Henriet's Blog

Missional: A Definition

Last Friday I attended a conference called "Inside the Missional Matrix." It was held at The Vineyard in Shoreline. The key speakers were Scot McKnight and Todd Hunter. It was great to hear them speak.

Scot McKnight is the author of the Jesus Creed blog. He's the Karl A. Olsson Professor in Religious Studies at North Park University (Chicago, Illinois). You'd think that a New Testament scholar might be a boring guy. Not so. Dr. McKnight is funny and personable. He's a great teacher.

Todd Hunter is the president of Alpha USA. Another great teacher.

I've been talking about being missional. Many people grapple with the definition. I'm going to give you Scot McKnight's definition of missional. It's from his "bloglossary."

Missional: a term favored by emerging Christians for the mission of the Church. It begins with the Mission of God (often called missio Dei) in this world; it is holistic — including both evangelism and social action; it does not divide evangelism from social action. It’s central concern is to incarnate the gospel in a community; it is concerned with reaching out (”How can we help?”) along with attracting folks “to church.” Missional can be used to define a local church while a missionary is one who sent by a local church to another country (to become missional there).

What picture does that create for you?

I Saw A Kid Do It

He loves to live life on the edge, the edge between good and bad. That area of life seems more attractive to most people-if that were not so people would steer clear from it.  He describes the edge where he likes to hang out, "you know how the line is drawn and some people like to be several feet away from the line. I like to be right next to it, almost on it."  The question becomes, "don't you risk crossing the line?" He does risk it and sometimes crosses it. However, most of the time he manages to stay on the right side.

On this edge he finds all sorts of people. People that I would not necessarily hang out with. These people all love the line too. They peer over, play around with it and many of them cross  the line regularly. This kid--a teenager--actually loves the people who cross the line. He "gets" them.

You might think he's too chicken to cross the line and really wants to be like those who do. Not so. He loves the thrill and adrenaline of living close to the edge, but the real motivation is the people who live there. He wants to help them.

He's cool enough, looks like them enough, loves the line enough to have real conversations with these teenagers.

He develops relationships, connects, hangs out and in this process draws them to the one who motivates him. He loves Jesus and makes that cool. Several teenagers have crossed the line back to where he hangs and have chosen Jesus over the other side.

I think this kid, the one who loves the line, gets it. How he lives life looks a bit like Jesus' approach. After all, he hung out with those types of people too. I think this kid might just be living missionally. intentionally. 

Does it fit your definition of missional?

Living Missionally. Intentionally

That's the title of my workshop today at the NW Christian Education Conference: "Living Missionally. Intentionally." I'll be telling stories of people who are living it. They are living out loud, serving in Jesus' name. They are being a neighbor to those they live near, work with, and meet while running errands.

I think we all can actively serve where we are, joining God where He's at work. Our job is to show up prepared--living ready to be used by God for His purpose in the world.

Look around where you already are. Who are you serving intentionally? Everyone can serve. Serve the way that suits who you are. Be you...to be Jesus...to another.

How do you serve missionally intentionally?

Living Missionally

Last Monday, I wrote about four friends who are working as secret agents--working in the real world, but ultimately serving people and their employers in Jesus' Name.  What are they doing? They are being missional.

What is missional? The Blind Beggar describes it through several word pictures. It's bringing cookies to the new neighbors, it's being at work on time and not abusing the rules, it's carrying the groceries out for someone, it's buying a stranger a cup of coffee, it's ...

Reggie McNeal, author of Present Future in an interview posted on the Becoming Missional blog defines missional as "joining God in His redemptive work, here and now. It's something to be done and not just talked about."

To me missional means going back to the original design. Christ-followers were designed to be missional. Jesus showed us through his life and ministry to go love and serve people like he did. Loving and serving in his name. It means we have to get out there where people are.

How do you define missional?

Undercover Service Agents

Several friends of mine see their regular jobs as more than a place to get a paycheck. One works at an upscale retail chain. Another works at a high tech company. A third friend works at an electronics retailer. A fourth is the head of a non-profit agency.

Each morning they get up, get ready, get Starbucks or Tullys and then go to work. They drive normal cars.  They put in more than a good days work. They look like any other employee based on their outward appearance. All are high producers and very much appreciated by their employers.

However, they're really secret agents. They serve a higher authority then their supervisors, managers or company board of directors.  Their goal is to be a joy, serve well and give their true boss all the glory. They work hard and appreciate their paychecks, but they are really hoping to make a difference in a person's life. I know each of them makes a difference on someone's life daily. These friends inspire me!  Do you know anyone like that?

Biblical Basis for Women in Leadership

Next week Thursday, at the NW Christian Education Conference, I teach a workshop on the Biblical basis for women in Christian leadership. Mostly women attend but a few men come too--some to challenge me and others because they genuinely want to hear the information.

