Facing Danger: A Guide Through Risk, 2nd Edition
by Dr. Anna Hampton
Foreword by Stuart Briscoe
William Carey Publications, January 2024
...The Definitive guide on how to minister joyfully through cross-cultural risk for the sake of the Gospel and Christ and His Kingdom!
Changes in the 2nd Edition:
15,000 words deleted from 1st edition. Shorter, more readable!
2 chapters added: one on member care and FAQ of Anna Hampton
The Risk definition changed throughout
Most references to cross-cultural risk removed to reflect a more global Christ-family
Chapter 12 on steps of risk assessment re-ordered
4 more risk myths added for a total of 16!
Special Discounts on Bulk Orders of 10 or more!
ENDORSEMENTS
Anna Hampton’s book on Risk is one of the weightiest books I have ever read. Why? It is not a textbook; it is not a book on spiritual formation; it is not a theology of suffering; it is not a guidebook for leaders in times of risk and danger— yet it is all of these and much, much more. This powerful and profound book has many provocative questions and lists of key points, intriguing quotations from thinkers and personal stories.
Some of the concepts that impacted me were: References to risk in the NT; warfare preparation; “custodians of the alabaster vase” (stewardship); Paul’s four ways of mitigating or managing risk; “the key idea in discernment is to know what we see rather than see what we know”; seven areas to keep in mind with regard to our own or others’ spiritual maturity; depth theology; the message of the wilderness; developing endurance strategies; shepherding and leading in a time of risk.
Each chapter ends with a summary and a robust bibliography. This book is a classic for cross-cultural ministry workers in places of risk and danger. It should be required reading. The author has been there. The book is field-tested. I can’t recommend it highly enough. -
Dr. Laura Mae GardnerFormer International Vice President for PersonnelFor Wycliffe Bible Translators and SIL International
Author of Healthy, Resilient and Effective in Cross-cultural Ministry
Many books focus either on trusting God in the midst of risk, or contingency planning to mitigate risk. This book walks the no man's land between those extremes, the place where so many of us on the field actually live.
Pastor to the International Christian Community in Kabul, Afghanistan
This book would have been most helpful in my preparation for cross-cultural work! Years ago, while serving in a country next to Afghanistan, our family was attacked by a frenzied mob. We lived through it (by God's grace) and after that saw more fruit. Eventually we left the field, but what I have learned over the last twenty years of equipping workers for ministry in Muslim contexts, is that Facing Danger is more needed today than ever.
This text draws from both testaments to show that risk taking is biblical. For example, it points out that the church in Jerusalem chose men like Barnabas and Paul because they had "risked their lives" for the sake of the Gospel (Acts 15:25-26). A number of passages are exegeted to demonstrate that there is a difference between taking risks and suffering--something that is easily missed in our study of Scripture.
Finally, Anna Hampton interjects a number of personal experiences that add credibility and make for interesting reading. I highly recommend this book as a training manual for cross-cultural workers in areas of high risk.
Warren Larson, PhD,
Professor Emeritus, Muslim Studies at CIU and Senior Fellow
Zwemer Center
There can be a tendency in the Evangelical world to over spiritualize or otherwise be dismissive of risks and the deep, lasting impact. Anna provides a path down the middle of those two extremes with this profoundly insightful and helpful resource. This book is not written from either a theoretical posture or "low risk" location. She writes from life experience in some of the most volatile locations in the world, having lost numerous close friends yet willing, along with her family, to live and work amidst these realities. This will be a book I will utilize for my own as well as organizational discernment as we have staff moving in and out of high risk regions of the world.
Scott E. Shaum
Director of Staff Development Barnabas International