Goal of the Training

Missionary In Training (MIT) is designed to prepare missionaries to enter the field of church planting among the urban poor. MIT consists of two types of training, field work and classroom. Both classroom and hands-on training allows the missionary to adequately serve the community.  The goals of MIT are …

1. To understand  and comprehend the  theology of poverty
2. To be equipped with information and experience to plant holistic churches in the slums according to MMP’s distinctives
3. To acquire skills such as community organizing, project planning, etc.
4. To work in unity in teams  
5. To journey with MMP as a community

By the time a missionary graduates from MIT, the curriculum and on field training adequately prepares them to work with the urban poor in Metro Manila. The preparation provides a smooth transition to working with their assigned communities. MIT is an exceptional training focused on planting churches in the slums and has been running for ten years strong.  There have now been several batches that have graduated from MIT. The rate of success of this program is 2 to 3 church plants annually. The training has been evaluated in depth and has been proven very beneficial for the missionaries and for the organization as a whole.

The training is facilitated by knowledgeable and skillful professionals. The head administrator of the training is Winston Pinzon. He teaches alongside of Raineer Chu, Leo Armas, Amado Reyes, Mila Chu, Janet Pinzon, and Ammi Armas .  As a team they are well rounded and cover important subject matter such as spiritual direction, counseling, urban leadership, community organizing, marketing, and financial responsibility. Their investment in the ministry and experience as professionals is extremely favorable for the missionaries in training.

Training Modules 

The modules topics for the training program are the following:

THEOLOGY

• Theology of the Poor
• The Revolutionary Life of Jesus
• Model for Theological Foundation
• Community Survey
• Theology of Change
• Fast Track Urban Church Planting
• Bible Study Methods
• Knowing Oneself
• Theology of Design
• Evangelicals and Hermeneutics
• Rich and Poor, Solidarity with the Poor
• Causes of Poverty

SPIRITUALITY

• Spirituality and Poverty
• Contemplative Spirituality
• Silence and Solitude
• Prayer and Discernment
• Spiritual Direction
• Lectio Divina
• Practicing the Presence of God
• Silent Retreats
• Theological Reflection
• Journaling

HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS

• Styles of Relating
• Counseling
• Listening
• Team Building
• Theology of Male and Female
• Temperament-Based Personality Types
• Spiritual Gifts

PRACTICAL SKILLS

• Reaching Out to the Poor
• Ministry Partner Development (fund development)
• Vision and Strategy
• Project Management Skills
• Seven Laws of Team Building
• Goal Setting and Visioning
• Detailing for Foreign Projects
• Case Studies and Surveys
• Botika Binhi
• Project Proposals
• Urban Planning, Cities
• Entering the Slums
• Mentoring
• Social Action, Partnerships

Duration of Training

The MMP training takes six months to complete, with an average of ten trainees. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays are spent in fieldwork, as an “On-The-Job” form of training. Fridays and Saturdays are spent in classrooms at the MMP office. MMP selects trainees who are convinced their calling is into church planting and are willing to raise their own support.