No Means No. Until It Doesn’t.
Troy Cooper, Steve Addison. Queenstown NZ.
I was just back from two months on the road promoting my latest book, Everywhere.
I wasn’t going anywhere. Pick up the dog and settle into home. Do some gardening. See the grandkids.
Then Troy Cooper rang. ‘ Steve, I want you to come to New Zealand.’
“No.”
Then he rang again.
No!’
And again.
No!!
Then he rang again.
I said, ‘Maybe.”
Then again.
‘Alright.’
I discovered that Troy loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life!
I’d seen it all before. I knew every element of the training they were rolling out in New Zealand.
The 411 (gospel conversations). The 4-Fields (components of a church planting movement). The 3-Thirds (reading the Bible for discipleship). All great stuff, but nothing new.
Troy had flown all the way from Greece and brought a “swarm team” of Europeans and Americans to run a one-day training session in two locations — Wellington and Queenstown — for 60 people.
Why all the fuss? The elements were the same. Yet the strategy was different.
Troy and the team were flying all the way to New Zealand five times over twelve months (5 in 12) to run the same training three times in multiple locations, picking up people as they went.
The goal wasn’t to run training events but to build a national movement of practitioner/trainers. Each training builds on the last — moving people from learning, to doing, to equipping others.
The bar for entry is low. A new trainer only needs to learn and memorize one 5–10 minute module. As they train, confidence builds and they experience a paradigm shift, and that momentum carries into training other trainers.
They had a simple MAWL approach — Model, Assist, Watch, Launch.
First they modeled how to train, then they helped the New Zealanders train. After three touches of training the New Zealanders were training 100% with coaching and support from Troy and the team.
People came along to the first event thinking, ‘Great, I can get equipped to share the gospel, make disciples and plant churches.’
They came back to a second event thinking, ‘Now I can learn to train others.’
They came back to the third event thinking, ‘I’m part of a movement with a vision for NoPlaceLeft New Zealand.’
The fourth touch is the 4-Fields Intensive, which lays the biblical foundation for movements.
The fifth touch is a Mid-level training that focuses on problem-solving and addressing barriers in the field.
During the first two training touches, teams went out to share the gospel. 482 people were engaged. 188 people received prayer. 101 people heard the gospel. That’s better than one in five New Zealanders open to hearing the gospel. Thirty of them shared contact details for follow-up.
For many of the trainees, it was the first time they’d ever shared with someone. After two touches of training, they know what to do and what to do when someone believes or wants to know more. They know how to train others.
The third touch of training is in October/November in multiple locations, all led by Kiwis. Troy and the team will be there watching.
