(July 26, 2013 - by Harold Goerzen) An unexpectedly high level of cross-cultural communication and reciprocal learning converged last month as 215 Christian media professionals gathered in Accra, Ghana, for a radio training conference. Participants representing 13 African countries as well as the U.S. and the U.K. attended the event.

"As much as possible, we tried not to go in there and tell them how to do their jobs," said Stephen Asare, project coordinator of Moody Radio's donor development department. While Moody spearheaded the event, it was held on the invitation of Theovision International, one of HCJB Global's partners, which hosted the conference and handled all of the logistics.

"We really wanted to learn from attendees as well," Asare explained. "Each afternoon there was a time for 'lightning talks' where participants could give feedback about what they were learning and share what they are doing in their ministries. I was surprised to see the students' hunger for training firsthand-seeing the excitement on their faces. They felt they would learn something that applies to their work."

Jon Fugler teaches a class on fundraising and marketing.

He was part of the 15-member training team from Chicago-based Moody Radio for the June 18-21 event. Africa by Radio and HCJB Global also helped sponsor the conference and provided three of the facilitators.

Asare, whose father, Rev. Theodore Asare, founded Theovision in 1989, epitomized the union of contrasting cultures at the event. Born and raised in Ghana, he knows the African culture intimately, yet he was trained in the West. A recent graduate of Moody Bible Institute, he has an American wife, Zellar, whom he married nearly two years ago.

Two weeks before the conference, Theo Asare visited the Moody campus. "That really helped prepare the team on what to expect," Stephen explained. "My dad helped out a lot."

Jon Fugler, HCJB Global's vice president of advancement, added that while multiple cultures were represented at the conference, including a contingent of French-speaking Africans, he found that attendees all face similar challenges to those confronted by their Western counterparts. Participants included radio presenters, journalists, radio pastors and other media practitioners.

"The principles I shared are much the same in the U.S. as they are in Africa-building relationships," explained Fugler, who taught sessions on fundraising and marketing. "I was pleasantly surprised at how well the training was received, and cross-cultural problems never really emerged."

"We stopped several times so they could take steps of action-things they can do when they go back home," he continued. "People shared their ideas. At one point we stopped to thank God that He is in control despite the obstacles. One lady actually broke into a song of praise. What I heard from the students was, 'I'm glad you're not just teaching principles. There's a spiritual aspect to all we do.'"

Stephen Asare concurred, saying organizers followed many of the recommendations made by students at Moody Radio's last Global Partners Training in Bulgaria in November 2012.

"One of the things we realized in Bulgaria, when we looked at all the feedback, was that the schedule was too packed, not leaving enough time for more practical lessons and networking," he shared.

As a result, the afternoon sessions at the Ghana event were devoted to actual practice onsite, helping students do everything from holding a camera to making announcements behind a microphone. Participants had the opportunity to go through sessions in one of four tracks: on-air work, radio production, social media/graphics/video, and leadership.

Facilitators guided learners to use the tools and training received to create short radio and video features and develop real content for broadcasting. "When the works were played to the audience on the final day, everyone was amazed at the quality of the productions made within such a short time," said Theo Asare.

Emily Ibarra gives tips on using a video camera.

"I was blown away by the dedication," added Emily Ibarra, a media specialist at the HCJB Global Technology Center in Elkhart, Ind., who led courses on video production. "The first session I had them write an outline for a video. The second class I had them get into groups, do filming and then edit their videos. They even worked during coffee breaks and throughout the day so they could complete their videos before the next day's class. I was impressed by all the videos, but two were particularly good. The discussions were also good…. It really helped them to learn through interaction rather than just listening to a presentation."

Each evening the conference featured Bible studies led by Dr. Winfred Neely who serves as professor of preaching and pastoral studies at Moody. He went through the Old Testament book of Ruth, showing how Ruth progressed from emptiness to a servant to an available bride and finally a wife. He admonished the crowd to stay faithful to God in their daily routine, ultimately fulfilling His bigger picture for their lives.

"The pastors really liked the spiritual formation time," explained Stephen Asare, who said they expressed their hunger for biblical teaching. "Coming from Africa, I know they often don't get the deep teaching-diving into the text and learning from it. Hopefully we will provide some training specifically for pastors at future events."

Stephen said the trainers/teachers came away with a fresh realization of the challenges faced by Christian African broadcasters-especially those in Muslim areas, and the need to have a greater global focus and perspective in the U.S.

Nii Odartey Lamptey proudly displays his certifcate for completing the Global Partners Training conference.

The four-day event culminated with the presentations of certificates on the final night. "To me, that was the biggest highlight," he said. "Everyone had gone through the sessions, and when their names were called to get their certificates, the people made a lot of noise, clapping and shaking of hands."

Jennifer Hayden Epperson, manager of Moody's radio station in Boynton Beach, Fla., who taught sessions on listener research, said participants gave numerous accolades and suggestions in their evaluations handed out after each class.

A respondent named Jonathan wrote, "Mediafrique has benefited from this training and would use some of that knowledge in training Francophone Christian producers in West Africa. God bless you."

"The inevitable truth is God is using people to bless people," said a student named Justice. "How on earth could I be blessed like this? They ended up giving us resources to make our work easier. I will never forget Theovision, [HCJB Global] and Moody Radio."

Another wrote, "I promise you that the opportunity you have given me, the talent you have shared will bear fruit and you will not be disappointed to have made an investment in me. Thanks to this training, my mission now has a clear strategy and expertise to achieve its objectives."

Students encouraged organizers to make the sessions available online or put them on the air and to "skip coffee breaks and give more time for lectures."

"Our purpose was to focus on our main thrust at Moody, and that's Bible and media training," said Bruce Everhart, Moody's vice president of donor development and channel strategy and one of the facilitators at the conference. "I think we accomplished that very well during this event, and it ended up being one of the largest media training conferences in Theovision International's history."

"Having worked for both Moody and HCJB Global, it's so gratifying to see these two large, historic, global organizations work together so harmoniously and strategically for the spread of the good news through quality media," concluded HCJB Global President Wayne Pederson. "The members of the Moody team are all friends from working together in the past. These relationships are meant for a long-term purpose."

Sources: HCJB Global, Moody Radio, Theovision