The First Time I Tried Starting a Missional Community I Failed
Have you ever tried starting a missional community from scratch?
“Missional” is a label we give to the qualitative and descriptive aspect of how a church or group of people actually lives. My buddy Hugh Halter says it simply,
“It’s about how much like Jesus people become… how much they influence, woo, and transform the culture in which they are placed.”
A family, group of friends or church that lives like this… Sounds good!
Well, a few years ago my friends all thought so too. We were excited to be rebels who were starting a missional community.
Excited, that is, until things progressed to where we moved beyond our weekly meal and discussion about being missional. It was time to start heading out and building new relationships, serving those in need in our city… actually making disciples.
That’s when everyone recoiled a bit.
Let’s Try This Missional Community Thing Again
Now I’ve learned how to make discipleship and mission a reality–something simple that everyone can live out in everyday life.
What I didn’t know back in those earlier days of starting a missional community was that while most Christians want to make disciples and live on mission with God, they also feel way to busy!
Often, when moving toward a lifestyle of discipleship and mission, people become overwhelmed with what they perceive as the risk of their family time, “margins” and sanity!
The secret is moving from “additional” to “intentional” in our thinking.
Discipleship is not a set of activities we need to jam into our lives, or a series classes that we need to take. And a missional community is more than just a weekly meeting of our small group with a name change.
It’s a series of simple, rhythms or “moves” we can easily, and intentionally, engage in our everyday life. Step by step.
Imagine…
- Making new friendships that naturally lead to “doing life” together.
(I can show you how.) - Or knowing how to talk with others about spiritual things without feeling awkward or pushy.
Discipleship becomes a way of life that includes your kids, close friends and neighbors.
That’s what my family and friends now experience.
If you want it… I’m here to get you started without all the headaches, stop/starts and frustration.
The best part? It’s 7 simple steps.
This process takes a little effort and intentionality. But it’s not complicated. And it’s one of the fastest ways I’ve discovered to get started with others making disciples and building community.
(You can do Steps 1 and 2 today!)
I want to give you access to this free Start-Up Guide (including ‘How To Start a Missional Community From Scratch’). Just click the button below and I’ll send it over.
What Would You Do If Time and Money Were No Object?
I seem to always be looking forward…looking ahead to what’s next. Much of life, work, family or ministry seems to be filled up with the stuff we have to do. But this causes me to give considerable time to thinking about what I really want to do.
What would you do if time and money were no object? Seriously. Give yourself permission to dream a little here. In fact, while you’re at it, dream bigger!
Rethinking Family as a Team on Mission
For many in Western civilization, our idea of “family” seems like a failed experiment. We’ve been sold the line that the family exists primarily as a springboard for the individual. But what if our families functioned more like a team–a team on a mission?
In this episode of the Everyday Disciple Podcast, Caesar talks with Jeremy Pryor, who has created a multi-generational household that lives together on mission making disciples of Jesus. Their story is powerful!
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- Why so many families fail to live as a team and do life and mission together.
- The simple, yet powerful rhythms that Jeremy’s family live in.
- The role that “intentionality” plays in establishing new family rhythms.
- Ideas to help you start to create a family team right where you’re at.
How To Include Your Kids In a Missional Community
The Church is a family, always has been, and it is vital that we learn how to include everyone in the mission that God has called us to. Even (or especially) our kids.
One of the most often asked questions I get is what to do with kids in a missional, or incarnational community. This can seem tough, but it doesn’t have to be. My answer usually starts off with a few questions: (more…)
Living On Mission With No Church Support
You want to live a more missional life—sharing everyday rhythms with others, building community, and making disciples. But what do you do when your pastor or church leadership isn’t on board?
This week on the Everyday Disciple Podcast, we’ll start by speaking to your heart. Then, we’ll guide you with practical steps to get started and share ways to inspire your leaders and others to embrace this missional lifestyle with you.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- The crucial difference between most traditional churches and missional communities.
- The real threats and fears that you may be experiencing as opposition.
- How Jesus was definitely in the “both/and” camp with a single focus.
- Ways to get started living as an example for others.
Are You One of the Cool Kids?
When I was growing up, whether it was hanging around my neighborhood or on the school playground, or spending time with my sisters and cousins during family celebrations, it was important to feel as if I was one of the cool kids—one of the insiders.
No one likes to feel on the outs or be pushed to the margins of the social circle.
We all want to be insiders. (more…)
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ABOUT ME
I am the author of the top selling book, The Gospel Primer. My latest books, Transformed and Small is Big, Slow is Fast came out recently on Zondervan.
I help those with a high commitment to intentional living in the areas of their discipleship, family and mission acquire the leadership skills and tools necessary to succeed and leave a lasting legacy.