Cadillacs and Church Planting Movements

The first mission trip I remember going on was with my parents when they went to Mexico when I was three.  The only things I remembered from that trip is that I let one of my new Mexican friends play with my six-shooter cap gun and that I really liked sitting on the backseat armrest to see of out my dad’s ’61 Sedan DeVille.

Some things have changed since then.  The ’61 Cadillac has been replaced by an Airbus A330 22, worn out buses, and bora boras.  Handwritten letters and land line phone calls have given way to email, texting, and surfing the Interwebs via BGAN.  Some things haven’t changed since I was taken on my first mission trip…like being involved in a church planting movement, medical clinic, construction, orphan care, pastor training and cultural tourism.  This trip, thirty people from six different churches in the United States and Germany spent six days on the ground getting an incredible amount of things accomplished.

Our church partners with Helping Hands in Uganda primarily to be involved with a church planting movement but also because they are doing some great work with orphans.  Grace Calvary Christian Ministries is an indigenous church planting movement that is aggressive and is looking to plant churches where there isn’t an evangelical presence. Plans are to plant at least six churches on the banks of Lake Victoria where there’s no churches. Our team helped support that this time with survey work in some of the newer churches and I met with 21 pastors to get information for some marriage enrichment material they’ve requested. I thought their request for marriage material in a culture that still embraces polygamy was interesting.

We attended a baptismal service for 61 people.  You may say, “baptism, schmab-tism” but it was really incredible.  The people getting baptized were from multiple churches, mostly adult and they had all started their relationship with Christ within the last 30 days.  There was even one guy that told us that God had spoke to him while the baptismal procession was going by and told him that he “needed what they have.”  Oh yeah, and there hadn’t been a big evangelistic push or crusade.  This was the Church doing what the Church was designed to do.  You don’t see that happening in the average American or European church.

Just had a thought.  Maybe Satan deceptively nurtures the inherent materialism in humans in order to get us to buy into the false belief that if we have stuff that faith is unnecessary.  Most Ugandans don’t have that problem. They’re poor as dirt.  They live without air conditioning, raise their own food, drink their beer from a common pot through reed straws and still have unsanitary water and sewage conditions.  When you don’t have much you tend to be more open to spiritual things.

The “mother” church of the church planting movement, Busia Calvary Church, is responsible for starting an influential orphan ministry in Busia.  Their philosophy is that they can help more kids by providing a free school for the orphans to attend.  They provide over 600 kids uniforms and shoes, a meal (usually porridge and the side of the day like beans, rice, or greens) and a government recognized education. When a team comes in, a medical clinic for the kids is led by Dr. Brenda Kowalske.  The cool part of partnering with a smaller organization is that you have access to the child you sponsor.  The picture on the right is of me and our family’s sponsored child Irene.  One of the most eye opening things was when Dr. Richard Kowalske was going to get construction supplies and brought 11 drug addicted street kids back with him.  His offer: If they get off drugs they’ll get two meals for 30 days, new clothes, and a place to sleep on the condition that they attend class every day.  I did the intake on all of the kids since the headmaster was in training with his teachers and I was the only one free to do it.  Four of the kids (average age of nine) were straight up stoned on inhalants when they got there.  Five of the other kids weren’t high but they used.  One 16 year old boy was just orphaned and homeless.  I cried the next morning when 9 of the 11 boys were back.  I don’t have a rep for crying about stuff like that.  Just sayin…

The construction part of the team got a lot done by prepping and pouring a floor for the wash room in the kitchen at the school. They also poured concrete pillars for the Busia Calvary Church building that had been destroyed by an unusually strong thunderstorm. I have to give credit where credit’s due…a group of 7th grade Ugandan boys made sure that we always had concrete ready. They mixed it by hand on the ground for two days straight.  They are strong and hard working young men.  It proved to me that a lot of American 7th grade boys (and men) are soft.

The lessons I learned on this trip:

• You should be able to get along with anyone at some level. Thirty people worked like a well oiled machine on this trip. “Accept each other just like you have been accepted in Christ Jesus” (Romans 15:7).
• Each church should do foreign missions in a way that matches the culture of their church. Not every church is wired to do 10/40 missions.  Not every church is designed to do construction. Every church should equip its members in how to share their faith story.
• Find a missions organization that’s smaller and more personal. It doesn’t sound as cool when someone asks “So who do you partner with in missions?” but the personal connection factor is huge.

Tell me some of your stories. How your church does mission work?

A Missional Icon…that few know about

Think missional is something new? Think again. It may be the fashionable new word of Christians striving for biblical authenticity but I was fortunate to have a Mom and Dad that were missional. They kept missional company like my Uncle Ed (image left) who, to me, is a missional icon.

