Gods MissionOur Journey WELCOME Gods Mission Our Journey

God’s Mission…Our Journey

WELCOME! God’s Mission… Our Journey

COURSE GOALS— To gain a better understanding of… • The biblical foundation for mission and why God calls us to engage in mission • The call of God on our lives to serve in mission and what it means to answer that call • How to live out our faith in mission through serving and loving • The relationship between gospel and culture, and the challenges of Christian mission in a time of globalization • The continual journey that is lived out every day and in every aspect of a person’s life

1: Theology of Christian Mission • Session Goal: To gain a better understanding of the biblical foundation for mission and why God calls us to engage in mission

Mission is…

Worshiping Together

Psalm 33 (CEB) All you who are righteous, Shout joyfully to the Lord! It’s right for those who do right to praise god. Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre! Sing praises to him with the ten-stringed harp! Sing to him a new song! Play your best with joyful shouts!

Because the Lord’s word is right, His every act is done in good faith. He loves righteousness and justice; The Lord’s faithful love fills the whole earth. The skies were made by the Lord’s word, All their starry multitude by the breath of his mouth.

He gathered the ocean waters into a heap; He put the deep seas into storerooms. All the earth honors the Lord; All the earth’s inhabitants stand in awe of him. Because when he spoke, it happened! When he commanded, there it was!

The Lord overrules what the nations plan; He frustrates what the peoples intend to do. But the Lord’s plan stands forever; what he intends to do lasts from one generation to the next. The nation whose God is the Lord, the people that God has chosen as his possession, is truly happy!

The Lord looks down from heaven; He sees every human being. From his dwelling place God observes all who live on earth. God is the one who made all their hearts, the one who knows everything they do.

Kings aren’t saved by the strength of their armies; Warriors aren’t rescued by how much power they have. A warhorse is a bad bet for victory; It can’t save despite its great strength. But look here: the Lord’s eyes watch all who honor him, All who wait for this faithful love, To deliver their lives from death And keep them alive during a famine.

We put our hope in the Lord. He is our help and our shield. Our heart rejoices in God Because we trust his holy name. Lord, let your faithful love surround us, Because we wait for you.

Dear God, thank you for your unfailing love. Thank you that you have entrusted us with your mission. Help us to be faithful and to exude your presence from the very essence of our being. Teach us how to serve you better as we join your mission in this world. For it is in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.

MISSION TRIVIA!

“The kingdom of God is near you. ”

What does it mean that “it is not so much that the church has a mission, but that God’s mission has a church”?

SMALL GROUPS

A Meal is More Than a Menu

Celebrating Together

Mission is…

2: Theology of Christian Mission • Session Goal: To gain a better understanding of the call of God on our lives to serve in mission and what it means to answer that call

Worshiping Together

The Call to Ministry of All the Baptized “All members of Christ’s universal church are called to share in the ministry which is committed to the whole church of Jesus Christ. Therefore, each member of The United Methodist Church is to be a servant of Christ on mission in the local and worldwide community. ” — 2012 United Methodist Book of Discipline, par. 220

SMALL GROUPS

Cultural Identity “Cultural awareness means digging deep to understand our own multiple identities and learning to listen to and understand the identities of others, as well as how these identities shape our perspectives of others. ”—elmira Nozombe

THE GRACE MODEL Limited Grace ? ? Extravagant Grace

Celebrating Together

Mission is…

3: Living Our Faith in Mission • Session Goal: To gain a better understanding of how to live out their faith in mission through serving and loving

Worshiping Together

Eternal God of creation, we thank you for all that has brought us to this time and place. Keep us open to your guidance and power, that we may partner with you in healing and renewing your creation, that our world might draw ever closer to your intention “that all may be one. ” Amen.

