More Than a T-Shirt
Just a few short weeks ago we wrapped up another Shift National Conference where we gathered from around the country and the world to worship, see old friends, make new friends, hear the stories of what God has done over the past two years, and rally around our shared mission to empower everyday people to love like Jesus and live like missionaries.
I was personally so encouraged to hear feedback from many in attendance of the clarity this mission provides and the direction it gives as we focus on four key areas to make it come to life. Many of us can even say, “Been there, done that, and got the t-shirt.”
But this mission is about so much more than a slogan on a t-shirt. It is our roadmap for how we move forward together. The four key areas that will help us get there are:
Leader Health and Development – Healthy churches are led by healthy leaders. Healthy mission fields are led by healthy missionaries. And not only that, but we need to be actively raising up the next generation of leaders.
Healthy Churches – We’ve all heard the stats of decline that many churches face. The reasons for those stats can be numerous and varied, but it doesn’t have to stay that way! Defining the marks of a healthy church and then intentionally and strategically addressing each of those can be a game changer. We want to help provide the resources for every church to thrive!
Disciple Multiplication – Every church wants to obey and fulfill the Great Commission. The challenge, however, is not how to lead an organization to multiply disciples but how to lead movements of disciple multiplication where every church member loves the people in their everyday lives like Jesus loves them and then lives like a missionary to make disciples. Imagine the day that there is no “discipleship program” in our churches, because the people are the program and are multiplying disciples everywhere they go!
Church Multiplication – When disciples multiply, churches will multiply. This is the New Testament model that changed the world – disciples multiplied and began to gather, leading to new churches – and the process continued over and over in city after city. We are boldly embracing anew our church planting identity to see churches planting churches that plant more churches.
Each of the four key areas have a team assembled that meets regularly to ultimately propose to our Ministry Leadership Council resources and strategies to help our regions to help our churches and leaders thrive in each of these core areas. We will begin rolling those out by the end of the year!
In addition to hearing stories about the past while also looking forward to the future, we also began a conversation about the role of senior/lead pastor and seeking to clarify the Missionary Church’s position regarding women. We are anxiously awaiting the videos of this and our evening main sessions to be provided by the production company. Additionally, the panel that served to research and present the different viewpoints has offered to continue answering questions that were presented following the presentations. As soon as we have those, they will be passed along to you.
I ask you to join me in praying for the future of our family of churches as we continue to seek greater clarity and alignment to fulfill our shared mission together. I am convinced that loving like Jesus and living like missionaries has been what God has used to shape and mold the Missionary Church over the decades, and I have no doubt that it will propel us to even greater movement in the decades to come!
