A new South Asian Strategic Readiness Team was formed during a USA/Canada Multicultural Ministries meeting at the Global Ministry Center August 24 through 26.

Team members Chris Nallan (facilitator), Christabell Selvalingham, Aneel Mall, David Partipathi, and Manoj Ingle worked on the team's vision goals: to identify, develop, and train South Asian leaders and strategize church planting toward the goal of registering 20 congregations by the year 2020. The team's mission states it exists to support and encourage districts, pastors, and leaders to do outreach and make Christlike disciples among first, 1.5, and second South Asian generations.

The SRT identified four areas of implementation: connecting to Christ, connecting to one another as a team, connecting to the USA/Canada Region, and partnering with churches. The members will achieve the first goal through a focused prayer time every third Saturday of the month and with a prayer group. The team will keep in touch through monthly email updates, quarterly conference calls, a yearly meeting, a summit with other pastors and lay people, and a future Facebook page. Working with the USA/Canada Region, the SRT will identify current South Asian churches and leaders, assess, develop, and encourage ministerial preparation for those leaders, and organize training on church planting. The team will partner with individual churches by developing resources to assist in reaching immigrants.

--Multicultural Ministries