In This Issue: Resource reviews for October
- BOOK: Kingdom Journeys
- BOOKLET: Praying for Missionaries
- MANUAL: Mobile Ministry Made Easy
- BOOK: A Heart for the Community
- BIBLES: Two New Study Bibles for the Mission-minded
- EVENTS: Conferences and Training
Missions Catalyst is a free, weekly electronic digest of mission news and resources designed to inspire and equip Christians worldwide for global ministry. Use it to fuel your prayers, find tips and opportunities, and stay in touch with how God is building his kingdom all over the world. Please share it freely!
BOOK: Kingdom Journeys
» Source: Seth Barnes
Kingdom Journeys: Rediscovering the Lost Spiritual Discipline, by Seth Barnes. Ashland Press, 2012, 250 pages.
Jesus called his disciples to follow him on a spiritual journey, but also a physical one. Seth Barnes asserts that there’s something missing from a typical list of spiritual practices and disciplines. We’ve forgotten about pilgrimage. Kingdom Journeys promotes embracing “the gift of restlessness,” following a call to leave everything behind to go on a literal journey with God. It tells the stories of people, especially youth, who saw their lives transformed by mission trips and other faith-stretching adventures.
Discussion of ministry strategy or outcomes in this book is limited. The author explains, “A kingdom journey is usually more about your own internal growth than the outward good you do. Of course, there is a balance here – you’re the primary beneficiary of the journey, but the journey shows that you aren’t the center of the universe. What you do – otherwise known as ‘ministry’ – teaches you that others have needs greater than you do. It helps put God in the driver’s seat and compels you to go to him for answers to your questions and process.”
Seth Barnes is the founder of Adventures in Missions, a discipleship-oriented mission organization. Stories in Kingdom Journeys include but are not limited to those of participants in AIM’s unusual 11-month program, The World Race.
» Learn more, read reviews, or purchase the Kindle edition from Amazon for just US$2.99 or get the paper edition for US$13.99.
» See also: Adventures in Missions Sends its 100,000th Volunteer.
BOOKLET: Praying for Missionaries
» Source: Eddie Arthur
Ever struggle with knowing how to pray for the missionaries you know or hear from? When Jesus’ disciples struggled to know how best to pray, he taught them a short prayer which has become very familiar to all of his followers. Praying for Missionaries picks up on the themes of the Lord’s Prayer and suggests ways in which they could be used to pray for your missionary friends.
This short booklet is written by Eddie Arthur, Director of Wycliffe Bible Translators UK. Use it for your prayers or pass it to those who pray for you.
» Download the PDF (free) or get the Kindle version for US$.99.
» Looking for engaging (but relatively simple) tools to mobilize prayer for your work or the people and place you serve? Check out this virtual prayer walk from pray4bulgaria. Could you make one like that?
MANUAL: Mobile Ministry Made Easy
» Source: Mobile Advance
Would you like to incorporate mobile devices into your overall ministry strategy? Do you want to distribute evangelistic videos or audio Bible stories to many people, or just sent prayer points, daily verses, or notes of encouragement to those you disciple?
Mobile Ministry Made Easy: A Simple Guide is a free, 40-page manual with advice, ideas, and case studies for mission-minded people worldwide, even those who may not have sophisticated technical skills or resources. Produced by the Southern Baptist International Mission Board with input from other ministries, and very nicely presented.
» Download the 1.4 MB manual from Mobile Advance (a ministry of WEC International).
» Readers might also be interested in the Mobile Ministry Forum Consultation planned for Orlando, November 28-30. It’s built around “a common vision to see every unreached person given an opportunity to encounter Christ and his kingdom in a compelling, contextualized fashion through their personal mobile device by the end of 2020.”
BOOK: A Heart for the Community
» Source: Moody Publishers
A Heart for the Community: New Models for Urban and Suburban Ministry, edited by John Fuder and Noel Castellanos, Moody Publishers, 2012. 496 pages.
“Islam, gentrification, AIDS, and multiculturalism: Where do we face these realities? A few years ago, it was in the city. But today, many city dwellers are moving to the suburbs, either by choice or because of circumstances beyond their control. And this shift is changing both the urban and suburban landscape. With this shift in mind, editors John Fuder and Noel Castellanos have gathered together a team of experts to help you minister effectively in both the urban and suburban context. Sections explore critical issues, church-planting models, suburban needs, and parachurch ministries.”
