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On a Mission from God

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Jeff Foerster

What is a missionary? One description I found on Wikipedia defines a missionary as, “a member of a religious group sent into an area to promote their faith or perform ministries of service”. 

Allow me to recalibrate my question: Who is a missionary? 

The Apostle Paul was a missionary. In the back of my Bible are maps that trace three missionary journeys he took. Paul was imprisoned, beaten innumerable times, whipped, stoned, beaten with rods, shipwrecked, and faced many other hardships.  With Paul’s exploits I find it hard to identify.

I recall hearing of missionaries when I was a child and thinking of a land far away inhabited by people of a different tongue and living in poverty and ignorance. Like you might see in commercials where a white, salt-and-pepper bearded man approximately 60 years of age, walks slowly toward a camera among destitute black children surrounded by an obscene number of flies. He carefully gesticulates to accentuate the surrounding poverty while asking you for donations. If you’re like me, this takes place while resting comfortably on a couch while digging greasy fingers into a waning bowl of butter-slathered popcorn and binge watching several episodes of whatever-the-heck.  But I digress.

We have missionaries connected with our church whom we support financially and through prayer. They, like my missionaries of childhood, are, for the most part, in a land far away and among a people speaking a different language. It is possible for any among us to become a missionary, in this sense, and indeed some have sacrificed much in doing so.

However, I don’t see myself leaving everything behind and moving out of the country. For several reasons this is currently not realistic. Indeed, if many were to do so those left behind would find it difficult to financially support those working abroad.

Yet, here we are faced with the Great Commission commanding us to go out into the world and make disciples of Jesus among all people.  What to do?  How are we to fulfill our mandate?  Is it possible that each one of us has been given a mission to a unique people in our sphere of influence? Has God made us to be missionaries to those at our workplaces, in our neighborhoods, even in our own home? Is there any place or any time or any person to which the Great Commission does not apply?

At Elim, just above  the double doors at the front entrance is a sign that reads, “You are now entering the mission field”.  Is it possible that this sign is correct and each of us is a missionary to those in our path, in our influence, in our lives?

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If We Wanted Easy, We’d Be Done . . . and Probably Doing It Again

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By Dan Amos

“Challenging.” That’s the nice way of saying being pushed out of your comfort zone. That’s where I am regarding our transition to our next pastor and exactly where I expected to be. We chose to engage an intentional interim pastor, not because we expected him to do things for us, but because we wanted to be challenged. We want Elim to reach its potential for what God has for us.

In elder meetings and Transition Team meetings, we are looking at where Elim has been and where we want to be in the future. I don’t always like what I hear, nor do I always agree. But the process is important, and I remind myself that we want this and need this. It would have been simpler to immediately form a search committee and hire a senior pastor, but we want to find the right person who will lead us to more effectively reach our community. Even saying “reach our community” is a decision. We could focus internally and create a place where people can come in and worship. Or, we can reach out and bring people in.

We’ve spent a lot of time over the last several Transition Team meetings trying to create a mission statement. Over the decades, we’ve spent a lot of time on mission statements.

An oasis for renewal with God and one another

Nurturing passionate followers of Jesus Christ who know God, grow together in Christ, and go and serve South Hill and beyond

I would be lying if I said I enjoy mission statements. My job title is strategy analyst and I’m no stranger to mission statements. In our exercise at Elim, we are looking for a handful of words that describe who we are and what we’re about. Words that will speak to those outside the church and inspire those within. Words that will be a measuring stick for what we do and whether we’re successful.

Within that, we continue to go back to the Great Commission, looking to tie our mission to what Jesus told us, His disciples, to do. This is exceptionally difficult in just a handful of words that speak to those inside and out, that inspire and draw in, that challenge and measure. But I believe the process has been good. This group of 20 plus people are wrestling with the future of our church. Within this, I have been challenged by a number of thoughts.

We value transparency and authenticity. People can see when we’re trying to hide and when we’re not. We want a place that is full of imperfect people building each other up into something better—Christlikeness. We want a place where we can come with all our faults and mistakes and worship the God who knows them and died to forgive them.

One phrase my wife suggested for a mission statement was doing life together. That challenges me deeply. That means not just coming to church on Sunday and serving here or there. It means being an intimate part of other people’s lives. Sharing in their joy and pain, struggles and triumphs. It means bringing others into mine, too.

The last challenge I’ll share is our current assignment to interview community leaders and unchurched people. We have a list of questions to prompt a conversation, but really, we’re going out and talking to people we don’t know and asking them to think about what our little church can do better to serve and reach our community. Challenging. Necessary. Impactful. A first step . . .

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Going with Church

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by Jeff Foerster

How many times did you go with church last week, last month?

“Oh, I go to church usually once a week, sometimes twice. And, by the way, you made a grammatical mistake in that question you asked.”

