{"id":2123,"date":"2011-03-09T01:05:14","date_gmt":"2011-03-09T07:05:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/?p=2123"},"modified":"2011-03-08T16:11:53","modified_gmt":"2011-03-08T22:11:53","slug":"missions-catalyst-03-09-11-practical-mobilization","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/?p=2123","title":{"rendered":"Missions Catalyst 03.09.11 &#8211; Practical Mobilization"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>In This Issue: The Seven Deadly Sins of a Mobilizer (The Rest of the List)<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>We dishonor those who don\u2019t go.<\/li>\n<li>We prioritize ministry over family, and even God.<\/li>\n<li>We talk about it, but don&#8217;t do it.<\/li>\n<li>Bonus sin: exaggeration.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.missionscatalyst.org\/\"><!--more-->Missions Catalyst<\/a> 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   forward it   freely!<\/p>\n<h3>The Seven Deadly Sins of a Mobilizer: The Rest of the List<\/h3>\n<p>By <a href=\"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/?page_id=610\">Shane Bennett<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In the <a href=\"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/?p=2108\">last Practical Mobilization column<\/a>, I laid out the first four of seven deadly sins of mobilizers.<\/p>\n<p>1. Arrogance.<\/p>\n<p>2. I know God loves my stuff best.<\/p>\n<p>3. Info-vomit.<\/p>\n<p>4. Look on the outside, miss the heart.<\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t know about you, but it made me glad that grace abounds. Come to think of it, I do know about some of you, because you wrote and said, \u201couch!\u201d or something similar.<\/p>\n<p>Well, we have three to go. And these are personal. So firm up your resolve and let\u2019s plow into them.<\/p>\n<p><strong>5. We dishonor those who don\u2019t go.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In an effort to call forth the apostles who will lead teams to the most under-evangelized peoples on the planet, I can imply that such people are the real stars on God\u2019s team.<\/p>\n<p>Of course I think they are stars. That\u2019s not really the problem. The problem comes with the logical conclusion that if the goers are the stars, the rest are scrubs. Obviously they\u2019re not. God uses all kinds of people in all kinds of ways in all sorts of places.<\/p>\n<p>One night a few years ago the need to honor <a href=\"http:\/\/www.omf.org\/omf\/us\/get_involved__1\/6_ways_to_reach_god_s_world\/send_video\">senders<\/a> hit me like a ton of bricks. (I might add, it should have hit me every month of the past 23 years I\u2019ve been raising support from faithful senders around the globe!) On this particular night, I was facilitating the \u201cSender\u201d table for the final lesson of a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.perspectives.org\">Perspectives<\/a> course. The leader had divided the class into groups according to what they perceived was their role in missions. The mighty sending juggernaut, which consisted of me and two other people, looked over at the \u201cgoer\u201d table: They couldn\u2019t all fit up to their table, but were stacked two deep in most places. Fourteen of them. Three of us. Long odds indeed. Unless we were <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/S._Truett_Cathy\">Truett Cathy<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.tulsaworld.com\/business\/article.aspx?subjectid=51&amp;articleid=20101209_13_0_NEWYOR573898\">Dennis and Barbara Green<\/a>, we were sunk! How could we do all that sending on our own?<\/p>\n<p>So I\u2019ve endeavored to say frequently and vigorously that the opportunities to participate in God\u2019s purposes for the planet are as varied and diverse as we are. But sometimes I blow it. Just recently my pastor asked me about a comment I\u2019d made: \u201cWere you saying that it\u2019s always a better idea to live overseas? I don\u2019t really think you believe that, but that\u2019s what it sounded like.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I am concerned that far too often I may sound that way to too many ears. Maybe you do too. Will you join me in redoubling our efforts to honor all the ways God chooses to use the likes of you and me?<\/p>\n<p><strong>6. We prioritize ministry over family, and even God.