Thriving Turtles Training is a new initiative to equip front-line gospel workers with the knowledge and skills they need to be effective cross-cultural gospel ministers. Thriving Turtles Training offers short modular courses that build on each other to extend training in basic cross-cultural ministry skills. Our facilitators have extensive experience in cross-cultural ministry and the courses are provided as eLearning through our online Moodle classroom. The courses are highly interactive and include extensive discussion through online forums.
We run courses at various times throughout the year as needed. If you have a minimum of 4 people and would like us to run a course for you please contact us via the contact us page on this website.
Next course dates: 20 – 31 January 2025
If you would like to be notified of upcoming courses then please signup for our occasional newsletter using the button below:
Cultural Intelligence for Ministry (New for 2025)
Foundation level course. Our communities are bursting with people who have come from all around the world. Leaving their previous way of life, they are open to new ideas in a way they have never been before. We have a wonderful opportunity to reach out to them with the Christian message, but how do we do this? Their thinking and way of life is so different to ours. How can we build bridges to them? Cultural Intelligence is the ability to understand and interact appropriately in cross-cultural settings. It includes knowledge, skills and attitudes that enable deep trusting relationships where the gospel can be shared in a way that is compelling. Cultural Intelligence can be learned and developed. This course is an introduction to Cultural Intelligence and includes practical steps to develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes you need.
Course dates: 20-31 January 2025 Registrations close 18 January
Course fee: Early Bird before 10 January $45AUD Regular $50AUD
Helping your Friend Thrive in China
Foundation level course. Each year thousands of students from China go overseas to study. Some of them will respond to the gospel. Two out of three will return home to China within five years. Sadly 50-80% of those who become Christians will studying overseas will abandon their faith within a year of returning. This course will examine the issues that cause returnees to believe that Jesus has no place in their lives in China. We will look at some strategies to change this as well as some practical things that can be done. This course should take around 6-8 hours total over a two-week period. This course does not include live video conferences or webinars. It contains a variety of other activities including (written) discussion forums. You should plan to do some work on the course each day, but you are free to work in your own time. There are no real-time components to the course.
Course dates: 20-31 January 2025 Registrations close 18 January
Course fee: Early Bird before 10 January $45AUD Regular $50AUD
Discipling People with a Chinese Worldview
Intermediate level course: We spend a lot of time sowing the seed of God’s word into the lives of students. We want to see it take deep root, build a firm foundation and change lives. However, so often we find that things get lost in translation. We struggle to know how to apply scripture in a way that brings deep conviction and life-changing understanding. This course builds on the culture values and distance course to unpack key aspects of traditional Chinese thinking, religion and worldview and consider ways these can be addressed in ministry. This course is 10 hours over a two week period. This course does not include live video conferences or webinars. It contains a variety of other activities including (written) discussion forums. You should plan to do some work on the course each day, but you are free to work in your own time. There are no real-time components to the course. This course is at the intermediate level so we recommend you have taken a foundation level course or have some previous background before taking this course.
Course fee: Early Bird before 10 January $45AUD Regular $50AUD
Course dates: 20-31 January 2025 Registrations close 18 January
Culture Values & Distance
Foundation level course: Our values are based on what we believe is good or best in the world around us. Most of our behaviour flows out of our values. Different cultures have different values and the difference between our home and host culture is called “culture distance”. In the Culture Values and Distance Course we explore some of these values, consider what makes up our home values, and discover the values in our host culture. The Culture Values and Distance Course is a ten hour interactive, online course that is run over a two week period. This course does not include live video conferences or webinars. It contains a variety of other activities including (written) discussion forums. You should plan to do some work on the course each day, but you are free to work in your own time. There are no real-time components to the course.
Course fee: Early Bird before 10 January $45AUD Regular $50AUD
Course dates: 20-31 January 2025 Registrations close 18 January