Introduction to Embracing God's Mission

If you're a Christian, you're already part of God's mission.

But that doesn't mean we know what God is doing or how to participate in this mission.

Confused and unprepared doesn't feel good.

What emotions come to mind when you think about God's mission? Sometimes I feel... perplexed, discouraged, frustrated, or scared. How about you?

Consider this. Even after Jesus called the apostles to follow him, it took his followers three years to figure it out. And along the way, they made a lot of mistakes. At one point, instead of trying to love their neighbors, James and John asked Jesus if they could call down fire from heaven to destroy them (Luke 9:54)! And even after the Holy Spirit filled them, they still avoided God's mission (see Acts 8:1).

So this isn't a course for perfect people, but for genuine disciples who are in process.

I developed this course after taking a course called "Missional Disciple Making" during my Doctorate of Ministry degree at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. It's also based on reflections from serving in full-time ministry for nearly twenty years.

But that doesn't mean that the course is complete! God invites us into his mission in the context of community. After you complete each devotional, I encourage you to share your insights with others who are taking the course. This way we can grow together.

**Here's my promise:** if you fully participate in this course, and complete each exercise, you will see God at work.

How can I be so sure? Because Jesus authoritatively taught us in Luke 10, "The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest."

That can be hard to believe. Sometimes we think the harvest will be poor—we're expecting crop failure—famine is coming.

Do you struggle to believe that you could be part of God's mission? We all do. So let's give ourselves space to be honest about that with God—and each other.