Uncle Ed just turned 90 years old last month. I was able to go back to Oklahoma and spend some time with him. While his vision has faded with age, he still has an amazing missional mindset. While he’s been a missionary to Mexico for sixty years Uncle Ed began living a missional lifestyle before he ever decided to be a missionary. There’s too many stories to tell so my conversation below will reflect the results of Edgar Stone’s missional lifestyle.

Me: So Uncle Ed, exactly how long have you been doing mission work?

Uncle Ed: Fifty-nine years. It’ll be sixty next year.

Me: How many churches have you planted?

Uncle Ed: I’ve planted eight-eight churches, but we have two missions we’ve started in the last couple of months. A couple of the buildings have been blown away by hurricanes over the years but the work is still going on there.

Me: That’s amazing.

Uncle Ed: The hurricanes?

Me: No, that you’re still planting churches at your age?

Uncle Ed: What am I supposed to do? I don’t think you can retire from doing the Lord’s work.

(I cracked a huge smile and got emotional. Bring it in, Ken…)

Me: I guess the Bible School that you built is going strong?

Uncle Ed: Yep. We’ve graduated 575 pastors.

Me: Do you know how many churches they’ve planted?

Uncle Ed: No, but plenty I guess. I don’t keep track of that. I’ve got enough to say grace over.

Me: And the sewing school…how many ladies have gone through that?

Uncle Ed: Over 800 now. They get a certificate of completion that means something to the Mexicans. It gets them jobs that pay $7 or $9 dollars a day instead of $2 dollars a day. A lot of the pastor’s wives have gone through so they can earn money so their husbands can do ministry and plant churches. Some of them go through just to start their own business or get a better paying job.

So here’s a guy that’s ninety years old that’s lived a Great Commission life – a missional life. Of course, there were revival meetings and crusades and the typical evangelism events that were the norm for his generation. But I know from personal experience that his opportunities to persoanlly share the Gospel didn’t center around holding meetings. It centered around relationships that he built with people every day. It happened because he practiced social justice and was a pioneer in “business as mission.” Then there’s the mentoring of 575 pastors and their personal impact and who knows how many churches have been planted as a result.

That’s a missional lifestyle.

Partnership in missions…common calling, common goal

Just a little recap…God initiated the idea of partnership in his redemptive plan. Missio dei or God on mission is a great way to describe it. Thanks, Marty. I hadn’t thought of that phrase for a few years. God on mission, in the flesh, giving us a living, breathing example of what it means to be incarnational. To the casual reader, there’s a lot of Christian subculture words here. They are good words with deep meanings. Investigate them.

The recap continues with the example of individual/individual, individual/church, church/church, church/denomination, and denomination/denomination partnerships. If you’re wondering how two churches or two denominations can partner together in missions, the answer comes in points three and four of this article.

3. Common calling in mission partnerships.

The apostle Paul speaks of a Macedonian call to share the Gospel in a specific place to a specific people. That call was shared by Luke and Silas. The Scripture clearly points out that the calling was to share the Gospel with the Macedonians.

One of the mystical components of the work of the Holy Spirit is how he pulls together people of like minds to reach specific people groups. The common calling in mission partnerships takes place through prayer, the study of Scripture, and participation in vision trips to places where one believes God may be calling to join him on mission.

For example, I resonate with two distinct different groups. One group that I have a heart for is the postmodern American culture. God has placed in my path others that have a desire and innate ablity to reach this specific group of people. There are many others that have a desire that all people come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ but they do not have the same passion or skill set to reach postmoderns. Another group I have a heart for is a people group in North Africa called the Beja. I cannot tell you specifically why I am drawn to this people group. I can only tell you that there is a distinct call from God to be on mission on their behalf. Not everyone is willing to go to North Africa in a predominately Muslim setting to be on mission. There are, however, those with a common calling that I partner with.

4. Common goal in mission partnerships.

Common calling is accompanied by a common goal in mission partnerships. In mission partnerships, the common calling to a specific people group is the result of a God given unity to believers. The product of that unity are common goals that God gives to the partnership.

I say to potential partners (this gets me in trouble with people from churches with congregational polity), “God doesn’t give mixed signals to his people.” If God calls you into a partnership, he will not tell you one thing and those that partner with you another. God isn’t schizophrenic. He does not author confusion. God authors unity.

These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers (Acts 1:14, NASB).

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 15:5-6, NIV).

There will be leaders that rise up and take the initiative in administrative and logistical areas in any partnership. There will be differences in opinion in those areas, to be sure. If a partnership is truly being led by the Spirit, those differences in opinion will quickly fade under the deep sense of God’s hand in the common calling and goal.

Partnership from a mission perspective

The word used for partnership in the New Testament is koinonia. For those of you that are seasoned veterans of the Scripture, you will recognize this word is also interpreted as “fellowship”.

The three instances* in which koinonia is used in conjunction with missions are:

• common gift, contribution (Romans 15:23)
• partnership in the Gospel (Philippians 1:5)
• partnership in the ministry to the saints (2 Corinthians 8:4)

*The root word is also used in 2 Corinthians 13:13 in the sense of communing, partnering, or fellowshiping with the Holy Spirit.

