a campus was erected with residences for permanent staff, motel-type accommodations for participants in the various MI programs, dining, nursery, classroom and office facilities adequate for new program development to better meet the current needs of missionaries.

By 1965, 1,000 missionaries had completed MI’s program. In 1973, a 3-week pre-field orientation course was offered along with the 7-month internship program. Then, in 1975, the first PILAT (Program in Language Acquisition Techniques) under the supervision of Dwight and Barbara Gradin.

By 1985, over 7,000 missionaries had completed training through MI. In 1992, MI moved from Michigan to Colorado Springs, CO. In 1996, MI became Mission Training International. By 2001, MTI had recognized the need for a campus that would better fit training needs and built a new training center in Palmer Lake, CO.

In 2013, MTI combined the two pre-field programs (SPLICE & PILAT) into one 4-week Compass program.

Mission Training International continues today at the forefront of missionary training. We are unique in the Christian community in that our focus remains exclusively on preparing missionaries and their families for cross-cultural life and ministry. Our nonformal approach is experience and affective-domain based and serves as the bridge between formal education and life as it is lived in another culture.

Over and over through our history, God has provided and directed MTI in powerful and practical ways. We are honored to serve the thousands of cross-cultural workers that have been through our programs over the years. In the future, we will continue to follow God’s leading in how to improve our programs so that the Gospel can be spread effectively around the world by people who have been truly transformed by its power. That is the only legacy we desire.

January 2016 group with mandarin language teacher