Missional living is definitely a trendy title that is all over the place these days. the idea that we have to categorize places of worship, missional, has since the beginning of creation been somewhat weird to me. please, shouldnt all places of worship be missional in their very core? all churches, at its very base, shoot to introduce their culture and area with the message of Jesus as a missionary would in a another country? Isnt it what the bodies of Christ is encouraged to do in the final charge of Christ in Matthew 28:19? Our own local area requires this brand of church. Austin church is slowly transitioning to what Jesus instructed in the Bible.
Jesus gives the charge in Acts 1:8 saying, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8 explains this topic as, right before Jesus Christ goes up to Heaven, He directs the disciples on a mission that would initiate right in their local community. He begins with their origin of Jerusalem, and then expands the call to the uttermost parts of the globe.
As Christians, we are not urged to privacy, but to be missional followers of Jesus who are passionately going out and connecting with others right where they are with the story of Christ. We have gazed at this throughout history: God motivated Abraham on a mission to move from his country and his people and go to the city that God would show him (Gen. 12:1), God sends Moses on a journey to renew an enslaved people and lead them to independence (Exodus 3:8-10), God sends Jesus on a exploration to world to restore all things to Himself through the blood of Christ (Colossians 1:20). And now God is sending people on a mission to engage communities, cities, people groups, and even nations with the story of Christ(Matt. 28:19 Mark 6:7 Luke 10:1 John 20:21 Acts 1:8). If we dont respond to this urge and continue to display the bodies of Christ like a closed off country club ” urging that people resolve their talents, pay their dues, and drive to our place of worship God will continue His journey without us.
One of the most useful concepts to grow spiritually and becoming
happier is the method of acceptance or surrender.
I have personally found this method to be perhaps the most
workable and useful in retaining my poise and staying happier as
I go through life. Partly because of my upbringing no doubt, I
have had a life-long habit of being very self critical and
judgmental. I have the habit of criticizing and feeling bad
about myself for every little thing that happened to me -
internally or externally. I tried to reason my way out of this
habit but it did not work - the habit is still with me. I also
feel guilty many times during the day when I am caught up with
my memories of times when I behaved badly.
For anybody in this situation, or anybody who feel negatively
about himself or the situation in which he finds himself the
proper attitude is that of acceptance and surrender. Surrender
to the thoughts and feelings which arise in you. If you are
feeling bad about yourself, or your relationships, or your work
or anything about your life-situation welcome and accept that
feeling. Surrender to it, perhaps it was what was meant to
happen at this time. Watch the feeling with as much detachment
as you can. It will pass as it must; all things in this world
are impermanent.
In the classic spiritual bestseller - The Power of Now - Eckhart
Tolle advises us to treat whatever negative feeling that arises
in your mind as a message saying, “Attention - Here and Now.
Wake up - Get out of your mind - be present”.
Surrender does not mean resignation to your life situation. If
you are stuck in the mud you don’t say “I resign myself to being
stuck in the mud” and do nothing about it. If you have lost your
job, if you find yourself trapped in a bad relationship or in
any situation that you find intolerable then obviously you must
do something about it. We all need to plan and work to change
certain aspects of our lives. I am not telling you to blame your
fate or destiny for everything that happens and do nothing about
it.
What I am asking you to do is to surrender to everything, which
is happening to you - internally and externally at this instant
in your life. If you are trapped in the morning rush during your
daily long commute to work, then accept whatever is happening -
inside and outside - at that instant. Surrender to your feelings
of freedom, irritation and frustration. Don’t repress those
feelings - accept them, surrender to them.
Surrender to the long life of cars or the crowd in the bus or
local train. Accept your present situation - at that instant -
fully and without reservation. This should not prevent you from
changing what can and needs to be changed. Perhaps you can get
another job, or shift to another branch of your company closer
to your home. Perhaps you can take the bus to your office
instead of driving yourself. You can make use or your daily
commute by reading a newspaper or a book or doing some work.
Change what can be changed, surrender to what is happening at
this instant - the one thing that you cannot change.
For a more detailed discussion on the concept of acceptance and
surrender please refer the classic bestseller. The Power of Now
by Eckhart Tolle, available at Amazon. Here is the link to the
site:-
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1577314808/ref=nosim/easte
rnphilos-20
I hope you enjoyed this article and that it will be useful to
you.
If you have any comments or questions, please visit the Eastern
Philosophy Blog and post them. I visit the blog daily and
promise to reply as quickly as I can.
http://eastern-philosophy-and-meditation.blogspot.com/
Stay tuned for more articles in this continuing series.
About the author
Transform yourself through Eastern Philosophy. For a completely
new way of looking at life please visit the Eastern Philosophy
website at
http://www.eastern-philosophy-and-meditation.com/index.html and
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