What next?

Having spent the last five weeks exploring the length and breadth of God's mission, how would you respond to someone who said: "God's mission for his church is to preach the gospel; everything else is a waste of time and money"?

‘We cannot do everything. And there is a sense of liberation in realising that this enables us to do something, and to do it really well. It may be incomplete but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest. We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and worker. We are workers, not master builders. We are ministers, not messiahs. We are prophets of a future not our own.’ 
Oscar Romero

If you didn’t do the letter writing activity with your group, why not write one to yourself now?!

Ask yourself these three questions:

1. What has challenged you most during this course?

2. What would you most like to do differently, as an individual, because of the journey you’ve been on?

3. What can you do as a group to respond to the journey you’ve been on?

Don’t let the momentum of the last few weeks get lost, now is the time for action!
Hold your group to an action that you can all get started with.  Have a think again about the opportunities God has given you:

In each of these areas – mercy, influence, lifestyle and evangelism :

• Are there opportunities we could make more of?
• Is there something we are doing too much of?
• In what ways can we support individuals or groups involved in mission activities?
• Is there something you feel God is calling you to respond to?
• What are the issues in our locality that we should be responding to?
• Are our motives and attitudes right before God?

If there is a small group who want to carry on meeting together, put a date in the diary to meet together so you can plan together how to take further action in your community and keep this issue on the agenda of the church.

Here are some suggestions and ideas for things your group could start with

For the bookworms

Fran Beckett, et al, Rebuild: Small groups can make a difference (Crossway)

Dave Andrews, Compassionate Community Work (Piquant)