We're on a mission from God!

“So because of God's mercy, we have work to do. He has given it to us.
And we don't give up.”

--2 Corinthians 4:1 (New International Readers Version)

They were the unlikeliest of God’s servants. Black suits, pork pie hats and RayBan sunglasses. Sister Mary Stigmata (a.k.a. “The Penguin”) had given them a special charge to raise $5000 to save the orphanage they grew up in from the Chicago city tax assessor. Every time Jake and Elwood Blues got a question about what they were up to, they simply responded, “We’re on a mission from God!”

You may recognize the story as the plot of the 1980 comedy film The Blues Brothers. John Belushi and Dan Akroyd had a fictional mission . . . ours is very real. God sent Jesus to us so that the world would experience God’s salvation . . . the WORLD. Christmas celebrates the WORLD receiving a special gift from God. Our very real mission, as recipients of this Special Gift of God’s mercy, is to give our testimony of God’s love and mercy to the world. As the apostle Paul put it in 2 Corinthians, we have work to do given to us by Jesus himself (Matthew 26:19-20; Acts 1:6-8).

There is a current trend in congregational growth and revitalization known as “going missional.” Actually, it is an effort to help congregations return to their Christ-given mission . . . to go out into their world proclaiming, in word and deed, the love of Christ. A book entitled Treasure in Clay Jars: Patterns in Missional Faithfulness defines a missional church as “. . . a church that is shaped by participating in God’s mission, which is to set things right in a broken, sinful world, to redeem it, and to restore it to what God has always intended for the world” (pg. x).

We’re on a mission from God. It’s a great mission if you think about it. What could be more important and satisfying than helping set things right in a broken, sinful world? Allowing ourselves to be shaped by God, both personally and congregationally, is the essence of life as a follower of Jesus Christ. My prayer is that our creative juices will be ever-flowing about new ways to live out our mission in our community.
When people ask us about what’s going on at our church, may our answer always be “We’re on a mission from God.”

Getting Somewhere on Purpose: Book Review of Chazown by Craig Groeschel

The key to your future lies at your death bed. That’s the fascinating place where Chazown, the latest book from Craig Groeschel begins. Groeschel, founding pastor of the nation’s second largest church, LifeChurch.tv, wants us to consider our legacy…what will the reader’s life add up to? Will one’s life really matter? His ambition with this book is for people to capture their vision of the unique life God has designed for them, because: “Everyone ends up somewhere. But few people end up somewhere on purpose” (6). Finding the God-designed vision for your life is the essence of this book. In fact, its unusual title comes from the Hebrew word for vision. Capturing this vision and living into one’s purpose will have positive, life-changing effects.

Groeschel uses a fast-paced, concise style that is easy to read. Each short chapter addresses a singular thought. He begins by helping the reader uncover their God-given vision by exploring their core values, giftedness, and life experiences. Through well-chosen stories and personal anecdotes, he helps you see how these things intersect to reveal the chazown God has designed for you.

One feature I really appreciated was the “You’re the Author” pages. After each major section he provides focus questions and guidance to explore the section through a Chazown journal. There are also a couple of helpful appendices devoted to this. And you will notice several places throughout the book where you are directed to additional resources online. I particularly found helpful the appendix on learning from past experiences.

Indeed, personal application is a major emphasis of Chazown. Almost half of the book is devoted to helping the reader apply the chazown they have uncovered to one’s daily life. He identifies five “spokes” of chazown: Relationship with God, Relationships with People, Finances, Health and Fitness, and Work. As with the vision itself, discussion of each spoke concludes with a “You’re the Author” page where the reader is encouraged to set some specific goals to live out one’s chazown. I found his frank discussion of relationships with other people to be especially insightful.

This is certainly one of the most application-oriented texts among recent books for helping people find their purpose. Though practical in nature, Groeschel takes just enough time to lay a biblical foundation for his points. This book is definitely meant for a lay audience and he hits that target well. I highly recommend Craig Groeschel’s Chazown.

Link to the first chapter.

Watch video introduction of Chazown.



Note: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.