This page is preserved as it was written for our Local Launch in December 2023. The vision has not changed, and cannot changed. An updated “progress of the vision” is found on “LCGL’s Global Vision” page shared on December 1, 2024.
Among the almost 300,000 Toastmasters in over 140 countries, there are at least 30,000 brothers and sisters who are Believers in Jesus Christ. We are of different Church Denominations, Nationalities and Cultures, but share a common identity in Jesus, and a bond with each other as Members of the Body of Jesus Christ.
LCGL envisions an active worldwide fellowship of all 30,000 Believers, divided into convenient Time Zone Chapters for weekly interaction. In doing so, at least two mandates are furthered. The first is the expressed desire of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as He prepared to die, that we must be One in unity with each other even as He and His Father are one (John 17:20-23).
The second is the furtherance of the mandate to make disciples of all nations. Although Disciple-making is an individual activity, when Believers unite with the common goal of making Disciples, the process becomes much easier and efficient.
This is a massive vision, which like the longest journey, begins with the first step. LCGL made the first step on December 15, 2023. Now we are relying on you to help us execute the Vision. Until a Chapter is formed in your Time Zone, we invite you to identify with our Eastern Time Zone Chapter, despite the initial inconvenience. You will help us launch a Chapter in your Time Zone as soon as possible. Please share the URL to this site, and with it, the LCGL Vision.
The following Sections cover the scope, and the work needed to execute the Global Vision.
The Charts that follow provide a graphic display of the mission field.
In 2024 our beloved Toastmasters International organization will be celebrating 100 years characterized by Integrity, Respect, Service and Excellence to millions of Toastmasters all over the world. Among these Toastmasters is a very large number of Believers in Jesus Christ. I am one of them, and if you are reading this, chances are, so are you.
Believers in Jesus Christ who are Toastmasters are duty-bound as we faithfully execute our Toastmasters’ duties, to celebrate our common identity in Jesus Christ. We are proud to be Toastmasters. We are proudest to be Believers in Jesus Christ, who, having lived a sinless life on earth, shed His blood and died about 2000 years ago, so as to satisfy God’s righteous demand that the death-penalty for our sins be paid. For this reason, and for all the other benefits that come with being sons and daughters of God, fellow-citizens of heaven, and joint-heirs with Christ, to Him we owe our greatest, and life-long allegiance.
On December 6, on a weekly Wednesday Morning Pockets of Fire meeting, God gave me the vision of Toastmasters around the Globe who are Believers in Jesus Christ, fellowshipping with each other on a weekly basis, and celebrating our common identity in Christ, along with benefits and responsibilities that are associated with that common identity.
On December 15, “Leaders Communicating God’s Love” was born at 5.00 am EST. Most of the Toastmasters in attendance were from District 81, simply because, that is my “Judea”. To God be the Glory!
But the vision is a global one. Now, with the premiere event behind us, the challenge for you and for me and for all of us is to spread the word to every Toastmaster in 148 countries. The word is that if they identify as a Believer in Jesus Christ, they are invited to fellowship with their international brothers and sisters. For the time being, I can extend an invitation only to the 5.00 am EST Friday morning meeting. Obviously, a very limited number of persons from different regions of the world will be able to join, because of Time Zone differences.
The challenge that comes with going global is that every Toastmaster, without regard to their geographical location, should be able to meet around 5.00 am in their Time Zone. It is well established that the early morning hours are the best times to spend in reflection and in recharging our spiritual batteries. The rationale behind 5.00 am that it allows for time after the meeting to prepare for the rest of the day. We also felt that 4.00 am is too early, and 6.00 am is too late. We also recognized that no time is perfect for everybody. In fact, we need not reinvent the wheel, because our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ when He was on earth, set that example for us. Mark 1:35 tells us, “Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a [k]solitary place; and there He prayed.” Each Chapter will have the final say concerning the time of their meeting.
Because of our Time Zones, for all of us to be meeting at 5.00 am, we will have to meet in groups that share the same or approximately the same Time zones, which I call Chapters. Each Chapter will have its own Moderators and front-line leaders. But because each chapter will be operating on the same blueprint, the synergy will be global. Inter-Chapter “cross-pollination” will become a reality, and the full power of unity will be easily experienced. I for one will be occasionally scheduling fellowship dates with my brothers and sisters who live in a time zone that is different from the one in which I live.
Clearly, this is going to require a lot of work and a lot of organization… and this is absolutely within our reach during the first quarter of 2024, DV. A few Toastmasters have already assured me that they want to join us in the ground-floor work that needs to be done… Hopefully the Holy Spirit will prompt you to be one of those persons. All you need to do is reach out, and together we will make it happen under the direction of God’s Holy Spirit.
For your convenience, I have included demographic information prepared by Toastmasters International that is freely available from their website, and from other sites on the internet. Look at these charts and begin opening your spirit to receive downloads of strategies from God that will be necessary to achieve our goal of reaching every Christian Toastmaster, and His Vision.
I look forward to hearing from you in the very, very, near future, and definitely on this side of 2023.
The recently realigned District Regions are displayed in the flipbook below. District 81 is now in Region 7.
Graphics courtesy of Toastmasters International - www.Toastmasters.org
Missing from TI’s dashboard is the listing of hurricane-ravished Carriacou as part of the Grenada Island network.