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I could regale you with stories of my guilt, but I thought it might add a ring of authenticity to let my dear wife Ann chime in for a minute:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere have been times in our 18 years of marriage that it really felt like the kids and I took a back seat to Shane\u2019s mobilization work. I didn\u2019t like it, but felt like \u2018who was I to argue with God?\u2019 Shane would be out traveling and speaking, and I was home changing diapers. Then when he would get home, he\u2019d have other work to catch up on. It was challenging. As the kids have gotten older, it\u2019s become a little easier, but there are still times. In fact, just a few days ago he came home from a long trip but had several meetings to attend and a sermon to prepare for the next Sunday. I had a hammer in my hand that I wanted him to use on a house project, but I also kinda wanted to use it on him!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t need to tell you the bad things that can happen when you neglect your tribe. And this is not just for professional mobilizers. If you\u2019re doing your day job and then logging several hours on your mob passion, living life with a cell phone to your ear, setting up the missions conference, and coordinating Perspectives &#8211; while the kids grow up and move away &#8211; you might miss some good stuff. May God give us grace to righteously balance both the families and the ministries he\u2019s given us.<\/p>\n<p>And when, as unbelievable as it sounds, we put our work for God ahead of God, may he gently remind us of Martha and Mary and Jesus. In <a href=\"http:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search=Luke+10%3A38-42&amp;version=NIV\">Luke 10<\/a> Martha\u2019s hustling the baklava and chai, getting increasingly annoyed with sister Mary at the feet of Jesus. Finally she snaps, and in a tone, I presume, one shouldn\u2019t take with the Son of God, she demands, \u201cJesus, tell her to help me!\u201d So Jesus replies, \u201cMartha, you\u2019re so busy and caught up in your serving. I like the baklava and all, but really Mary has chosen the better thing. I\u2019m not going to take it away from her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>May we likewise choose the better way.<\/p>\n<p><strong>7. We talk about it, but don&#8217;t do it.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>At the (admittedly fun) risk of stirring up undue <a href=\"http:\/\/onfaith.washingtonpost.com\/onfaith\/guestvoices\/2011\/03\/evangelicals_take_to_twitter_to_debate_the_doctrine_of_hell.html\">controversy<\/a>, can I share one of my favorite <a href=\"http:\/\/www.robbell.com\">Rob Bell<\/a> quotes? At a conference for church leaders, he asked, \u201cPastors, are you smoking what you\u2019re selling?\u201d Translated into non-drug-culture vernacular: \u201cAre you believing and acting on the stuff that you\u2019re preaching?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a good question for mobilizers. Someone (probably a lot of someones) has said, \u201cA good mobilizer would rather be a goer.\u201d I don\u2019t know if I agree with that. Some mobilizers simply have a good handle on what God\u2019s asking them to do. If they went overseas, it would be a real and true example of Dr.Ralph Winter\u2019s perennial tease when people from the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.uscwm.org\">U.S. Center for World Mission<\/a> left to be missionaries: \u201cThey\u2019ve lost the vision and gone to the field.\u201d Many mobilizers stay in their home culture because it\u2019s what God is asking of them.<\/p>\n<p>That being true, if we try to mobilize people to what we\u2019re unwilling to do ourselves, we may be on thin ice. How can we encourage others to engage Muslims, if we\u2019re afraid of them ourselves? Or more personally, what business do I have asking believers to pray for the nations when my own prayers rarely venture beyond my wife, kids, friends, and church?<\/p>\n<p>Most smart people have a built-in \u201cbaloney meter.\u201d When your feet don\u2019t match your mouth, they know it. Your opportunity to influence will drop off like church attendance during a series on stewardship.