Church Renewal, Global Mission
Beanie Babies and Staying Engaged in God’s Mission
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Most of our homes are scattered with the leftovers of our desire to be part of something bigger than ourselves. Those of us who are older may even bump into that pet rock that we bought in the 1970s. Others of us have closets bursting with Beanie Babies. We have trinkets, books, magazines, clothes with logos and trademarks—every one of them proclaiming our desire to be part of something bigger than ourselves.
God invites us into something bigger than ourselves, namely, being a missionary community.
A missionary invites people to be a certain kind of people and live a particular type of life. There are all kinds of missionaries in our world (many of them work in advertising!). God's missionary people issue a unique invitation. They invite people to join in living as a beloved community of shalom rooted in Jesus. Communities of shalom model and bring God's vision of flourishing, justice, and reconciliation to the world.
Being a missionary community is an extraordinary calling, but sustaining this life as a beloved community can be difficult. There is a reason why our closets now hold our pet rocks, our Beanie Babies, and so much more. We lost our enthusiasm for what we were collecting. We lost our desire to spend time and resources on these fads. The truth is our enthusiasm for being a missionary community can also fade. Life brings pressures, COVID strikes, the beloved community we are forming no longer feels so beloved and more.
To be a missionary community, we remember (remember in the Hebrew sense of both recalling and acting) four beautiful and wonderful Biblical promises:
To sustain our missionary calling, we need to remember the beautiful and wonderful promises of God.
As we endeavor to sustain our missionary calling, let's help each other out. Tell us:
Want to discern your congregation's God-given, hope-filled, mission-focused future? Connect with us at Vibrant Congregations.
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