Missional in the Suburbs: Part 8 – Missional and Steroids

I am back from vacation and trying to get re-engaged fully in what is taking place. Unfortunately with all that is going on presently with our worshipping community I never fully unplugged. Even though there was no Internet access, I had numerous phone calls last week addressing issues. So once again, I confess my sin and promise to “work on” learning how to better unplug. (That even sounds funny doesn’t it?) It is a lifelong process for me.

This past weekend in worship we were looking at the 9th in a series of messages from the book of Deuteronomy. This choice of studies was very intentional. You see, Fountain Park, as a new church, is very transitional. We are moving from a temporary location to a more semi-permanent one in this next phase in the life of our church. (Read about buildings in Part 5 of this series.) The comparisons to the nation of Israel in Deuteronomy are not difficult to make. Where the nation of Israel had lived their entire existence up to the context of the book of Deuteronomy as nomads or slaves, we have had a similar feel of being nomadic. Likewise, where the Israelites were moving into a new land we are moving. (Seeing how the people drifted from God often after arriving, I have to pray we do not follow suit on that!)

By now you are probably wondering what the heck is up with the title of this blog. Okay, here goes. Last week I was at a denominational meeting where I was giving an update on our ministry. In my explanation of what it means to be missional I, off the cuff, made a couple of statements and comparisons that rang true to me as I stated them. I repeated them this past Sunday in our worship gathering.

For many years we in the organized church have heard discussions on what was deemed “Lifestyle Evangelism.” (I have a book on my shelf by that exact title.) In the 1980’s the Christian Businessmen’s Committee did an excellent video series displaying that very theme in human characters. The basic premise of Lifestyle would be what is deemed “bloom where God has planted you.” As you live your life at work, at play, at home, etc., you should seek to be the presence of God in those locations as you seek opportunities to share your faith with others and hopefully see them come into a relationship with Jesus.

Some reading discussions on being missional could easily confuse it as just a repackaging of Lifestyle. While there is something to those comments in that it is about your everyday life, the comparisons fall short. I expressed in both the denominational meeting and the worship gathering that being missional is really lifestyle evangelism on steroids. Where lifestyle evangelism is about blooming where you are planted, being missional is seeking to have God plant you. Often that is somewhere else other than where you would normally go. It is about intentionally being involved in the community for the express purpose of being salt and light. Being missional is about getting into the lives of others where they live them not simply where you live your life.

If there is one word that would seem to make the shift seem clear for me, it would be the word “intentionality.” Being missional is being intentional about finding places to plant yourself and being Jesus for the folks you meet while there. It is taking everything up a notch.

As Fountain Park is moving worship locations, we are getting some input from those on the outside asking about the new place, how we feel about it, what is the excitement level, etc. You know . . . the usual. As I was writing some quotes for a local community magazine, I penned these words.

“This new facility is not our ‘church.’ To us, the church is the people who choose to make Fountain Park their worshipping community. We view this move as simply Phase IV in the life of the people who are Fountain Park Church.”

“The vision of Fountain Park Church is to be a missional community that would give more back to our community than we receive from it.”

“One of our goals would be to alter how folks view the church.”

I want us as a worshipping community to be intentional about how we express our faith, and where we live it. By that I am talking about finding new places to live out our faith that may or may not be where we would naturally find ourselves.

I want us to have lifestyle evangelism . . . but on steroids!