Good morning, friends!
    If you’ve had a chance to read or browse through my main blog, you may have picked up that I’ve had an increasing passion to live ‘missionally.’  To me, living missionally is about our ‘doing’ flowing from our ‘being.’  Who I am and who I am becoming in Jesus Christ affects what I do for Him.  Additionally, I believe that to be ‘missional’ one must understand that all followers of Christ are ‘sent.’  In John 20:21 Jesus says plainly, “…As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.”  Of course where we are sent is different with every follower of Jesus.  Some are sent to other parts of the world, some are sent simply across the street to their neighbor.  But we all are ‘sent’ on behalf of Jesus and God’s ongoing mission.
    We also understand this ‘sentness’ in the context of community.  Most people who know me understand that I treasure relationships.  As I write, it’s early morning here, and I’m having my first big cup of Seattle Mountain Blend coffee made from beans that we purchased from Costco on the north side of Indy.  I hope in this next year that I have the privilege of sharing many cups of coffee across the table from you.  Sharing life in community is one of my most favorite things about life in Jesus, especially when it is over a good ‘cup of joe.’
    So, I’m studying and learning and seeking to know all I can about God’s mission, and how as a follower of Jesus I can live missionally within the context of community.
    Dr. Charles Van Engen identifies ‘communities’ or spheres of missional influence as being the place where any particular congregation may be able to reach through boundaries with the good news of Jesus Christ.  (Communities are “specific subsets of groups of people with whom the members of the congregation are in contact through specific pathways of relationships.  In other words, a church should ask:  “Who is out there that Jesus wants us to reach?).
    Dr. Van Engen suggests six types of communities through which members of a church can reach out with the Good News:  Geographic Community:  This community includes people who live near the meeting place.  Program Community:  This community identifies the people who are reached through programs such as ESL, Daycare/preschool, etc.  Relational Community:  This is the biggest of the communities, and is based upon the study by Donald McGavran, in his work Bridges of God.  The idea is that all human relationships serve as bridges:  family relationships, work relationships, etc.  Dr. Van Engen says that during an average week, each adult in a congregation connects in some way with between 75-100 people.  The potential is significant, when one considers how many adults attend a given church.  Nearly 90% of all new members in a church who remain within the church after a period of 5 years cite some relationship (friendship, family, etc) as key along with the invitation.  This is an effective missional ‘bridge’ that minimizes expense and maximizes a local church’s outreach potential for Jesus.
    The Newcomer Community includes people who have just moved into a local area, neighborhood or city.  These people may be open to forming relationships for a year or more.  A church could work with local governments and other agencies to be a point of first contact for these people.  Prayer Community:  This circle of influence crosses any barrier because it includes all of the people for whom an individual or group prays.  Lastly, the International Community, which would include members of an area who have come to the location from another country or are part of a particular ethnic group, or perhaps are actually in another country.  These people represent significant opportunity for world evangelization because they are a ‘bridge’ back into their culture/world.
    These are interesting and important thoughts to me, and I wanted to share them with you this morning (or today, depending upon when you read this.)  It seems to me that the idea of ‘mission’ and ‘community’ have been a very central part of Lakeside’s history.
    I’m praying for you!