Actually, I didn’t. We go with church when we cross the street to visit a neighbor. We go with church when we share barbecue with a believing friend at Po-Boy on Meridian. We go with church when we interact with local librarians, store employees, police officers, and DMV workers. We go with church when engaging with homeless folks. We go with church when visiting those in the hospital. We go with church when we go out into the world. We go out into the world when we do so with purpose, from a position as God’s fellow workers by grace through Jesus Christ. We do so with purpose when our desire is to share the love Christ has given us with others in our community, with current believers, and especially with those who don’t yet know Jesus.

Is this some sloppy or ethereal notion of “church” I am foisting upon you? In ancient Israel, God revealed Himself in the Holy of Holies, in the inner part of the Temple, to one person, on one day each year, and that only after a great amount of purifying ritual was performed. In our present age, we are given access to God through Christ Jesus. And more than that, each follower of Jesus has been given the Holy Spirit to dwell within them, 24/7 and 365 days a year—constant access. We are each members of the body of Christ, the Church, and where we go, He goes with us; God dwells in His church.

Going out, we bring the church to the world. We bring freedom to those in slavery. We bring light to those living in darkness. We bring the very presence of God to dwell alongside those without hope in this world. We are to be on mission—every one of us.

But we can go into the world choosing to clothe ourselves so as not to be seen. We can avoid scrutiny by blending in and valuing an average American lifestyle of comfort and selfish preoccupation. But that is not who followers of Christ are. As Brian Sharpe reminded us this last Sunday, we are lights made to shine ever more brightly in a world growing dim.

Going anywhere with church this week?

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JOURNEY: I Refuse to Go There!

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By Martin Schlomer, Senior Pastor

Two weeks ago, I spoke of the journey Elim is taking over the next few years and the need to chart a course that equips us to be disciples who make disciples among those who are not disciples. In my annual report, I shared how we had no adult I was aware of who had come to know Jesus in 2017. I asked the question, “What might it be like to come to the end of 2018, look back, and celebrate 12 adults who have given their lives to our Lord, have been baptized, and are now in disciple-making relationships?” (Since I wrote my annual report, I learned of a good friend who gave his life to our Lord in December! We will celebrate by baptizing him this Sunday!)

We have done a great job developing disciples among those who are already a part of our community, but we need to be equipped to make disciples among those who are outside our four walls.

As some people have pondered this “course correction,” a few questions and concerns have surfaced that I would like to address.

“Are you going to establish a quota for new Christians each year at Elim?” Absolutely not! This would betray a belief that you or I have the power to convince someone to give his or her life to Jesus. We do not have the power to determine outcomes on behalf of other people. This would be foolishness. Not even Jesus claimed to have this power while on Earth.

“Are you going to restart outreach programs like Freezing Nights, Feeding the Homeless, or Faith in Action?” While these are great compassion outreach ministries, they are beyond the scope of what I’m talking about. I’m not planning on starting any programs. As we take our next steps, if there is support for compassion-based outreach among people ready to lead and serve, we can certainly try to facilitate making that happen. But compassion-based outreach is beyond the scope of where we are going at this point in time.

“Then what is the Journey about?” It is about being disciples who make disciples among those who are not disciples. It’s about loving our Father and His mission. It is about embracing the truth that we are made for His mission. It’s about being equipped to live out this mission through our identity as salt and light among our friends, neighbors, coworkers, or whomever our Father brings our way. It’s about being a part of a community who pray fervently and support one another as we walk out our Father’s mission. It is about understanding how a person develops from a nonbeliever to a maturing disciple. I’m sure we’ll discover a lot more as we take this journey together.

“What’s next?” Last Sunday, we started a three-week preparation process. If you missed the message, please take time to listen. It is that important that we are all on the same page. Last Sunday, I gave everyone some homework. First, prepare your heart by asking our Father to give you a heart for those who are not disciples. Second, do what you can to protect and repair your reputation among all people. We are salt and light. If we ignore this aspect of our identity, we become something our Father never intended us to be (Matthew 5:13b). Third, identify two to three people who do not know Jesus whom you can pray for daily that our Father would prepare their hearts to surrender to the gospel. We must always talk to our Father about our friends before we talk to our friends about our Father.

As we take this journey, we will have opportunities to share the great things our Father will be doing. Jesus promised that as we go on this mission, He will be with us, empowering and leading along the way! To me, this is the most exciting part! See you along the way!

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Changing Course, Making Disciples

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By Brian Sharpe

Twelve years ago I was sitting in my office and realized that I had no clue how to do my job. My proverbial “bag of tricks” that I entered into ministry with was all used up. What should I teach students? How would I train my leaders? I suddenly realized I had no real idea.

So, sitting there in my office in front of my computer, I began to search for solutions. God directed my attention to the Evangelical Free Church (EFCA) website, and I looked to see what they offered on their student ministries page. They spoke of training for youth pastors. Yes, I thought, I need fresh training.

So I contacted them and asked them about training. What happened next has been one of the most influential events that has occurred in my ministry life.

