The normalcy of missional living
Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
Matthew 9:35-36 (NIV)
I can only imagine what a joy it must have been to walk in the Saviour’s footsteps, whether along the sun-whitened sands of the Galilean shore, or the time-dusted paths of the Emmaus Road; but nothing warms the heart so much as the experience of joining with Jesus in his work of mission.
The ability to lift out of the routine and the ordinary, day to day, those pearls of participation, whereby I experience myself teamed with my Lord by that ever-light and burdenless yoke.1 Such moments shine on the pages of my journal, and become entry points that connect my own meagre chronicles to the endlessly transforming narrative that is God’s story.
As I navigate through the familiar contours of what I used to think of as ‘a normal week’, I now find myself increasingly aware of how the Gospel has the power to speak into so many of the situations I see around me. The child sitting alone on the kerbside, deserted by so-called ‘friends’; the drunken man stumbling up the road ahead to a house that is no home and to a family of strangers; the street singer, poor of pocket but rich in song; the street preacher, whose gospel of verses intrudes on every ear, but is unable to reach into searching minds and hearts.
In the course of the week, my wife and I ‘place-share’ on the bus with a lady from Mauritius who sits in front of us. My wife compliments her on her colourful outfit and jewellery, and she opens up to us about her experiences of racism and her painful, ongoing divorce situation. She acknowledges her Catholic faith, but believes that ‘all religions are valid.’
Having entered her space of doubt and pain, we sensitively share with her our faith in Jesus, whose salvation was wrought for all, and how all the promises of the Triune God find their ‘Yes’ in him alone.
She alights from the bus, leaving us with a blessing, and we express the mutual hope that we will meet again. Another heart-warming entry makes its way into my diary of memories.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, our great missional God who sent his only begotten Son into the world for our salvation. Help us to see ourselves as ‘sent ones’ in Christ, partnering with Jesus in his ongoing work of reconciliation, especially as we perceive his present engagement, through the Spirit, in our own local communities. Amen.
Study by Richard Dempsey
1 “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:29-30 NIV)
Richard Dempsey is a Minister in the Cambridgeshire
congregation of Grace Communion International.
Local congregation:
Grace Communion Cambridgeshire
Farcet Village Hall
Main Street
Farcet
Peterborough
PE7 3AN
Except on the first week of each month when they meet at Comberton, Cambridge
Comberton Village Hall
Green End
Comberton
Cambridge
CB23 7DY
Local congregational contact:
Richard Dempsey
Email: richard.dempsey@btinternet.com
Local church website: www.cambridgeshirechurch.org
Word of Life contact:
wordoflife@gracecom.church