Heart for missions: How can we cultivate a heart for missions in our church?

Cultivate the Heart. A heart for missions starts first with a heart for God. Unless there is a heart for God there can be no heart for His mission on earth. Worse, without a heart for God, people may perform dead works using His name, calling it “missions” while confusing people inside and outside of the church about God’s mission. We can address this by intentionally teaching God’s word in ways that reveal His heart for the world and His mission in it. (Proverbs 4:23, Jeremiah 9:23-24, John 17:3, 1 John 4:20) (Why ME)

Unveil the Glory. 2 Corinthians 3 & 4 show us that what is hidden from people is the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. The answer is to unveil the glory of God through the teaching of His written word so that people can respond in faith (believing God). (2 Corinthians 5)(Unveiling)

Bare the Basis. A very good way to cultivate a heart for God in your church is to go back and lay the foundations for faith. Who is God? What is He like? What is His purpose? What is His plan? Who are His people? What is His process? People who are in love with God will be in love with His mission. Such faith comes by hearing His word. (Bible Basis of Mission)

Establish Common Ground. There are many tools to help people obtain a basic overview of God’s character, purpose, and plan. Some very good tools are, “The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus”, “By This Name” or “All That the Prophets Have Spoken” by John R. Cross. If the congregation completed these resources together, individually, or in small groups, these would at least provide the common ground of a clear understanding of the message of the Gospel in the whole body. An ambiguous understanding of God’s plan and Christ’s fulfillment of that plan leads to a lack of confidence in the Good News message. Understanding God’s overall plan for us in the big picture overview of the Gospel is a great way to start cultivating a heart for missions. If you know what God has done for you, then you have a testimony of a wonderful gift to share with other people. (Point)(Good News)(Training) 

Activate Evangelism. Stepping out by faith in God’s word and seeing Him work in the lives around us is incredibly inspiring. Active evangelism helps create opportunities for growth. As each person gains experience in cultivating relationships toward sharing their faith, their shortcomings or obstacles will reveal an incomplete understanding of the message or create a hunger for better ways to communicate with other people what Christ has accomplished. Having new believers join the congregation may also stimulate growth among the members and passion for leading other people to know Christ as those new believers ask questions. As those new believers grow in faith, they will desire to serve God and share their faith at home and abroad. (Imputed Righteousness) (Life Abundantly)(Living the Legacy)

Preach the Word. Is the Bible the basis of missions, or is God’s mission the basis of the Bible? Teach the Bible about God’s mission. There is a lot of confusion between the mission of the church and the ministry of the church. When everything is missions, nothing is. Since before Creation, since Abraham, since before the birth of the Church God has had a specific mission. At the beginning of the local churches, the Holy Spirit, through the Word, through prayer, through the local leaders, and through the local body of believers, has set apart and sent active ambassadors to proclaim Christ where He was not known. This is a fundamental function and ministry of the local church which is in addition to, central to, and part of the primary ministry of the local church. (Mission: What is it)

Cast the Vision. Are we there yet? People want to know where we are going and how long it will take to get there. Intentional vision-casting through Biblical teaching, missionary testimonies, and purposeful congregational action, by faith, toward a missions objective, will help to stimulate a heart for missions in the body. If we know what we are asking God to do, by faith, as we are faithfully praying to see the objective accomplished, and are actively investing our time, energy, and resources as much as we are able, these activities will be faith-building as people look to see what God does with our “loaves and fishes”. (Vision)(Plan)

Share Testimonies. Telling stories of what God is doing in our day can be very inspiring. Promote missionary videos and books. Reading may help the congregation understand the choices involved in a career missionary’s life, the Biblical basis for their choices, and the results of those choices. These resources may help shape the way we think and the missionaries are great examples to follow. Bringing in experienced missions speakers or mobilizers can help with this. Books|Videos