L O V E

SMALL GROUPS

“The way we do our work is as important as what we do. ” —Jeremy Basset, A Mission Journey

“There is more hunger in the world for love and appreciation than for bread. ” —Mother Teresa

Celebrating Together

Mission is…

4: Expanding Cultural Awareness • Session Goal: To gain a better understanding of the relationship between gospel and culture, and the challenges of Christian mission in a time of globalization

Worshiping Together

Psalm 103 (CEB) Let my whole being bless the Lord! Let everything inside me bless his holy name! Let my whole being bless the Lord And never forget all his good deeds: How God forgives all your sins, Heals all your sickness, saves your life from the pit,

Crowns you with faithful love and compassion, And satisfies you with plenty of good things So that your youth is made fresh like an eagle’s. The Lord works righteousness; Does justice for all who are oppressed. God made his ways known to Moses; Made his deeds known to the Israelites.

The Lord is compassionate and merciful, Very patient, and full of faithful love. God won’t always play the judge; He won’t be angry forever. He doesn’t deal with us according to our sin Or repay us according to our wrongdoing, Because as high as heaven is above the earth, That’s how large God’s faithful love is For those who honor him.

As far as east is from the west— That’s how far God has removed our sin from us. Like a parent feels compassion for those who honor him, Because God knows how we’re made, God remembers we’re just dust. The days of a human life are like grass: They bloom like a wildflower;

Even the ground where it stood doesn’t remember it. But the Lord’s faithful love is from forever ago To forever from now for those who honor him. And God’s righteousness reaches to the grandchildren Of those who keep his covenant And remember to keep his commands. The Lord established his throne in heaven, And his kingdom rules over all.

You divine messengers, bless the Lord! You who are mighty in power and keep his word, Who obey everything he says, bless him! All you heavenly forces, bless the Lord! All you who serve him and do his will, bless him! All God’s creatures, bless the Lord! Everywhere, throughout his kingdom, Let my whole being bless the Lord!

Lord of all creation, we delight in your world and in all that you have made. Thank you for the mystery that lies behind things as they appear on the surface, and help us see, hear, smell, feel, and taste with gratitude and wonder. Keep us mindful of your love for all creation and your compassion for all who suffer. Make us instruments of your healing love. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

D I V E R S I T Y

SMALL GROUPS

“Mission cannot be separated from God’s justice, as it is at the very heart of mission. ”

Celebrating Together

Mission is…

5: Continuing the Journey • Session Goal: To gain a better understanding of how the mission journey does not end after a mission trip. It is a continual journey that is lived out every day and in every aspect of a person’s life.

Worshiping Together

Psalm 48 (CEB) In the city belonging to our God The Lord is great and so worthy of praise! His holy mountain is a beautiful summit, the joy of the whole world. Mount Zion, in the far north, Is the city of the Great king.

God is in its fortifications, revealing himself as a place of safety. Look: the kings assembled themselves, advancing all together— when they saw it, they were stunned; They panicked and ran away frightened. Trembling took hold of them right there— like a women giving birth,

Or like the east wind when it smashes the ships of Tarshish. Just like we had heard, now we’ve seen it for ourselves in the city of the Lord of heavenly forces, in the city of our God. May God make it secure forever!

We dwell on your faithful love, God, in your temple. Your praise, God, just like your reputation, Extends to the far corners of the earth. Your strong hand is filled with righteousness. Let Mount Zion be glad; let the towns of Judah rejoice because of your acts of justice!

Walk around Zion; go all the way around it; count its towers. Examine its defenses closely; tour its fortifications So that you may tell future generations: “This is God, our God, forever and always! He is the one who will lead us even to the very end. ”

Lord of love, your Spirit is always moving, urging us to come and join you in the mission you have called us to. Help us to be responsive and faithful to that call. With open hearts and gratitude we await the leading of your Spirit on this mission journey. Grant us wisdom, grant us guidance, and grant us a new vision for the work you have before us. In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.

C O N V E R S A T I O N

FORMATIONAL VS. TRANSFORMATIONAL

SMALL GROUPS

“Your vocation in life is where your deep joy and the world’s deep pain meet. ” —Frederick Buechner

Celebrating Together

THANK YOU!