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.
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…)
Finding Gospel Opportunities at Work
We spend much of our lives with co-workers, often more than with family or friends, making the question of workplace discipleship both natural and nuanced. Opportunities are there, but they require a unique approach.
This week on the Everyday Disciple Podcast, we discuss the realities of disciple-making at work. While work relationships can be limited, discipleship remains possible. Gospel fluency becomes essential as we look to infuse these settings with purpose and love, seeing our workplaces with fresh eyes and a heart for others.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- Discipleship is evangelism (and vice versa) and it is often a slow process.
- How to think more holistically about discipleship in the workplace.
- Ways to identify who at work is open to Spiritual things.
- Practical examples of discipleship and gospel fluency at work.
Halloween Brings the Mission to Your Doorstep
Depending on your faith community or brand of spirituality, Halloween and trick-or-treating may be controversial for some of you. But no one can argue that when a national tradition literally lines kids and parents up at your doorstep, that has to be a good time to roll out the red carpet for mission.
Regardless if you really love this tradition and go all out, or if you’re less into the whole dress-up and party thing, and whether you call it Halloween, Trick-or-Treat, Harvest Party or whatever, here are 7 things you can do to leave a lasting impression on people and really prime the pump for future missional opportunities:
Click to download the Ultimate Guide to Halloween on Mission for Free.
Letting God Rearrange Our Priorities
Sustaining a missional lifestyle is tough! Life gets messy, burnout creeps in, and old habits and personal preferences sneak back, sabotaging your progress. And with life only getting busier, it can feel overwhelming.
In this episode of the Everyday Disciple Podcast, we’ll uncover what’s really keeping you from fully living on mission. It starts with letting God gently shift your priorities, helping you place his mission at the center of everything you do.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- A traditional and classic definition of “true discipleship”.
- 10 things in your life that may need to be put on the “altar”.
- Why leading your family on mission as a way of life needs to start in your heart.
- Practical steps for removing the clutter and idols that keep us from living on mission.
Healing Relationships: Moving Beyond Forgiveness
What could be more important than restoring a broken relationship? But what happens when one or both parties involved in the conflict are unwilling to forgive or trust is too broken?
In this episode, we discuss how to restore relationships that seem too far gone to repair. If the gospel is truly Good News, then we have a path toward reconciliation laid out and modeled by God himself.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- The difference between forgiveness and reconciliation
- Why forgiveness is a personal choice
- How one person can forgive but it takes two to reconcile
- What happens when the other person will not forgive and move on
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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.