"Defying Gravity" - or, The Church Needs to Change

This is Part 2 of a five-part posting on notes taken from Rick Richardson‘s talks at the annual Pastor’s Family Camp that we attend at Inter Varsity’s Cedar Campus in Cedarville, Michigan. Rick heads up Wheaton College’s Masters in Evangelism and Leadership and is a leading expert on various missional movements in the United States.

EMERGING MISSIONAL MOVEMENTS

What are the defining moments that accelerate growth in our lives?  What are the common denominators?

-          Crisis, forced, uncomfortable, no choice – what you rely on is taken away.

We are facing a time in which the church in west is going to go through amazing moment of growth.

How do we get people ready for a time of accelerated growth?

Most of us are longing for something more – Do you long for God to raise up the church you’ve always longed for?

Church is in a huge transition time.  It’s going to be beautiful, but it’s going to be painful.  Through times of awkwardness and risk taking.

“Missional is…”

1.  An ID and way of life – not a new program – “church doesn’t have a mission; God’s mission has a church.”
2. Moves from attractional to incarnational.
3. Focus on equipping everyday people for service and ministry – rather than being consumers.  [discussion of the church hopper – “not being fed enough” – that’s someone looking for a spiritual buffet.]
4. Christians are not consumers but sacrificers.
5. Seeks out marginalized people.

Five streams – emerging, missional, mosaic, monastic, multiplying.

What do we learn?

1.  Kingdom of God is the context and picture of mission – cultivate a missional and kingdom imagination [lay hands on people and ordain them for ministry…. Especially in the workplace….]
2. Jesus and Disciples are the models of ministry
3. Jesus’ teaching is the method of discipleship

Jn 20 – “as the Father as sent me, SO SEND I YOU.”   Great commission in John.

Luke 10 – this is for ALL disciples

Our understanding of the gospel is shallow because we are not living missionally.

If you want to know God is real, get missional.

BLESS – do each week

[One Missional Community's way of a weekly rhythm.]

B – begin w /prayer

L – Listen

E – Eat

S – Serve

S – Story

Live missionally and you’ll defy gravity.

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