Sunday, October 17, 2010

from October 17, 2010 prayer email

Below is an article I wrote recently for plantR, Austin’s local church planters’ web site, titled “BIFOCAL VISION”.

We find the primary marching orders of the local church in the 5 New Testament Great Commission passages. Center stage in each of these passages is the responsibility of all Christ followers, as sent ones, to incarnationally engage in evangelism and disciple making, individually and corporately. This is the foundation of any effective church planting model.

What we understand theologically, we tend to practically dismiss and rationalize away. A key element in four of these Great Commission passages is the priority of the unreached globally – “of all nations” (Matthew 28:19), “Go into all the world … to all creation” (Mark 16:15), “to all nations” (Luke 24:47), “to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). It is not enough, if we profess to follow Christ, to focus exclusively on local opportunities for demonstrating and proclaiming the gospel (where 10-20% are already believers), and then discipling and banding into reproducing communities those that come to know Christ. We must have a bifocal vision – on our local community and on the nations where Christ is not yet widely known (especially where less than 1% are already believers).

As a former bi-vocational church planter, I know how hard it can be to attempt to keep all the plates spinning in the first few years of a new church plant. This is especially true if your model is not simple and your mature colleagues are few. However, it is vital that the key principles and practices that you hope to see your new church practicing 10-20 years down the road be engrained from day one. It is extremely difficult to seek to broaden or change your church’s DNA 3-5 years down the road.

New churches that seriously embrace a bifocal vision from day one consistently discover that local engagement feeds international engagement, and vice versa. Missions (intentional local and international cross-cultural outreach) is not just one more activity to squeeze into an already overflowing agenda. You can cultivate a focus on living missionally where you live, work, and play. And simultaneously recruit and equip those in your new church to go, send, welcome, and mobilize others, while engaging in one or two prayerfully and strategically selected opportunities among the least reached outside the U.S.

Monday, October 4, 2010

from October 3, 2010 prayer email

ACMC is a 35 year old missions mobilization organization. We came under Pioneers umbrella in 2007. This is the last in a series of five reflections designed to better familiarize you with the 16 areas in which ACMC provides practical services for local church mission leaders. Please contact me if we can be of service to your church!


Our mission statement reads “ACMC helps churches mobilize their resources for effective involvement in world evangelization.” Our motto provides insight into a vital part of our methodology: “churches helping churches with missions.”

ACMC provides practical services in 16 areas organized under four broad headings:
1. learning
2. leading
3. sending
4. engaging culture

This reflections will briefly describe the four areas included under the fourth heading – ENGAGING CULTURE.

MISSIONAL CULTURE: The Great Commission is at the very center of God’s mission in the world. Seeing your local church place this at the center of their mission should be a top priority – moving toward the goal of seeing each member of your congregation actively demonstrating and proclaiming the gospel. ACMC can help your church develop the DNA to be outreach focused, both locally and globally.

INCARNATIONAL MINISTRY: “The Word (Jesus Christ) became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” (John 1:14) We too must put flesh on the gospel message and live attractive and compelling lives among those we are seeking to reach and disciple. ACMC can help you learn to relevantly and relationally present Christ on the turf of the lost, not relying primarily on attractional programs and events to bring the lost to your church’s campus.

LOCAL OUTREACH: With each passing year our cities are becoming more and more diverse. Hispanics, African Americans, Asians are rapidly becoming the majority populations in many of our urban centers. The poor, the disenfranchised, and the forgotten desperately need outreach efforts relevantly focused toward them. ACMC can help you impact in your Samaria, the cross-cultural opportunities in your midst.

SHORT TERM: 1.5 million Americans go on a short-term mission trip every year. 1/3 of all missions spending in the U.S. goes toward these trips. There is an upside and a downside to this explosion with short-term work in the past 15 years. ACMC can help you look at what you are doing short-term with a critical eye -- increasing effectiveness, becoming more strategic, and giving appropriate concern for the stewardship issues involved with this big piece of the missions puzzle.

Our assistance to church mission leaders is made available through:
• conferences / training events
• local mission leader networks
• consulting / coaching
• developing practical mission resources
• partnership with other mission mobilization organizations.