Have you ever thought about the church having a vocation? Here’s your invitation to begin. Vocation is all about calling. So, what is the church’s calling? The church’s calling begins with understanding the nature of the church.
What a caterpillar calls death and the risk of the unknown, we call a butterfly. What do we call a church that steps out in mission and risks the unknown?
In Rob Weber’s book, Visual Leadership: The Church Leader as ImageSmith, he tells a story about a hermit crab and what it taught him about risk-taking.
“Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life” Philippians 4:6-7 (MSG)
Paul’s teaching “Don’t fret or worry” seems unrealistic. Who among us has gone even one day without worrying about something? Some weeks it feels like we are bombarded with bad news.
As we come to the end of this series of posts, it is time for action. Think of one or two persons who need an encouraging word. Persons who need to know of God’s love and acceptance. People who need to experience God’s grace. Get their face in your minds and their name on your lips. Keep them in mind as you read the following:*
May I give you one more gift I have received?
Florence Littauer, in her book, Silver Boxes: The Gift of Encouragement, tells a story about her mother-in-law. She says she was alone with Mother Littauer and was just making conversation when she asked Mother Littauer, “What would you have been if you could have done anything?”
When I was a pastor in Clarksburg, West Virginia, there was a member of the church by the name of Husky. He was in his mid 70’s when I was his pastor. There were times he would come by my office just to talk. He was a delightful person. He had served in the Navy. One day he brought me a picture of himself as a boxer in the Navy.
We’ve explored the power of words in Part 1, 2, and 3 of this series and explored the biblical foundation of encouragement from one of Paul’s writings. Over the next few days I will share some of the encouraging words I have received from others. Encouraging words are intended to be shared. The first encouraging word comes from my childhood.
Robert Fulghum, in his book, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, tells a story of the Solomon Islanders.
Some of the villagers practice a unique form of logging. If a tree is too large to be felled with an ax, the natives cut it down by yelling at it.
How do we engage in missions? Below are three approaches to missional engagement. There are other ways to characterize these experiences. As you’ll soon see, sometimes one of these approaches is more prevalent than others.
