Pastors and Small Group Leaders
Purpose:
Connecting churches and small groups to existing and newly formed opportunities that serve as field-training for believers to live on mission, and for the unchurched to experience the life-giving grace of Jesus.
Living on mission?
Have you ever heard a mission report that included something like, “I went to serve and bless the people there, but really, God used this mission trip to change my own life.”
Have you ever noticed a difference in the lives of those who have made several of such trips?
What is it about mission trips that so dramatically impacts the lives of those who participate in them?
How did Jesus prepare his followers to turn the world upside-down?
Jesus sent them out and said, as you go, proclaim this message:
“The Kingdom of Heaven has come near.”
Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, now freely give.
Matthew 10:5-8
This is the Matthew 10 Experience.
Jesus sent His disciples out on a short-term, local mission experience, that:
- Met culturally relevant needs of the community
- Created a path for positive impact in their neighborhoods
- Allowed them to experience God’s grace moving through them
- Demonstrated the connection between tangible acts of kindness and the spiritual restoration that God offers through faith in Jesus Christ
This strategy ensured that the followers of Jesus had first-hand experience of the life-giving power of God working through them to bring restoration to others.
This exercise formed the foundation for their perspective on their own role in God’s plan.