<\/p>\n<p>We can\u2019t do everything, but we\u2019ve got to be willing to do the stuff we ask others to do. And it wouldn\u2019t hurt to actually do some of it. Here\u2019s an easy one if you need an idea: Invite an international student or two over for Easter dinner. Tell them the story of the holiday. They would likely do this for you if you were in their city on an important day. This will also earn you a sweet basketful of credibility for when you encourage your people to invite international students over next Thanksgiving.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Bonus sin: Exaggeration.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I could have listed a hundred more sins, but that would have been the worst thing ever. Get it? Too often we swing for the fence by stretching the statistic or embellishing the story. Remembering the \u201cbaloney meter,\u201d I want to simply stick to the truth. Really, most of our statistics are potent even ratcheted down an order of magnitude! And there are stories so powerful in their bare facts that they need get no taller in the telling. <a href=\"http:\/\/shane.posterous.com\/granny-brand-how-to-live-your-life-all-the-wa\">Granny Brand<\/a> is my latest favorite example of this. She\u2019s also my new hero.<\/p>\n<p>Thanks again for wading through these issues with me. Welcome back next month when I\u2019ll write about \u201cThe Eight Really Cool Things about Mobilizers that Make God and Other People Really Like Them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Until then, take issue with this list or add to it on our website.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"mailto:shanebennett@takeitglobal.org\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1026\" title=\"ShaneBennett\" src=\"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/ShaneBennett1-201x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"124\" height=\"184\" \/>Shane Bennett<\/a> has served in missions mobilization since 1987, much of his energy  going to recruiting, training, and sending short-term teams. He\u2019s been  on research teams in Bangkok, Bombay and Turkey. He coauthored <a href=\"http:\/\/r20.rs6.net\/tn.jsp?llr=zaeaz4bab&amp;et=1104439231559&amp;s=0&amp;e=001JFwnltQYuyiHt6lM0XjZzUjW5YeT8DY3EuTsut0M7XjT_LltRp1EDaeDHgC-9vV0yc3IprbKAOo0U4fI50Wo776bejR1s9k1WXUFv3byNIQ8D10Y1wQgs0wAQKdS8xDAbkFs-0xcxpjEn6XR9yHuwA==\" target=\"_blank\">Exploring the Land<\/a>, a guide to researching unreached peoples, and has written numerous articles.<\/p>\n<p>Shane now works as a public speaker for <a href=\"http:\/\/r20.rs6.net\/tn.jsp?llr=zaeaz4bab&amp;et=1104439231559&amp;s=0&amp;e=001JFwnltQYuyiHt6lM0XjZzUjW5YeT8DY3EuTsut0M7XjT_LltRp1EDaeDHgC-9vV0yc3IprbKAOqFuy_XASOJW4fCx73EpAEJrrSU4Rt8gOc=\" target=\"new\">Frontiers<\/a> and is part-time missions pastor at <a href=\"http:\/\/r20.rs6.net\/tn.jsp?llr=zaeaz4bab&amp;et=1104439231559&amp;s=0&amp;e=001JFwnltQYuyiHt6lM0XjZzUjW5YeT8DY3EuTsut0M7XjT_LltRp1EDaeDHgC-9vV0yc3IprbKAOq2-qmYMjTRt-RLT1ZacP3VheWspMqhMr8=\" target=\"_blank\">Union Chapel<\/a>. He and his wife, Ann, have five school-aged children. They live and work in Indiana.<br \/>\n<!-- AddToAny BEGIN --><br \/>\n<a class=\"a2a_dd\" href=\"http:\/\/www.addtoany.com\/share_save?linkurl=http%3A%2F%2Fmissionscatalyst.net%2F%3Fp%3D2123&amp;linkname=\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/static.addtoany.com\/buttons\/share_save_171_16.png\" border=\"0\" alt=\"Share\" width=\"171\" height=\"16\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\"><\/script><br \/>\n<!-- AddToAny END --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In This Issue: The Seven Deadly Sins of a Mobilizer (The Rest of the List) We dishonor those who don\u2019t go. We prioritize ministry over family, and even God. We talk about it, but don&#8217;t do it. Bonus sin: exaggeration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2123","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-practical-mobilization"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2123","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2123"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2123\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2125,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2123\/revisions\/2125"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2123"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2123"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/missionscatalyst.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2123"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}