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Milfred Minatrea is founding director of the recently launched Missional Church Center and author of Shaped By God's Heart: the Passion and Practices of Missional Churches (Jossey-Bass, 2004). Minatrea coaches churches and individuals in their quest to live God's mission, assisting them in clarifying vision and developing strategies toward His preferred future.
What does a missional church look like?
The word 'missional' is an adjective that describes the kind of church we believe God desires. A missional church is a reproducing community of authentic disciples being equipped as missionaries sent by God to live and proclaim His kingdom in their world. This description can apply to any church, regardless of location, size or worship style.
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How does a church become missional?
There is no single way to be missional; every church must find its own way in this arena. The comprehensive DNA of missional churches is expressed in three components that must converge for any church to pursue a missional posture:
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The content of the Gospel |
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The context in which the church expresses mission |
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The capacity of congregational members |
The unchanging component of those three is the Gospel--it is the biblical narrative that informs us of God's missional purpose. There are no missional churches apart from authentic disciples--"learner followers"--of Christ Jesus, who is |
revealed by the Spirit through the sacred Scriptures.
How is a missional church structured?
Missional living is about spirituality before it is about strategy or congregational structure. So, the first big issue is the reclamation of authentic discipleship. Churches must rediscover spiritual formation for missional living and develop systems for encouragement and accountability of a living faith.
Becoming a missional church is about being--being conformed to the image of God, bearing His heart--before it is about doing. Therefore, leaders must connect their congregations with . . .
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Religious Books Led the Way in 2006 Sales
The strongest growth segment in publishing last year continued to be religious books, where 263.4 million were sold. Sales of Bibles, testaments, hymnals and prayer books, however, slid 6.2 percent, to 66.2 million.
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Donations on the Rise
Donations to 65 Christian denominations rose slightly in 2005, but not enough to outpace inflation, while giving to church relief efforts was flat, states a National Council of Churches USA report. Total giving was more than $34 billion, up 2.7% over '04. Individual congregants gave an average of $713 to their churches. |
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TV Taking Its Toll
A University of Washington study found that by the age of 3 months, 40% of infants are regularly viewing TV and DVDs, rising to 90% for 2-year-olds. Far from using TV as a substitute babysitter, 29% of parents believe it made their children smarter, sometimes buying products like Baby Einstein or Brainy Baby that claim to aid an infant's cognitive development. |
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Former PepsiCo Exec Joins Leadership Network Board
Steve Reinemund, a 23-year PepsiCo veteran who led the corporation as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, has joined the Leadership Network Board.
Catalyst Conference
Leadership Network is partnering with the Catalyst Conference to offer special rates for the convergence of next generation leaders October 3-5, 2007 in Atlanta, GA. Register by July 31 to receive the exclusive partnership rate of $199 (normally $309).
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Drawing on an extensive two-year field study of 200 churches from a variety of denominations and geographic regions, Milfred Minatrea--a missiologist, urban strategist and practitioner in ministry--presents the best practices for re-energizing Christian spirituality in a congregational setting. He provides readers with the tools for assessing their congregation's position on the continuum between maintenance and mission, and for determining the actions that will move them toward becoming a missional community.
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| Visit Leadership Network Advance Archives for valuable information on a variety of ministry topics. |
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