Mission Leader

Since December 14, 2008 Pastor Kelvin Bowen and myself have been working together as black and white pastors in a new church plant. Kelvin is the senior  pastor and I’m his associate.  Both of us came together having worked on two separate church starts, but after prayer and soul-searching, God showed us that we had the opportunity to do something unique together in the city where Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated.  God has drawn together a core group of about a half dozen white folk and about 2 dozen black folks. Each Sunday we will have from 40 to 60 in attendance and each week is a great blessing.

Since December 14, my visual, social, and spiritual perspective has undergone a transformation.  For example:

• I can’t figure out why there aren’t more white folks that are serious about doing church as one with African Americans.
• Congregations and even denominations have been divided over style – yet styles of music and worship, even style of preaching and style of church administration just doesn’t seem so important any more.
• Tradition is being redefined.  It’s hard to talk about traditional church since there are so many different definitions of ‘tradition.’ To think that people are church shopping to find their preferred tradition or style of preaching and music. So, we have each had to learn to adapt to styles of preaching, fellowship, worship, and polity that are a blend of each of our traditions.
• Fellowship is deep.  I’m too accustomed to lots of shallow relationships in church.  Amazingly people of different cultures are growing increasingly in unity.   The bond of love is strengthening each day.
• Vision is expanding. Surprisingly, our view of our city and the world changes when we worship and work and fellowship as a multicultural body.

Since December 14, I have grown shockingly aware of the fact that nearly all the Church Planting, or Church leadership, or Mission conferences that I frequent are dominated by one race or another. The speakers and the participants are 99% from one race with only a token representation from another culture.  It’s strange that I didn’t notice this church and conference segregation until the body of believers with whom I am one, has changed my daily perspective.

So what’s the solution?  I’m asking the Lord.  Lord what is the solution?

What’s God telling you? How can the body become one?

Over the last few years, Pastors and Staff and other mission leaders have repeatedly asked me, “How do you build a local church mission strategy?”  Over the years I’ve refused to give plug and play pat answers, believing that every local church must go through a healthy biblical process of developing their unique local church strategy.

So, if you want to know what that process is, you can download it from the resource page.

Here it is – for what its worth.

It grows out of 14 years of field missionary experience and 10 years of experience working within local churches, including Saddleback, as well as church planting and serving in the mega church and house church world.  Quite a contrast of experiences.  Currently I am associate pastor in a multi-cultural church in Memphis as well as working in mission mobilization with the IMB.

Nevertheless, all of those experiences have shaped the attached tool which articulates what I’ve found to be a healthy biblical process for discovering your unique local church strategy and systems.

I pray that its a helpful resource for you.

Mission Leader Coaching Guide