The purpose of this guide is to assist you, the pastor and/or mission leadership, to think strategically through some foundational mission principles that will equip your church for a holistic and powerful Alabama Acts 1:8 Connections mission strategy. This guide is not intended to provide every answer nor is it designed to give you a programmatic step-by- step process, because every church and mission adventure is different. This guide is designed to provide a basic framework for a church’s mission ministries. God will provide the details and direction as you go.
The late Avery Willis, in his book, The Biblical Basis of Missions, describes Mission and Missions, on page 11:
“By Mission I mean the total redemptive purposes of God to establish his kingdom. Missions, on the other hand, is the activity of God’s people, the church, to proclaim and demonstrate the kingdom of God to the world. The word mission comes from the Latin word mitterre meaning to send. God is both the sender and the sent (in Christ). The Church is sent by God on mission and cooperates with God to send missionaries.”
Jesus gives us the mandate and the method of His Mission in the following passages of scripture. These verse are God’s marching orders for the local church to be on Mission with Him. These marching orders for the church is known as the Great Commission:
Matthew 28:19-20: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” NKJ
Acts 1:8; “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” NKJ
Questions:
1. Where do I start?
2. Is there someone who can sit down with me and coach me through a strategic mission’s process?
3. How can I have a relationship with people who care about my church’s heart?
4. How do I connect with all the SBOM mission opportunities through Alabama Acts 1:8 Connections’ mission strategy?
5. How do I connect with other SBC mission opportunities?
6. Are there resources available to help my church develop and mature its mission plan?
Lord willing, you find answers to these questions in the following pages as we in the Global Missions Office of the SBOM will guide you in discovering how your church can develop a missions plan and strategy for missions.
The resources in this guide comes experience over years of ministry. Much of the material is taken with permission from International Mission Board booklet of 30 pages entitled Make the Connection…a field guide, this guide was written several years ago and as a whole has great resources and gives sound guidance.
by Dogwood