06.24.09
the journey to missional orders
“In the professional model that prevails in our churches, leadership orientation goes two ways: inwardly toward servicing multiform congregations of expressive individuals, and outwardly toward developing strategies for reaching the religious market. The model offered here also has a twofold direction.. First, the leaders call into being a covenant community; second, they direct its attention out toward their context. But the location of leadership in this process is at the front of the pointer. In other words, the leadership plays primarily an apostolic role.” Roxburgh, Missional Church (212) 1998.
I first read these words in 2001, and in the fall of that year two things occurred. First, I attended a gathering of missional leaders and thinkers from around North America (and a few from Europe). Second, I had a dream. At the time I didn’t relate the two, for a variety of reasons.
In the dream I had taken an old door.. solid wood with a beautiful grain -but old .. and painted it green. Then I hung it on a wide wall along with a raft of other paintings. The lovely grain of the wood could still be seen. In the next scene I was standing with a friend admiring the work. This friend is both apostolic and prophetic and travels the world as a healer/teacher/prophet. He looked at the door with admiration and said, “What a beautiful work of art – you could sell that for a lot of money.”
When I shared the dream with another friend who has a gift of interpretation he said, “You have found an old doorway to new life. The other paintings represent what you will find when you go through the door.”
A couple of years later I read these words in Ray Simpson’s book, Exploring Celtic Spirituality.
“Stand at the crossroads and look.
Ask for the ancient paths, and where the best road is.
Walk on it and you will live in peace.”  Jer. 6:16
About the same time I woke early one morning and was lying on my bed with my eyes shut.
Suddenly… because it was not volitional.. I saw a clock. The hands were at midnight. As I pondered what I knew was a vision I heard a voice quoting from John 4.
“The time is coming and now is, when those who worship the father must worship him in spirit and in truth.”
Two days later a magazine arrived in the mail from the Leadership Center. The header was, “Leadership in the New Millennium.”
The magazine was filled with quotes on what the new church would look like, but the heart of it for me was in these ones:
“The church in the New Millennium will be a major force in society only in as much as its leaders empower all of God’s people to do the works of the church, inside and outside its walls. When that is allowed to occur and the people take hold, they will be the evangelistic light that brings people to Christ in record numbers and Christianity will once again be the dominant force in society.” Â Sue Mallory, Executive Director, Leadership Training Network
“The church in the new Millennium will be successful to the extent that its focus is on ministry that is biblically transforming, relationally shaping and spiritually empowering.” Â Paul Magnus, President, Briercrest Family of Schools.
“The church in the new millennium will be defined through experience and relationship. Postmodern culture is looking for an experience of God, not an explanation. The future church, like the ancient, will live in the mystery of the presence of the risen Christ and demonstrate authentic community in a culture of isolation.”
Michael Slaughter.
In 2007 I attended another ALLELON gathering which was intended to initiate a missional order. That initiative has since passed away, but a similar one is being reborn within the FORGE missional training network.
Some of you who read this have been ordained in particular communities. Mostly we ordain pastors. Other types – prophetic, apostolic, poetic – typically function in a dispersed mode outside the walls of churches. Yet we have all been ordained if we know ourselves grasped by God to partner with him in accomplishing his purposes in our time.
I believe that God has called many of us to participate in a new kind of dispersed structure for discipleship and formation. This spiritual community will exist above or around existing structures as a kind of kingdom umbrella, holding us together and pushing us deeper into the life of God and his kingdom even as we share in a common mission. It will be a hybrid of old and new, and be anchored in a diversity of locations across North America. It will be an ordered dispersed community with shared practices and also unique local practices. it will be a vehicle for kingdom life and mission.
What has God called you to do? What steps are you taking to see that it comes to fruition?
“Ask for the ancient paths…”
