In the preface to God Who Sends, Dr. Francis DuBose explains that this book is the product of many years of study and research, starting with his graduate studies in missiology (1957-1961). He writes, “I have been bothered by the lack of a clear biblical definition of mission.” DuBose goes on to describe the book this way: “This work is a comprehensive and systematic study of the biblical concept of the sending aimed at a better understanding of biblical mission.... Read more
One of the most anticipated new books of 2012 (by me, anyway) is now available: Creating a Missional Culture: Equipping the Church for the Sake of the Word by JR Woodward. You can read a synopsis of the book online. JR is co-founder of Kairos Los Angeles, and he has one of the coolest job titles ever, dream awakener. He also serves on the boards of the Ecclesia Network and GCM. JR has been an online friend for quite a... Read more
Here’s a recap of last week’s major highlights from the missional conversation: Unlearning the Old Ways of Doing Mission was the surprise hit on the blog last week, with the most Facebook shares. What Does a Missional Toilet Paper Business Look Like? We answered that question last week. If you didn’t see the video, it’s still worth a look (even though the fundraising campaign is already over!). Missional, Like a Boson! was simply one of the most fun posts I’ve... Read more
My friends Helms and Greg Jarrell are founders of a neo-monastic community in Charlotte, North Carolina, called Hyaets (or in Hebrew `eits-chayim, tree of life), and they recently wrote a nice short piece for the Associated Baptist Press on “Changing perspectives about mission.” The old way of doing mission (particularly short-term mission projects), they explain, is to approach a situation as if you are the one “being the presence of Christ.” They contrast this approach by instructing short term workers:... Read more
It’s called Theophony: The Mighty Interactive Theremin, and it’s being organized by Phil Wyman and his merry band of mischief-makers who will be returning to Burning Man again this year to build this new art installation. If you were at Wild Goose Festival, you’ll recognize Phil as the guy who led the processional to the mainstage on the last day! In Phil’s words, “Participants will feel a sense of personal dissonance while trying to play in tune with the music,... Read more
The big news last week was the 99.999999% certainty that scientists have located the so-called “God particle,” a.k.a. the Higgs boson (which is apparently more like a field than a particle but whatever). People in all sectors of society are now beginning to try and make sense of the implications of this major scientific discovery, including theologians and even missional practitioners! Tony Jones preemptively started the discussion about how this discovery might change theology, followed shortly after the July 4th... Read more
That’s actually the name of the company: Who Gives A Crap. And they’re planning to give 50% of their profits to WaterAid for sanitation projects around the world. But priority number one is to raise $50,000 to order their first bulk shipment of the white stuff. They’re already halfway to their goal. Good thing too, because one of the founders is staying on the pot until all the money is raised! Their launch video was just too punny not to... Read more
Dave Kludt, a pastor/equipper at Kairos Hollwood, writing at The Burner Blog last week suggested, “The missional church faces a crisis of information saturation. Much of the missional conversation has centered on ideas — brilliant ideas, ideas rooted deeply in theology and the sending nature of God — good ideas shared over coffee, blogs, and breakout sessions — but primarily ideas. “It’s been a conversation — an exchange of words and thoughts — a cerebral and theological exercise that allows... Read more
Over at The House Studio blog, Brad Brisco writes, “When we begin to see the church (individually and collectively) as the sent, missionary people of God, we no longer view the church as the jumping off point when thinking about mission. Rather, we look for God’s activity in our local setting as the place to begin our missional engagement.” He offers these four Ds of missional engagement (click through each of these points to read more from Brisco): Discover —... Read more
Here’s a recap of last week’s major highlights from the missional conversation: The Sentralized conference announced its main sessions and workshops, with at least one notable controversial topic on the agenda. Missional in Higher Education is one of the most important and valuable posts I’ve written so far on this blog. I think it’ll be a resource that people can hopefully return to again and again for quite a while. I finally set the record straight — I am not... Read more
Missional Shift
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