What is a Missional Community?  

Missional Communities are sensitive. My name is Jon. Let me tell you about George, my friend, at work. George is a person I have been praying for for a long time. I have been asking God for an opportunity to reach George for Christ. Why do you think many people like George don't respond to invitations to attend a worship service? I think it is because worship, to someone like George, is foreign. It's scary. If George were to take the leap, and cross the threshold from the world of the world to the world of the church, it probably would be a traumatic experience. Smart leaders know this intuitively, so they encourage church members to bring their friends, like George, to church (as opposed to just inviting them to show up).    

However, George, like most non-Christians (and most lapsed Christians), is a seasoned secularist. It is a significant leap for George to "jump into the deep end." Besides, George is under 30, and his attitude about institutions is already filled with doubt and suspicion. A different approach is more sensitive (read: "loving") to George.

Missional Communities are relational. A Missional Community is a mid-sized group between 12-25. The group gets together for a social event. The group is large enough that George won't feel like he is under the microscope. Yet, there aren't so many that George feels lost in the crowd. The key relationship is me - because I work with George. We work side-by-side at the shop. We have talked about cars, houses, plumbing problems, the Cubs, climate change, the economy - lots of stuff over the years.

A couple of weeks ago, George caught me in a quiet corner of the shop. He asked if I thought God really made a difference in a person's life. I was pleasantly surprised he had noticed my faith. I asked George why he asked, and he said his doctor found a small spot of cancer on his neck.

Bear with me, now. This is a key relational aspect of Missional Communities. You see, my church has taught me some important elements that are significant for my potential outreach to George. Without these, the Missional Community I belong to would be just another fellowship program.

Key Relational Elements  

An invitation to a middle-step alternative. I belong to Radiate. The leader is Martin. He works at our company, in a different part of the plant. Martin was discipled into a Missional Community called Outbound years ago. Outbound was targeted to reach homeless people on the north side of Chicago. One day, Martin got a passion for reaching people in our company. He started Radiate and began asking all those in our church who work at our plant to pray about a mission to our company. About thirty people in our church work in various parts of our company. So far, nine have joined Radiate, with their spouses. Everyone who joined Radiate did so for only one reason. It wasn't fellowship or shop talk. It was to reach those in our company for Christ. That's why Radiate exists. But it's not what we primarily do.

What Radiate does is have fun. Occasionally we do a service project. We like to eat. In the summer, we often have barbecues. In the winter, we meet in restaurants. It's not a Bible study. We have fun and fellowship. But we never forget why we exist. Our purpose is to reach non-Christians at our place of work.

Back to George. I recognized that George was receptive, I shared my health issue and what God meant to me. He acted like he was interested, and he continued to talk a little about spiritual issues. So what did I do next? I didn't ask him to come to a worship service at church. Instead, I shared with him that I belonged to a group called Radiate, consisting mostly of people from our church (who work at our company) along with a few guests (people who work at our company but do not attend our church - yet). I told George we were meeting at Martin's house for a barbecue a week from this Saturday, and asked if he and his wife, Marge, would like to come.

The idea of the Missional Community is that it meets in a social setting out in the community - not at the church building. It's not a religious gathering, but relational. Yet, I know George and Marge would meet some great Christians - who work at our company, and their spouses. They all understand the Great Commission, the primary purpose of Radiate.

George and Marge said "yes" and my wife and I picked them up for the barbecue. When we arrived, I introduced George and Marge around. George knew some of them. Others he didn't know. Marge only knew a few. By the time we ate dinner, I think they had been introduced, one-on-one, to just about everyone. We had a great time. Toward the end of the evening, Martin called us all together, as usual. He asked if anyone wanted to share what movie they had seen lately, that they really liked. Several shared, including George and Marge, and a guest Martin had brought from the accounting department at work. Then Martin said that many of us are Christians and wondered if anyone wanted to share what God had been doing in our lives since we met three weeks ago. Three people shared.

In a relational context, George has heard a story of God in my life, and, now, a few stories from others. He knows I am not the only one. He also knows that Christians have fun. George has begun a journey toward faith. I think Marge is on her way, as well.

Beyond the Middle Step     

Just in case you think we don't consider worship important, let me tell you the other side of George's "middle step." George and I continued to talk in our quiet corner of the shop. The day before the doctor did a biopsy on his neck, I offered to pray for him. He eagerly said "yes," and I did. We had several increasingly deeper faith talks, over several months, at George's pace. He and Marge became regular guests at Radiate. They like to party, too!

Our church has a Sunday evening service each week. But one week a month, in that service, there is an opportunity for Missional Communities to attend, sit together; and our leader, Martin, gives a report to the whole congregation about our outreach progress.

After several months, I sensed it was time to find out if George and Marge were ready for a worship service. I mentioned to George and Marge that we weren't having our usual Saturday night dinner because it was the weekend our Missional Community sits together at church (and we usually go out for a snack afterwards). I asked if they would like to come and sit with us. If not, we would meet in four weeks. They said "yes" to church. You see, I let them tell me if they were ready. So, my wife and I picked them up. And they sat with all the folks from Radiate. Of course, they knew everyone by then. They were already somewhat "assimilated," and it was their first time in church. It was the first time they met our pastor.