Joe & Silk Handley

Silk & Joe

  STAFF PROFILE  

Joe & Silk Handley

MINISTRY ASSIGNMENT

Joe: Serving as CEO
Silk: Serving through prayer & WIM

Do you want to invest in the ministry of Joe & Silk Handley through A3?

Bio: Joe & Silk Handley

Background Information:

joe and silk Fall2020 webJoe and Silk (Joseph and Vasilka) met during college at Azusa Pacific University. Everyone told Silk while she was growing up that she was destined to be a pastor’s or missionary’s wife. Joe grew up in a family with a few pastors and felt called to ministry during high school.

During college, a mission trip cemented Joe’s call to a life of ministry and Silk ventured out on a short-term mission trip teaching English in Japan. Little did they know their destinies were being shaped for a life of mission.

Not long after college graduation, they started dating and almost three years later they were married. During their wedding ceremony, they asked the minister to gather their families to lay hands on them and commission them into ministry.

You can learn more about Joe's background here...

As for Silk, she’s been a lifelong educator: either in the public-school systems in Azusa and Torrance, in private christian education in Turkey and Japan, or as a volunteer at schools, churches and various children’s and youth programs. She also served as a coordinator for counseling programs for a school district. Silk holds a BA in English literature and an MA in special education. 

Family

Rachel and Quan weddingJoe and Silk have three adult children and two grandchildren. Rebecca is married to Lowell and is a social media manager and coordinator of writers. Rachel is married to Quan and is a visual journalist. John lives in London working as an economist.

Ministry Assignment

Joe serves as CEO of A3. Both Joe & Silk are privileged to serve Christ-centered leaders, helping them experience Spirit-led change through accelerating Christ-centered movements around the world. 

Words of Wisdom

When it comes to living and leading, nothing is more critical than our dependence on Christ:

“In Him was life, and that life was the light of men.” – John 1:4

Jesus is the most influential person in human history. When we give our lives to him, he brings steady, revolutionary change. Remember the exhortation in John 15:5 that as we “abide in Him, we will bear much fruit. Without him, we can do nothing!”

As we remain in Jesus, our lives will change and we will see him change the world!

Polycentric Leadership

PCL logo color horizJoe's own study and dissertation on Polycentric Mission Leadership have given him deep insight into a new approach to leadership, one he believes is Trinitarian in nature. His dissertation was published in 2022 and Joe is a sought-after speaker to present his findings. Joe has adopted a polycentric leadership style at A3. You can read real-life case studies and find out more about this concept at his website: https://polycentricleadership.com.

GIVE NOW!



ARTICLES RELATED TO JOE HANDLEY

 

virtual community2021 a

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
— Hebrews 10:24-25

A3 Prayer Meetings

This past year, our A3 family has been meeting monthly for prayer in addition to our online cohorts and those few countries who are actually able to meet in person. In the face of the pandemic, we are learning to live out the wisdom of this passage from Hebrews as we are such a community-driven ministry.

Read More

jh leaders matter 600px

The last few years, the idea of leadership has taken a beating. Whether it’s the critique of “elites” in our cultures or the overuse of the word leadership by various training and educational institutions. In many ways I agree with these concerns and it is why A3 does what it does in focusing on Christ, Character, and Servant Leadership.

Read More

jon wallace fb post

Today, I mourn the loss of one of my mentors and friends, Jon Wallace. As you'll see in this wonderful tribute by his children (below), Jon was a special man of God.

Read More

reignite hope pic2 700px

I am so thrilled to join the board of a great ministry birthed from my home church, ReIGNITE Hope. Several years ago, seeing the plight of the homeless and the prisons of LA, my former colleague Steve Bunyard launched this ministry and now he’s serving with them full time. I joined the board last fall because I’m so proud of what they are doing and because we have a mutual interest in partnership.

Read More

resilience book

My colleague John Houlette just completed an outstanding book for Japanese pastors. And, the principles and stories are ones that will help you thrive in every season.

Read More

Lectio365 logoPerhaps you've resolved in 2021 to read more Scripture or to pray more consistently. If so, I think you’ll enjoy this new prayer app that a friend recommended to me. It helps me do both—to actually pray the Scripture every day!

It’s a short, simple, daily reading and prayer prompt that I’ve found to be helpful in my devotion times recently: LECTIO 365 is a daily devotional app for your mobile phone or tablet.

My friend has been using it with a few of his prayer partners as a way to share what God is doing in their lives each day.

Here's more information about LECTIO 365 from its website...

 

Read More

looking back praying forward 600x190

Dear Friends,

As 2020 wound to a close, the Lord impressed on me the following passage:

"In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind." —John 1:4

LOOKING BACK ON 2020

2020 was such a disruptive year. Yet the life of Christ is the light of the world. That gives me hope heading into 2021. I pray that your Christmas and New Year’s celebrations brought joy and the reminder of what is most important, even in the midst of the challenges from 2020, some of which continue to persist.

