Traditional Church, Plus One
Mark Tidsworth, Pinnacle Team Leader
The Dream = Every traditional church adds a worshipping missional community
Why?
Because the primary call of God’s Church is to go and make disciples of all people.
Because there are so many in our community who are not responding to existing church paradigms, including contemporary, traditional, denominationally-based, independent, or any other current expression of church.
Because when we engage Jesus Christ, the missional impulse in us is charged and we can’t deny our desire to reach out to our neighbors.
Because living in the Way of Jesus is beautiful, a way of life to be shared.
What do we mean?
We love to work with churches; churches of all shapes, sizes, and expressions, appreciating the variety.
We also recognize the need for more expressions of church.
There are people in every community for whom current churches would help open the doors to God, were those current churches to connect with them. Perhaps now is a good time to pray for the eyes to see and the ears to hear how your church can connect with them; sharing the good news of the gospel.
There are also numerous other people in every community who will never engage with current expressions of church for so many different reasons. How shall we in the Christian Movement, relate to this recognition?
The Dream = Every traditional church adds a worshipping missional community
Many churches think of themselves as missional; rightly so. They are feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and visiting the imprisoned. Yet many also have a huge gap in their mission. In an effort to be respectful and avoid being obnoxious Christians, they steer clear of faith-based engagement with their neighbors. They are simply silent when it comes to addressing the spiritual needs of their community.
Worshipping missional communities combine Matthew 25 love with Mathew 28 love.
Worshipping missional communities are about loving the whole person, including one’s spirit.
Worshipping missional communities are new/old ways to engage our communities with the love of Jesus Christ (remember Celtic Evangelism of the 600s AD?).
“Missional communities are spiritual and relational outposts for those that cannot or will not participate in a traditional expression of church.”
The Episcopal Diocese of Texas, watch the Missional Communities video.
Now there are so many examples of worshipping missional communities rising up as we speak. Here are a few examples for starters:
Dinner Church – Thanks to missioner Michael Frost for gathering these examples from multiple countries into one blog post Dinner Church, anyone?
microchurches (a smaller way), Brian Sanders, UNDERGROUND Media, 2019. Remember the sage advice to never refer to a book until you know exactly what’s in it? Well, I’m violating that wisdom today, having read only the first 2 chapters. I’m not sure about the theological nuances here, but the concept of microchurches is fascinating appealing on many levels – low expense plus high payoff in particular.
The Episcopal Diocese of Texas – Perhaps there’s a denominational body which is more “all in” to missional communities than this one, but if so, I’ve not found it yet. There’s so much to learn from the brief videos and content on their website.
Traditional Satellite Churches – These are the more traditional route to establishing missional communities, including greater expense and effort. We are working with some of these churches and can put you in touch with them if you would like to explore.
Non-Traditional Satellite Churches – Most satellite church models are nearly exact replications of the original church. There are a few who establish satellites who are very different than their original imprint. We can put you in touch with this expression of church to learn more.
Ready yet?
Sure, this raises questions for church-as-we-have-known-it.
But here’s the invitation….God continues to create, giving new life. Do we want to miss out on Holy Spirit movement because we don’t have all the answers even before we start exploring?
Interested in learning more? So are we.
We are considering launching a “Plus One Learning Community,” people interested in learning about and looking into this worshipping missional community movement. Contact us if interested.
Who knows? Perhaps the dream will take shape, one new worshipping missional community at a time.
The Dream = Every traditional church adds a worshipping missional community