Outreach
An Outward Focus
God calls us, as his people, to be the light of the world. In a world that is often dark, we are to shine the light of God in a way that is visible to other people. Any ministry without an outward focus is dying.
What does an outward focus look like? It looks like opening our eyes to the world around us and allowing our hearts to break over what breaks the heart of God. It looks like wading into relationships and seeing the opportunities we have to serve others. It looks like experiencing the blessings of God’s Kingdom and inviting others to experience that as well.
A little St. Paddy’s day reading
The Celtic Way of Evangelism by George Hunter III. A great example of how current missional thinking was applied over 1500 years ago, this engaging historical narrative of the Celtic movement of Christianity provides an historical model of evangelism for us to...
Ministry ideas to consider
Just to get your idea juices flowing here are number of existing ministries that believers can readily take part in. The structures are already there in most communities—they just need volunteers. There are as many opportunities for compassion as there are human...
The debate: both/and or either/or
“The debate gets tiring, especially for those of us who live in the trenches of ministry. On one side are those feverently committed to the task of world evangelism and wanting to see heaven populated with redeemed individuals. On the other side are those whose hearts...
We all have something to contribute
We all have something to contribute to the Kingdom of God... no matter what our income, our age, our situation in life, our past failures, our limitations. God designed it this way. He gave each of us spiritual gifts to be used for the benefit of others and for the...
Book review: Barefoot Church by Brandon Hatmaker
I’ll tip my hand right from the beginning. Barefoot Church: Serving the Least in a Consumer Culture is one of the best books I’ve read all year. It’s filled with great, inspiring stories that come from real life, hands-on ministry experience. If you’ve ever wondered...
Top 5 missonal books
If you only have five books to read on missional ministry, these are my top picks. Taken together they provide a good overview of the theoretical, the practical, and the stories. If you want a broader scope of missional ministry, as well as multiple voices, read the...
What I want to be when I grow up
I spoke at a conference earlier this week where Robert Coleman was also speaking. You may remember him as the author of the classic book The Master Plan of Evangelism. He’s 82 years old and still engaged in ministry. Here’s someone who has consistently walked with...
St Patrick: missionary
Take along a book to read over your glass of green beer. Thomas Cahill’s book How the Irish Saved Civilization is a fine and entertaining read, especially in its examination of the missionary work of St. Patrick. Happy St. Paddy’s day!
Release the Work of God
*Practice generosity *Foster new movements *Invest in the next generation This last of the 12 footsteps of Jesus may be the hardest it some ways. It’s about letting go, recognizing that for however much work we may have put into this whole thing, it’s not ours....
Expand Outward
*Multiply disciples *Launch new groups and teams *Develop new leaders Communities of believers are organisms that must keep growing or we die. That can mean passing on the faith to a friend or onto the next generation. It can mean giving someone an assignment that...