Have you ever been in a situation where as a congregation you have felt a burst of mission energy, but then experienced restraint or even a blockage, and sense someone or something else is controlling your mission?
As Christian congregations we have two major mission callings to go and make disciples (Matthew 28:19-20) and to invite people to come see God at work (John 4:29)!!!
Now what gets in the road of these two callings?
Think about this in relation to:
Yourself.........Do you try to control the mission and want everything to go your way? Perhaps you create or maintain a few obstacles to mission.....What perceptions, attitudes and understandings may you have, that prevents you from going and making disciples and inviting others to come and see what God is doing? What is your attitude to your current congregation and denomination?
Congregation.........Are there gatekeepers, structures, individuals, physical resources, attitudes, procedures or history controlling your mission? What obstacles as a result of your congregation's action or inaction that hinder mission?
Your denomination or denomination leaders.....Unfortunately some aspects of denominations can hinder mission and even some leaders may inadvertantly hinder God's mission for your congregation because of the various other matters that fight for their attention or they haven't understood what is needed for mission in your context...Are there principles, processes, restrictions, history, policies, thinking or even precedents that they are holding on to that have a negative affect on your congregation's mission?
What obstacles does your community have in place for you and your congregation that get in the road of you making disciples and inviting others to come and see God at work?....
It is good to identify these obstacles, pray about them, pray and research about how you respond to them and then deal with them.
Dealing with them may mean getting rid of them....
but more often than not dealing with them will involve looking at alternatives and continuing to go and make and invite people to come and see God despite the obstacles around us....
Take a close look at the early church as exposed to us through the New Testament....there were many obstacles, yet people continued to share and teach God's Word and guess what......the church grew.
Remember that the mission you are involved in is really God's mission, and God has power over the heavens and earth!!! (Luke 10:21
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