DEVELOP.
> shape & sharpen
A3 is vibrant community that develops leaders.
God shapes us over a lifetime; but we can sharpen each other.
“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” (Prov 27:17)
Our community is committed to life-long development: continually being developed and developing other leaders. We strive to develop:
- more Christ-like pastors to lead the church with vision, character and competence.
- "David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them." (Ps 78:72)
- pastors who are better equipped to lead their congregations in countries where Christians are persecuted.
- church leaders who are less likely to drop out of ministry due to burnout or moral failure.
- leaders with a vision to multiply faith communities that will transform lives.
The Work of Developing Leaders
A3’s model has been recognized as a creative and fruitful leadership training program. We partner with God in this endeavor... in every step of the process.
The key to its effectiveness is collaborating with the Holdy Spirit in the careful selection of a cohort of emerging leaders.* These leaders are then invited to be a part of a cohort that meets four times a year for a week at a time over a two-year period. When the learning community meets together, they are working through a holistic curriculum that accelerates their growth as spiritual leaders, as well as organizational leaders. At their training sessions, they are resourced by leaders in and outside their country.
In the course of the training, the leaders are able to become more aware of their distinct strengths individually, as well as the unique giftedness of their congregations. They are also given the skills to determine more precisely the needs of the communities and the context in which they live and minister. Upon that knowledge, they then develop skills to equip their congregation for effective service. Following that they articulate their long-term vision and then begin to develop strategies for growth and multiplication.
The training program in Japan, for example, now uses a curriculum that has been developed entirely by Japanese, for Japanese, in Japanese. Each country is working on contextualizing the curriculum and the process for developing its own pastors.
Less Can Be More
A3 intentionally focuses on a small number of proven leaders with potential, providing a transformation process that then releases them to change the many throughout Asia. You might ask, "What is a small number of leaders?"
A3 creates cohorts of 12-15 leaders, not 25 or 250. Some leader development programs, in an effort to have big results, do offer training for larger groups of leaders. But to us, small is big; less is more.
We mold this dozen or so individual leaders into a learning community. Keeping the numbers small allow for relationships to deepen, which allows deeper life change in each participant. What the Holy Spirit starts in a few individuals naturally radiates outward to each leader's family, church, community, and even country. A few changed leaders then change many.
This may sound bold or even arrogant, but we believe this is truly God's work in which He allows us to participate. This is really reinforced by seeing this kind of fruitfulness in virtually every country in which we operate. Really. Our graduates continue to tell us what God is doing in them and through them... and they credit A3 in some small way for a part of this.
Sustained Kingdom Impact
Therefore, we invest in a strategic few who God can use to change a country and a continent. And we try to encourage Christlike leaders through the A3 process to make the greatest difference for the Kingdom. And once a cohort graduates, we do it over... and over again.
We sustain change through a proven process that takes the region’s most promising leaders and equips them to have a disproportionately significant impact in their countries, cultures and continents.
Changing the few who change the many
"A3 is a ministry that actually accomplishes its mission 'to identify, develop and release emerging kingdom leaders to unite the church, multiply leaders and congregations, and extend the transforming power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ'. There is a vital need for effective leadership in the church today. Sheep need effective shepherds. There is a spiritual awakening occurring around the globe today and as a result a desperate need for effective leadership. I am thankful to God that A3 is helping provide that leadership. May the Lord continue to bless A3 as they serve to grow the Kingdom of God."
Pastor Cory Ishida
Senior Pastor, Evergreen Baptist Church San Gabriel Valley
Expansion throughout Asia & Beyond
As word about this work in Japan spread across Asia in the 1990s, interest grew. A3 began to explore how to help leaders in other places in Asia. Mongolia was the first country to indicate interest in adapting the A3/Japan model to their context. The first class in Mongolia graduated in October 2001. By 2022, A3 was operating in 18 countries in Asia. Then, invitations came from outside of Asia...
Now in Middle East, North Africa, and soon in Europe and the Americas.
Over time, other countries were added, as leaders approached A3 for help in launching our program in new places in Asia and beyond. Currently, A3 has established leader development programs in 20+ countries and are exploring several new countries for potential launches soon.
* Countries may differ slightly in class size, but usually, there are between 12 – 20 leaders in each cohort.
In this section: PROCESS...
Select. | Develop. | Multiply. | Transform. | Ministry Spheres
- Who is A3?
- Vision & Mission
- Council of Reference
- Board of Directors
- Participants
- Faculty
- Curriculum Topics
