After last week I'm being forced to think

[Jon Mark Smith]

It's easy to NOT THINK, isn't it?

I can watch snow fall and not think about the damage that might come to the flowers.
I can drive my vehicle hard and not think about the damage that is being done to my tires.
I can preach "lazily" and not think about the "sleepers" in the pew.

I'm done "not thinking".

Michelle's adopted parents don't want her anymore...until I heard those words it was easy to "not think" about Michelle. Now Michelle is in a children's home and it is my/our responsibility to care for her...involve her...house her...love her.

Greg was my formerly homeless/struggling in subsidized housing friend. The relationship that Greg and I formed was a good one. It was comfy enough that I didn't realize that I had stopped thinking about Greg. He called me to ask me for a ride into Waco...I took him and dropped him off somewhere. 3 days later I realized Greg had used me to go back into his homeless lifestyle. I wasn't thinking of Greg like I should.

My church family is content to be where they've always been (at least content to do what they've always done). I've been lulled into contentment. Even though my "sermon talk" revolved around evangelistic ways and thought, my heart had been lulled to sleep in the ease of preparation of sermons and visiting of the sick and shut-in. I stopped thinking about our particular role in the broader community known as McGregor.

Won't you join me in being done "Not Thinking"?

Ask yourself where the mission of God is going to plant you today...don't be surprised when you are required to think.

[James Nored]

Jon Mark, turning non-essentials into our mission has been a problem across the brotherhood. We must turn outward!

[Jon Mark Smith]

Spot on, James.

I'm realizing that applying "mission" in McGregor is easy for me to do...but for the people in the pew, there is a sense of pleasure gained by living in the "non-essentials". Our inward focus has turned our "church drama" into our mission...so much so that the real situations and the real people aren't even on our radar.

May I just say that the 6th & Adams Radar equipment has just been plugged back in...time to see who needs us most and what we'll be willing to do in order to engage those needs.

Thanks guys!
JM

[James Nored]

Jon, it is easy to go into automatic mode, either individually or as a church. The thing about being involved in mission is that it is dynamic. It forces you to rethink things. Remember the phrase, mission is the mother of theology? Paul and the other apostles were forced to theologize as they were confronted by questions caused from reaching out. What really is the essence of the gospel? Does a person need to be circumcised? Is it wrong if they are? What about meat sacrificed to idols? What about eating with Gentiles and without dietary restrictions?

The church was confronted by these questions because they were engaged in mission. And they were forced to think about what was most important, what was tradition, and what was contrary to the gospel. So many of our conclusions have been made outside of the context of mission. Were we on mission and confronted with real situations and real people, we likely would shed many hangups and view them as being non-essential or a hindrance in the spread of the gospel.

When we start down the missional road, we don't know where it will lead!

[John Dobbs]

Good thoughts Jon. .May we never be caught not thinking!