Outward in Mission
The following article is adapted from Rhythms for Life by Alastair Sterne. For more information on developing a set of spiritual rhythms unique to your gifts, identity, and calling, click here.
When people move toward each other with love (or even “like”), it’s beautiful. And this experience is not limited to romantic love; it’s true with any gesture of love. Love moves toward another.
When I use the word missionary or even mission, I invite you to hear, “Love on the move.”
God is love. And God moves toward his creation with love.
Think of how God sent his Son into the world for the sake of reconciling us to himself. God has a mission that flows out of his being. He is restoring all of creation—from galaxies to the fissures in the human soul—back into the harmony of his love. This is what makes him a missionary God.
We are made to reflect the movement of God’s love toward the world, like children who grab their father’s hands, place their feet on his feet, and attempt to walk in step with him. Yes, we’re a little clumsy. We stumble a lot. But the strength of our Father keeps us balanced and moving in the right direction. Staying in step with his movement is a matter of holding on to the One who will not let us go.
As we join God’s love on the move, we move outward. For some, this involves relocating to another state or province, or across the world. But for most of us it means staying where we are. And whether we’re called to go or stay, we’re invited to love our people and place out of the boundless reservoir of love available to us in the triune God.
Mission is nothing short of the call “to live and let love well up and stream through us as the beat, pulse, and rhythm of our lives.” In doing so, we embody the advice of another acclaimed missiologist of the twentieth century, Lesslie Newbigin, who called the church to live in the kingdom of God in such a way that “people begin to ask the question to which the gospel is the answer.” Love captures the watching world’s attention.
But let’s not reduce mission down to evangelism. Evangelism is undeniably an indispensable part of our participation in God’s mission. But there are innumerable ways we move outward that do not involve explicit evangelism, such as meeting the needs of the poor, foster parenting children, mentoring youth, or caring for creation. We just do those things with the wisdom of the apostle Peter in mind: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Pet 3:15). This applies to all followers of Jesus, from the extrovert to the introvert, from the social butterfly to the quiet, shy, and reserved.
Evangelism aside, sometimes leaders such as myself create too much hype around mission and accidently foster a culture of guilt and obligation. I believe we should be excited about the mission of God. It is good news of great joy, after all (Lk 2:10). But we must be careful to continually trace any activity (such as evangelism, expressions of mercy, or pursuits of justice) back to its origin: love. That’s the only way I know to relieve the pressure and burden that can arise around mission. God has moved toward us and all creation with love. We get to extend this movement toward others. It’s that simple. Now that is something I want to be part of!
Depth for Breadth
I’ve identified four rhythms for life: upward, inward, withward, and outward. The outward rhythm is about breadth. We move beyond ourselves and the relationships that nurture us toward our world with love. But we need depth for breadth. This rhythm can only spread wide if it runs deep. Through the other rhythms we cultivate a reservoir of spiritual health and vitality in order to generously share our lives and love with others. David Brooks calls this “the plunge inward and then the expansion outward.”
Tragically, we can neglect depth to focus on mission. The inner life can be seen as less important than the work of reaching others with the message of the gospel, showing mercy to those in need, or advocating for justice for the marginalized. We can give in to the tyranny of the urgent and all that needs to be accomplished and diminish the need to tend to a rich interior life.
But our spiritual reservoir will run dry if we lack depth. Jesus was clear: “Apart from me you can do nothing” (Jn 15:5). We must be with Jesus. Whatever we may accomplish to the neglect of our lives with Christ will be questionable at best, and of no eternal significance at worst. When we detach mission from abiding with Jesus, can we even call it mission? It can result in ministries crashing, personal burnout, and even people walking away from faith.
Jesus invites us to hold depth and breadth together. He said, “As the Father has loved me, so have I have loved you. Now remain in my love” (Jn 15:9). To abide (or remain) in his love involves believing in him and continually being obedient to his ways of love. Because after his death and resurrection, he also said, “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you” (Jn 20:21). As we abide, we are sent. Jesus holds depth and breadth together in interdependence. If we have one without the other, we are malformed.
Adapted from Rhythms for Life by Alastair Sterne. Copyright © 2020 by Alastair Bryan Sterne. Published by InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL. www.ivpress.com
About the Author
Alastair Sterne is the founding and lead pastor of St. Peter’s Fireside in Vancouver and serves as canon of church planting for the Anglican Network in Canada. He previously worked in communications and design. He is a graduate of Asbury Theological Seminary and is currently working on a doctorate in intercultural studies at Fuller Theological Seminary. He also serves on the board of Always Forward, the church planting initiative of the Anglican Church in North America. He lives in Vancouver with his wife and children.