Read More

 2020 clouds silverlinings simone viani 9ikL6XaUlG4 unsplash

2020 has been a challenging year for all of us. COVID-19, the global economy, and polarizing politics have left their marks. The 2020 Olympics were delayed and countless people have suffered and hundreds of thousands have died from the pandemic. It all certainly made for a tough year for you and me.

Amid the Dark Clouds though, I was able to report several Silver Linings during our recent A3 board meeting. For these, I praise God and am reminded of the importance of giving thanks, even for the challenges we have faced.

Read More

 handley family 2020 500px

Merry Christmas Everyone,

Read More

joe and silk with couple cropped

Silk and I have had such a wonderful last few weeks in Japan.

Last week we were moving which brought several aches and pains, even after just day one of the move! However, the last four we were able to travel to many places in country and say farewell for this season of ministry.

Read More

Part2ohashi 3 generations

I was so inspired a few weeks ago visiting my colleague Pastor Hideo Ohashi. He has served faithfully with A3 over several decades and his church is a remarkable testament to God’s faithfulness to Japan.

You’ll see him pictured here with his son and grandson: three generations of pastors! What a powerful image of God’s work from one generation to the next.

Read More

joe and silk christmas2020

Hello Everybody!

Well, today is the last day we are in Japan. We fly out in a few hours, and we are heading back to California. 

We love it here in Japan. We're going to miss it here. But we are looking forward to being with family. It is a new season for us.

Read More

Part2en ias app01

“That is so cool!”

“Really? There’s no way!” – That is what Silk and I thought after using a mobile phone translation at the Japan Post the other day.

Here's how the story unfolded...

We went to close out my account as we are moving to America and thought the bank teller understood our request. She listened to me and took me to the right person who started asking for our documents. We pulled out my bank book, and then she asked for our cash card which we pulled out. Finally, she asked another question. I thought I understood her request, so I pulled out my residence card.

Read More

mena ask dec2020 800x450

As you think about your opportunities to give before year end, I wanted to let you know about several options for U.S. citizens you may not be aware of.

You can use these options to give to almost any ministry, and although there are exceptions for some ministries, A3 qualifies for all of them.

And despite the pandemic we find ourselves in, A3 is experiencing many opportunities for expanding and accelerating its mission to develop leaders throughout Asia and beyond—such as The Last Mile project in the Middle East that I posted about last month.

Read More

00399 00689As Silk and I are saying farewell to our home of the last 4.5 years, we have visited our friends and colleagues in several places. We wish we’d have time to see everyone but the coronavirus has limited our options. One of the places we were able to visit was the sites of the “Hidden Christians” in Japan. By now you have heard of the book and film “Silence” which reveals some of their story. They went through horrendous persecution for their faith and the stories we heard of their resilience, perseverance, and faithfulness despite the awful treatment and their ultimate sacrifice were sobering and inspiring...

Read More

thermometer 200k match 2020 Fall METPhase 1 of Matching Gift Challenge Has Been Met!

What a joy to learn that we have matched the initial phase of our digital platform initiative. So far, just over $200,000 was given allowing us to enable connections across Asia on a stronger basis. We praise God for your part in helping us reach this milestone. With this giving, we have opened three new countries, some in limited access countries, and enabled at least 1/3rd of our countries to run sessions via digital technology. It also allows us to meet monthly as a global family sharing concerns and praying for one another. It’s been so powerful...

Read More

nichols laurie 2020Highlighting the Heromakers Movement

A new movement is afoot and I trust you’ll not only follow the snowballing momentum, but that you’ll dive in and become all that God has called you to be. My friend Laurie Nichols recently stepped out on her own to launch the Heromakers Movement and highlight the stories of people who have risen above the fray to shine the light of Christ in our world. I’m so proud of Laurie. I worked with her while she served at the Billy Graham Center at Wheaton College and it took a ton of courage for her to take this leap of faith, especially during a year like this. Shout out to heromakers like you, Laurie! Jesus says, “You are the light of the world.” (Matthew 5:14) and indeed he has called us to be game-changers and heromakers, whether we are soccer moms or engaging...

Read More

joe and silk masked on plane 640pxHi there, friends! It's good to see you again, and we just want you to know how grateful we are for you this Thanksgiving season. Well, we know it's been a year of a lot of anxiety. And I'm sure many of you have been feeling that, whether it's the pandemic or the economy, or this week, the U.S. election, and we just want you to know we've been praying for you...

Read More

joe and silk masked on plane 640pxHere's a quick message from us as we head back to Japan for the last 7 weeks before moving back to the U.S. in December. We're praying for you,

Joe and Silk Handley...

Read More

screenshot of prayer meetingLast night our global community met for our monthly prayer gathering and I was so impressed as we prayed through the passage listed below from the prophet Joel. While our world has been through so much, Pastor K reminded us that we have been meeting repenting and praying, seeking the Lord’s direction. He challenged us that now is the time to pray for the healing of our nations from the pandemic and for revival. So, we prayed and the prayers were...

Read More