Two of the uses (first and last) deal with partnering in giving to the work of missions and very well may have been the same common fund collected for the church in Jerusalem. Nonetheless, it gives the present day church a precedent of cooperating in giving to missions. The second of the uses deals specifically with partnering with other Christians in the sharing of the Gospel toward the accomplishment of the Great Commission.

The Lord Jesus sent out the disciples in twos. That is clear evidence that partnering with other individuals is an important part of being missional. It is also a prerequisite for empowered prayer…where two or more are gathered, etc. The partnership of Paul with Silas and Barnabas are other instances where individuals partnered with each other for the purpose of sharing the Gospel.

Churches partnering for the purpose of strengthening other churches and sharing the Gospel is evident in Paul’s letters to the Romans and the Corinthians. It is a clear example of the Gentiles within the Church giving aid to and partnering with the Jewish contingent within the Church.

While the language of the Scripture is not in imperative form, there is a solid precedent for partnership in missions. That being said, mainline denominational Christian churches and independent churches that currently do not partner with other churches are missing the mark. Empowered mission work takes place when believers partner together. The growth of the Gospel is also more rapid efficient when partnerships take place.

How partnerships can take place between individuals, churches, denominations and even sending agencies will be discussed in the next two sections of the article.

Biblical basis for partnership in missions…on being missional

I am taking a break for the next week from writing the daily devotional. In its place, I will be making good on a commitment I made to write a manuscript for a presentation on missions that I presented this Spring.

Hopefully it will serve a two-fold purpose: 1) I will keep my word to some friends and co-workers. 2) It will begin to generate a mission mindset at The Journey Church and with others who might read the musings herein.

I truly think it will be as challenging for you as any devotional I would write (or not). Prepare to be challenged to look outside your world to a world that is dying without Christ.

My guess is that the manuscript will be read (when completed and if distributed) by church leaders and churches of a more traditional mindset. My prayer is that they will begin to replace the word “missions” with “missional”.
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The purpose of this article is to revisit the Scriptural call of God for partnership in mission. God’s call is for local churches to partner with each other and with individuals to increase their effectiveness in sharing the Good News at the local, regional, national, and international level.

This goal of this article is for church leadership engage in Biblical partnership and influence the people they lead to: 1) challenge people to be missional like Jesus 2) understand the common calling the local Church has to mission partnership 3) find unity in the common goal of the Church in mission partnership 4) embrace the common doctrine in mission partnership 4) adopt an attitude of equality in mission partnership 5) openly communicate within the mission partnership.

1. On being missional…like Jesus

To truly understand partnering with other Christians in the work of mission, one must begin with the ultimate example of mission partnership that is embodied in the Incarnation. The Incarnation, God on mission as human, should be a revelation to us that God fully intended the work of redemption to be a partnership (John 1:1-14). Jesus was and is the embodiment of God on mission. Jesus showed us that to truly be a God-follower, we must follow His example of missional.

God chose to set the example of partnership by working with and within humanity to accomplish His redemptive plan. Jesus called on us to carry out the Great Commission through his incarnational or ‘missional’ example.

In recent history, there are individuals and a scarce few churches that have exemplified the missional example of Jesus . In my opinion, there is no Christian denomination in existence today that embodies the missional church.

That’s why it’s important that we understand the first biblical example of partnership in mission is God in partnership with humanity in his redemptive plan. The primary example we must embrace in being missional human beings is that of Jesus Christ. Why God would partner with humanity in his work of love and grace will remain a mystery…at least until the Second Coming. Until then, it’s not for us to figure out but simply to obey. We must follow the perfect example of being a missional God-follower given to us by the Master in the New Testament. We will fall short of that example, to be sure, but the grace extended to us in our shortcomings is simply one more facet of helping pre-Christians understand the loving nature of the Heavenly Father. I believe that can be summed up in the word “authenticity”.

There are a lot of things we can learn from Jesus’ example of being missional. We should be willing to understand the cultural aspect of those God puts in our path. We should have an ability to understand the spiritual sickness that underlies the presenting problems of social aberrations. We should have a willingness to approach and socialize with those that are far from embracing the principles of God’s revelations of Scripture. We should be willing to share the Gospel and all of God’s principles in a way that is relevant to whatever culture God may send us. Jesus modeled a missional relationship with God in each of these ways. Jesus called us to do the same when he said, “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”

Understanding the primary model of partnership in missions that Jesus gave us in his incarnational/missional lifestyle is the foundation that all mission work should be built. Embracing that primary example of partnership given to us by God is a secure beginning point explore what the Bible says about local churches partnering with other individuals and churches.

Tomorrow: The meaing of partnership and biblical examples of individual and church partnerships.