I Did it Backwards: Walking with Jesus in Mission (Part 1)
[This blog is taken from a series of meditations on love, discernment, suffering and peace. The author, Fran Love, prepared this guide for a retreat of denominational mission leaders in the U.S. We include her introduction but have not kept all the practices that were included in the original guide. This is Part 1 of a two-part blog.]
“One day Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and John baptized him in the Jordan River. As Jesus came up out of the water, he saw the heavens splitting apart and the Holy Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice from heaven said, ‘You are my dearly loved Son, and you bring me great joy.’ The Spirit then compelled Jesus to go into the wilderness, where he was tempted by Satan for forty days. He was out among the wild animals, and angels took care of him. Later on, after John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee, where he preached God’s Good News. ‘The time promised by God has come at last!’ he announced. ‘The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!’ One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. Jesus called out to them, ‘Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!’ And they left their nets at once and followed him” (Mark 1:9-18 New Living Translation).
For Jesus, identity and acceptance came before achievement and ministry: "You are my Son. I love you very much. You bring me great joy." Graced as he was with such affirmation, Jesus was able to face the suffering that came in the wilderness temptations, invite people to experience the joy of the good news of the kingdom, and confidently choose a group of ordinary people to be part of his team.
In 1984 our local church in California sent my husband and me to a country in Southeast Asia to do church planting.
I didn't do it like Jesus. I did it backwards.
First, I went prepared with our strategy, outlining how we would plant the church and how we would work as a team – a team, I might add, who would join us later.
Then, I learned the language and shared the good news of Jesus. The successes of ministry - and we had many - expanded my external world, but internally I was becoming increasingly aware of the surprising emptiness of my soul.
Next, I found myself in the wilderness, compelled to go there by the Holy Spirit. God showed me in the darkness of my failures things I was unable to see in the light of my successes.
Finally, I began to find my way back home to God's love. This journey progressed slowly.
Healing began with the realization that I had made mission strategy my starting block and mission success my finish line. I had to repent.
In countless conversations with missionaries, church planters and leaders (and from my own experience), I have identified four soul conditions that significantly impact ministry.
One, we struggle to abide in God's love.
Two, we lack discernment about our priorities because we don't acknowledge our desires and longings.
Three, we are surprised by suffering.
And four, we don't walk in peace because we are chronically anxious.
This guide reflects what I continue to learn from my backwards journey in mission. But more significantly, it reflects four aspects of Jesus' mission and what it might mean for us to experience his mission as our own.
[Note: Fran’s guide offers scripture meditations, reflection questions, prayers, and suggested practices based on the four “soul conditions” that she mentions. We have abbreviated the guide to include just one practice for each of these four themes. We share practices for two themes below and will share practices for two more themes in our next blog. We encourage you not to rush these practices. If you are reading this blog during a busy stretch of your day, come back when you have more time for quiet and reflection.
In her guide, Fran notes that she draws significantly from the contemplative tradition. She writes, “The contemplative tradition is rich in practices that foster the direct experience of God's love. We serve out of our own personal relationship with Christ. Yet it is difficult to nurture our relational bonds with God when our work consumes every day. There is a toll to our toiling. Contemplative practices, I believe, counter this tendency by slowing us down and by strengthening our experiential and emotional connection to God's love, to the truths of Scripture and to one another.”]
Theme One: Jesus Knew the Father's Love
“Define yourself radically as one beloved by God.” (Brennan Manning)
Jesus knew the Father's love as God's sent-one. Who sends us, and what practices help keep us in God's love?
Practice: Reflection on Jesus' Prayer (John 17:22-26). Take your time reflecting on Jesus' prayer. You don't have to answer each question. Simply stop whenever you sense God's presence and his love. Linger there. Soak in his love. The goal is to read for transformation not just information.
Read several times Jesus' prayer. Sometimes it helps to use multiple translations.
Imagine Jesus praying this for your team, church, family, partnership. Pause and reflect on how you feel about this and what this means to you.
Say to yourself, "The Father loves me as he loves the Son and he has sent the Spirit to pour this love into my heart." Talk with God about whatever thoughts and feelings rise in you.
How might expressing this love over others impact the way you pray for them? Change the way you think about ministry and do ministry? Jude says, "Keep yourself in the love of God" (verse 21). Where and when have you most kept yourself in God's love? Who helps you do this?
Theme Two: Jesus Lived Out the Purpose for Which He was Sent
Holiness is made in daily-ness. (Joan Chittister)
Jesus understood who he was and the purpose for which he was sent. What practices help us discern our purposes for ministry so that we can honestly say that our desire is to be with Jesus, to know him, to share his values and model his mission?
“And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him” (Acts 10:38).
Daily, Jesus demonstrated the fullness of the love he had with his Father. He showed remarkable self-awareness of how his calling as the sent-one would be worked out in daily life. The statements below show Jesus' understanding of who he is and why he came.
Practice: Discerning ministry based on Jesus' purpose statements. Reflection and prayer on these self-revelations of Jesus can give us discernment about our own mission priorities and motives.
I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners (Mark 2:1).
I have come not to be served, but to serve others and to give my life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).
I have come to seek and save those who are lost (Luke 19:10).
I have come to go to other towns as well and to preach to them too (Mark 1:38).
I have come to set the world on fire and how distressed I am until it is accomplished (Luke 12:49).
I have come that you may have life and have it to the full (John 10:10).
I have come as a light to shine in this dark world so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark (John 12:46).
I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will. And this is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those he has given me (John 6:38).
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free (Luke 4:18-19).
I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again (John 6:35).
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep (John 10:11).
I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep and my sheep know me (John 10:14).
I have told you these things so you would be filled with my joy (John 15:11).
I have told you these things so that you won't abandon your faith (John 16:1).
I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me (John 16:33).
Take your time prayerfully reading the list above. If it helps, use the questions below as a reflection guide. Stay with the statement or question where you sense Jesus working, even if the statement disturbs you in some way.
Keep asking "Jesus, is there more you want to show me about your life and ministry." Or, "Is there more you want to show me about my life and ministry?" Wait quietly, with no anxiety, to see if there is more you will receive from him.
What is Jesus offering you - not your church, your team, your family - but you? It's easy to direct Jesus' statements towards others. Make them personal. For example, how does he serve you? What does this mean for you?
Now turn to your life and work. What is Jesus saying about them? If you can, picture Jesus standing in those situations or speaking into them. What do you see? Hear? How might knowing this change the way you pray for yourself and others? Impact the way you live life and do ministry?