Mission – Ministry – Life
“Mission is what the Bible is all about; we could as meaningfully talk of the missional basis of the Bible as of the biblical basis of mission.” Chris Wright It is quite a claim. Not least because mission isn’t a word that crops up in Scripture; nor is it used in the early church. We... Continue Reading →
Navigating change is a skill. A skill we will need as we emerge from Covid lockdowns. The world has changed, and we need to learn to live in it again. The ‘transition bridge’ idea is sometimes used to help mission workers. Although based on David Pollock’s book about Third Culture Kids the ideas are a... Continue Reading →
You can't have a discussion about mission, justice and poverty without some reference to When Helping Hurts: How to alleviate poverty without hurting the poor and yourself (Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert). Not everyone agrees with it but the book makes important claims and provides some helpful ways to think about this area. The companion... Continue Reading →
These notes from a great discussion at a recent staff meeting on the first few verses of Acts 13. 1 Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. 2 While they were worshipping the Lord... Continue Reading →
Some notes from a recent staff meeting, this time we talked about justice and its place in mission. What is justice? People think of justice in various ways What is correct or right and people receiving what they deserve. Fairness in the way people are dealt with (the opposite of oppression). The system of law... Continue Reading →
What’s cultural intelligence? It’s a bit like IQ but related to culture, the ability to recognise different and unfamiliar cultures and interpret what’s going on - the capacity to work and relate across cultures. We all look at the world through cultural spectacles. Guinea pig? In the UK people think of pets, in parts of... Continue Reading →
Today some notes from an Old Testament passage..... Psalm 67 1 May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine on us –2 so that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. 3 May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you.4 May the nations be glad and sing for... Continue Reading →
One of the 5 marks of mission we looked at before (here) is the safeguarding of creation. It’s a topic which is key to thinking about mission in the future as we think about how the missions movement will respond to the climate emergency. These notes from a staff meeting were largely created by lifting... Continue Reading →
These are notes from one of our staff meetings, but like the ones on 2 Corinthians, these capture another of those passages that is central to my own thinking. John 20: 19-23 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the... Continue Reading →
Continuing my notes from a staff meeting……. Romans 10:13-15 …for, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without... Continue Reading →
Distinct Reflections 