The book, essentially a sequel to the 1999 A Heart for the City, is focused on Chicago and its suburbs – though articles are intended to be of use for people who want to reach cities across North America and beyond. It was published in partnership between Moody Publishers, Moody Bible Institute, and the Christian Community Development Association.
» Purchase from Christian Book Distributors for US$19.99.
» Other new books that caught my eye include The Global Orphan Crisis (Dianne Elliot) and Dreams and Visions: Is Jesus Awakening the Muslim World? (Tom Doyle). Read either one? Would love to hear what you think.
BIBLES: Two New Study Bibles for the Mission-minded
This year saw two new study Bibles with articles that focus on issues related to global outreach:
Lifeway’s Mission of God Study Bible is designed to encourage followers of Christ to see their everyday life from God’s perspective and have his heart for people. In addition to the scriptures themselves, it includes more than 150 writings from top thinkers, theologians, and leading voices in the contemporary church about what it means to live in the mission of God.
Crossway’s ESV Global Study Bible is a one-volume study resource for globally minded Christians everywhere. Introductions describe the global message of each book. The editors also commissioned articles from Christian leaders around the world that apply the Bible to global issues such as the role of government, the nature of the church, world religions, social ethics, and missions and evangelism. Each print copy comes with free access to an online version. For every one purchased, a digital version is sent to a Christian overseas.
» Interested in who has access to Bibles in their own language? Check out the 2012 scripture access statistics (Wycliffe Global Alliance).
EVENTS: Conferences and Training
» Source: Missions Catalyst Calendar
Some events planned for November:
November 1: Partnership and Resources in Church Planting (online). Missio Nexus webinar with Craig Ott.
November 1: Interchange 2012 (Denver, CO, USA). One-day event for mission mobilizers and church mission leaders, provided by Catalyst Services.
November 1-3: Oasis (Nashville, TN, USA). Annual conference for Christians reaching out to Muslims in North America. Provided by Crescent Project.
November 1-4: Tentmaking Business as Mission course (Kortal, Germany). Use your profession or business skills to reach cross culturally. Provided by Global Opportunities.
November 2: Sending New Missionaries – What Role Will You Play? (Denver, CO, USA). Workshop provided by Catalyst Services and designed for church mission committees.
November 2-3: Help! We’re Going on a Short-term Trip (Downington, PA, USA). Seminar provided by CULTURELink.
November 2-3: Mission Catalyst Inland Northwest (Spokane, WA, USA). Free, community-based mission conference in the Missions Fest tradition.
November 4: International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (global). Note: Some Christians, including many in the USA, will this event on November 11.
November 7-9: Ibero-American Mission Summit (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic). Sponsored by COMIBAM International, following International Assembly in the same city November 5-7.
November 8: Inner Life of a Church Planter (online). Missio Nexus webinar with Gentry McColm.
November 8-10: Global Missions Health Conference (Louisville, KY, USA).
November 13-15: Pioneers Church Partner Forum (Orlando, FL, USA). Agency connection point for US-based pastors and church leaders.
November 15: 2012 Christian Intercultural Report (online). Missio Nexus webinar with Doug Wilson.
November 15-16: Personal Support Raising Boot Camp (Los Angeles, CA, USA). From Support Raising Solutions.
November 15-18: International Conference on Missions (Indianapolis, IN, USA). Formerly the National Missionary Convention.
November 16-18: The Journey Deepens retreat (Tyrone, GA, USA). Sense God is calling you into missions? Need help discerning direction?
November 27 to December 1: Ethne2012 (Seoul, South Korea).
November 28: Interchange 2012 (Philadelphia, PA, USA). One-day event for mission mobilizers and church mission leaders, provided by Catalyst Services.
November 28 to December 1: Personnel Conference (Rockville, VA, USA). An annual event for mission agency leaders from Missio Nexus.
November 28-30: Mobile Ministry Forum Consultation (Orlando, FL, USA).
November 29: Sending New Missionaries – What Role Will You Play? (Southhampton, PA, USA). Provided by Catalyst Services and designed for church mission committees.
» View the complete calendar and/or let us know about events.
Marti Wade is a writer, speaker, and project manager for the Church Partnerships Team at Pioneers. As a mission mobilizer, she has also trained and sent out many short-term teams to do relationship-based research to serve among the world’s least-reached peoples.
Marti has managed and published Missions Catalyst since 2004 and is the author of Through Her Eyes, a book about the lives of women serving cross-culturally in the Muslim world. She and her husband Chris live in Oregon.