My premise is that God created us in His image as male and female. The hierarchy did not start until after the fall of man (see Genesis 1-3). This idea of equality is brought back after Jesus came to redeem us. The Apostle Paul teaches that there is now neither "male nor female" (Galatians 3:28) meaning that before God we are equal.

There are examples in the Bible of women leading such as Deborah in the Old Testament who was one of the Judges. Lydia was a leader of a house church in Philippi--she was the first European convert (see Acts 16).

Jesus honored women and included them in his band of followers. He elevated them--like when he allowed Mary to sit at his feet like a disciple. A role not normally reserved for women. In the New Testament, the Gospel writers indicate the value of women through the stories of the women who were the last at the cross and the first at the tomb. The Apostle Paul also valued women. He included women in his band of workers and called some Apostles. A list of female co-laborers are mentioned in the 16th chapter of the book of Romans.

Some think that women are not allowed to teach or to lead men. I used to think that too--until God called me into ministry and led me to lead both women and men. Thoughts?

She's a he or is she?

I wish I was...but my husband Fred's glad I'm not. What am I talking about? I used to want to be a boy. So much so that I asked my mother when I would get some of my father's anatomical features. Of course I was only four or five at the time. Still, it probably meant something.

In my younger years I definitely acted like a tomboy. I climbed trees, caught frogs for the guys in Kindergarten to release during class, and had fun jumping across small canals just to name a few things. My favorite toys were Matchbox cars and trucks. The 80 cars in my collection are safely garaged in two special carrying cases. These were not toys I entrusted to my son. He wasn't careful enough with my cars! My love for cars has matured, but I still love Matchbox too. 

Jokingly I've said that maybe I really am a boy--on the inside. Then I took an on-line Personal DNA test.  Guess what? My femininity score was low (12%) and my masculinity score was high (90%).

Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to be a woman and won't be confused for a guy anytime soon. It seems like I just think like one. However, in some ways even today I wish I was a man. A lot of it has to do with opportunities. Women in ministry don't have the same options as men--though it's getting better.

Invited Back To Teach at NWCEC

Held March 22-24, 2007 the NW Christian Education Conference trains men and women in various skills related to serving men, women, youth and children--including teaching, drama, small groups, worship, finances, adminstration, technology, culture. I have the privilege of participating again this year...this will be my fourth year. My workshops range from women's issues, small group leadership and my new addition, "Reaching the Culture with Jesus' Story."   

Why do I participate? I love to help people grow in their knowledge and understanding. It's amazing to me that I have the privilege to share with attendees what I'm passionate about. I hope my workshops benefit those who attend because the "students" greatly encourage me.

Doing what you love to do is a great gift. Thank you NWCEC for inviting me back to teach. Of course I'll have to keep in mind people's different learning styles--so that I appeal to the auditory (few), visual (most) and tactile learners.

You Mean It's OK?

As a student, especially at Santa Clara
University and in high school, I studied differently than other people.

What do I mean? Well, I did not do my homework the day it was assigned and I did not read the books right away (or at all), for instance. In fact, I would wait until the last minute to do projects or study. Even though I took copious notes in class and really listened, I would not read the book until the weekend before the mid-term or final exam.

No big deal perhaps, except that I always felt bad, maybe even a bad student. The "right way" to study was to start early, read along the way and not cram at the end. I started late, maybe read and always crammed. My grades were not stellar but they weren't bad either.

Years after college, I learned that there is such a thing as learning styles. Mine? I'm an auditory learner. This means that I'm part of a small percentage of people that learn best through their ears. For me, I prefer that people tell me rather than make me read the information.

So I learned that I wasn't lazy! I had learned most of it through the lectures. Reading the book at the end just confirmed and added to the knowledge already acquired.

Additionally, I'm a "P" according to the Myers-Briggs assessment. All this adds up to mean that my wiring leads me to wait till the end, that I learn through my ears making reading less important and lectures my preferred way of learning.

I was relieved to learn that I wasn't a bad or lazy student but rather had a different way of learning. I wish I'd known that in college!

The Integrity of Jesus' Bones

I thought it would make for an interesting Friday post to wrap up these two weeks on integrity with a brief comment about James Cameron's documentary, "The Lost Tomb of Christ." Supposedly 10 small caskets for storing bones, called ossuaries, were discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980. The documentary claims that they may have contained Jesus' bones.

Not everyone agrees with the assessment.

An online CBS News article states that
Amos Kloner (seen in the picture), "the first archaeologist to examine the site, said the idea fails to hold up by archaeological standards but makes
for profitable television."                    (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Now here's my question, if these really are Jesus' bones found in these tombs how does that reflect on Jesus' integrity? What about the Gospel writers' integrity? They say the tomb was empty. Jesus appeared to them, and hundreds of others, post resurrection. Then Luke, in the book of Acts, reports that Jesus ascended into heaven. If it's about integrity, would you vote for Jesus and the Gospel writers? Or for the documentary? Please post your comment and we'll tally the vote. I'll add mine at the end--but I suspect you can guess what it will be!