Missions Conferences. These can be as small as a small group presentation, a Sunday School meeting, or as big as a daily meeting for a week or two. Either way, the idea is to expose your congregation to missionary work like it really matters in the life of the church. Inviting an experienced mission mobilizer to assist can bring a fresh perspective, real-time answers, and practical tools to your congregation. Organizing a conference with specific teaching objectives can help quickly shape the way the members of the congregation think about God’s mission and the people of missions. What on earth is God doing? What are the roles in missions? How can I use my gifts and skill? How can I support the work now?  How do you teach people to obey all that Christ commanded? How do you learn an unwritten language? Why is it important to know local culture? How do you learn to translate the Bible? What is ministry like in a remote location? Why should I get involved? (Why ME)

Retreat to Wayumi. There are missions retreats that are designed to help people understand God’s mission, the needs in the world, and opportunities to serve using their own gifts and talents. Ethnos360’s Wayumi programs can give you and your teams a jump start in missions. Take a team to Wayumi regularly. (wayumi.com)

Promote Bible Education. Congregants cannot teach others what they do not know themselves. If you have not been intentionally taught God’s word, how do you know what it is that you do not know? How will you teach others or even know what you need to teach? Yes, you need to study the Bible yourself. No, usually that is not enough. God appointed elders and teachers for reason. Do study the Word to see if what they teach you is true. Ideally, the local church will intentionally equip people with all that they need to know to teach obedience to “all things whatsoever I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:20) If that has not been done, Ethnos360 Bible Institutes help students work through every book of the Bible with an emphasis on God’s mission. I am still shocked at how much I didn’t know when I got there, and I had been immersed in churches, overseas missions, conferences, and college classes. Students are given practical Bible knowledge and are taught by experienced missionaries who have been sent by other local churches. At least, students come out knowing that there is more to know and a good idea where to learn more. (e360bible.org) 

Challenge Children. Many people make life-long decisions about salvation and serving at a very young age. I was six years old when I understood what Jesus did for me. I was eight years old when I decided I wanted to serve as a career missionary. My direction was set when I was fifteen years old. We need to start at an early age to teach people about God’s person, purpose, plan, people, and processes. A great start for cultivating a heart to know God is “Rock Solid Kids: Drawing Kids Close to God’s Unchanging Heart” by Jill Goring. See the Teacher’s Guide! (rocksolidkids.org) Lay the foundations for faith. Don’t teach underneath their intelligence level. (Children’s Firm Foundations) Bring missionaries into their lives to give testimony of God’s greatness and the importance of His work. (Kodiak Kids)(stilluntold.org/empowered/#children)

Train the Traveler. Do you have people interested in serving as missionaries? Train them. Or send them for training. Sending missionaries overseas without training is setting everyone up for failure and discouragement. What is the Biblical objective? When is the work completed? What are the steps in the process? What obstacles can you expect? What resources are available for support? When it comes to cross-cultural ministry, a new missionary does not know what he or she needs to know until someone tells them; or they learn through (hard) experience. Let’s avoid the pain as much as possible. For sure, missions work requires miraculous interventions from God. Only He can change hearts and provide all that is needed. But let’s not put people in harm’s way because of a refusal to learn from the rest of the Body. Career missionary training is about succeeding by learning from the pain of experienced missionaries. What is the goal? What are the obstacles? How can we complete our mission? (ethnos360.org/training)

Empower the Team. God has given the Body a wide variety of gifts and talents. Each is a necessary part. How do we empower individuals and provide opportunities for their gifts to shine? A great part of cultivating a heart for God’s mission on earth comes through actively engaging with what you know, using the gifts, talents, and energy that God has given. Let’s not neglect the gifts of children or adults because of our presumptions about their capabilities. Let’s work to provide avenues for God’s glory to be displayed through them as the Holy Spirit guides them through the written word and the appointed local church leadership. As leaders, it is good to provide the teaching, vision, and opportunities for people to use their gifts, with guidance, as the Holy Spirit leads them to engage. (Nuggets) (Empower)