I received a call from the national director of student ministries for the Evangelical Free Church of America. We set up a training event at Elim, but beyond that, he invited me to work with a team of other youth workers to help further student ministries in the EFCA in our district.

The influence of this team has changed me in more ways than I could never express in this post. It has fanned within me a flame of desire to have others speak into my life. It put me around a table with a whole group of youth workers who had been where I was and had come out on the other side.

The effect this event has had on Elim is significant as well. Not only am I a better leader because of the people I have invited to speak into my life, but I have been challenged to ensure that disciple-making becomes at the core part of what I am about in student ministries, and in turn, what we as a church are about, as well. This focus has produced a lot of conversation among the elders, staff and ministry leaders about how we can focus on disciple-making.

Martin and Nate and I, along with the Elders, have sought to keep disciple-making a focus for us at Elim. This focus gave birth to the diagnostic tool that we are calling the Three Hands of Disciple-Making. This tool helps us evaluate the relationships in our lives, with a focus on who serves as our Pauls, our Timothys and our Barnabases.

As we have gone through this Three Hands process we have discovered that Elim can celebrate a lot of people who are investing as a Paul in others. This has led to the leadership trying to focus on helping our Pauls figure out how to be better Pauls.

We have walked this path of trying to be about disciple-making with some exceptionally helpful people. One was our district superintendent, Bruce Martin. Bruce has helped us on this journey to stay focused on helping develop people’s identity in Christ. Another is Jeff Sorvik. Jeff is leading a network called the Creo Network, which focuses on helping churches live on the mission of disciple-making. In order to be engaged in Creo you have to commit to create and execute a disciple-making vision. We have joined this network and look forward to working this disciple-making vision, not on our own but with other churches.

One of the commitments we have made in joining this network is to be engaged in a cohort group that is focused on building a leadership pipeline. Martin and I are excited to be a part of this cohort and the outcomes that could come from the investment in this cohort.

We value the input of other leaders in this process. As a church we talk about not walking alone, but living this life in community, walking with others. We are trying to model this by joining with our district leadership and inviting them into what goes on at Elim, and with joining the Creo Collective.

We are excited to see what God will do at Elim as we seek to honor Him and focus on being a disciple-making church. Elim exist to be an “oasis for renewal with God and one another.” As an oasis we seek to nurture passionate followers of Jesus. (We define a “disciple” as “a passionate follower of Jesus.”) Our heart as leaders is to nurture that passion in everyone who calls Elim “home.”

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Life on Mission

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By Brian Sharpe

Imagine being on a trip with 16 other people in two cars, traveling through 11 states in three days. Imagine the number of hours you would be in the car. Now imagine doing this with no electronics. You had music to listen to, but no cell phone or movies. That’s the trip I recently came back from. It was an amazing trip. The conference was well done. I know God was at work in the hearts and the minds of the students and leaders, and I loved watching Him do so. I am excited to see the lasting effects of this trip.

It is easy to go on trips with students and think that they are just for them. However, I needed to be open to hearing from God. I do believe He spoke and taught me a lot. This Sunday, you will hear more about what God taught me. One of the lessons I wanted to share is that if you are open to hearing from God, he will speak while you live life with others. On this trip, I watched God break down barriers. He brought students and leaders together to have conversations that were amazing. God helped the students feel connected with each other, and the key ingredient to that was time together. It was proximity.

That is something that a lot of people struggle with in the church. They feel alone. They see other people connecting and they wonder what is wrong with them. That becomes a reason why people leave churches.

I really believe the remedy for this isn’t a new church. I believe the remedy is proximity. Who are the people whom you are inviting into your sphere? Who are the people whom you are choosing to run with? We call a person like this your Barnabas. These are the people whom you live life with and live on mission with. The “on mission” is really important. Are you on a mission to point each other toward Jesus and the ways of Jesus? When we are not inviting people into our life or living on mission, we are losing out on what God has for us. We can live life with people and not be on mission and it can be good, but it will be lacking. If you live on mission alone, you will feel like no one is as committed to Jesus as you are. But when you live life with people and live on mission, you will see God at work all around you.

Living life with others is you being willing to let others into the mess of your life. They are people you would have over at a moment’s notice, even if the house is a mess. They’re the people with whom you will share the highs and lows of life. They are the people whom you are in close proximity to in life.

Being on mission means you are living in a way that is honoring to God and you are seeking to walk with others on that same journey. It doesn’t mean you are perfect at it, but it means that you are seeking to honor God in everything. You are seeking to know God and depend on Him in prayer. You seek to love others well and live your life as an act of worship. That is what it means to live on mission.

See, one of the things that the Challenge conference taught us is that we are all sent out as missionaries. We have been placed in this world for a reason, and it is to live life with others. It is to live on mission. It is to share Jesus with everyone with whom we come into contact.

So the question is, who are you living life with? Is your life focused on the mission of God?

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