The Mission. Pt. Four.

Good Stewards: Pt. 4 of a 4 pt. series on modern missions according to the American church.

I have many friends who were International Studies or Missions majors in hopes to come full time missionaries in other cultures. They went through a four year undergraduate bachelor degree, and upon graduating they stared at their framed degree representing “blood, sweat, tears” and more than $80,000 and they asked the same question I ask now… Is this the path that missionaries should feel pressured to take in order to enter into full time missions? Is this a representation of good stewardship with the things God has blessed us? Why not a free discipleship program funded by local churches? Knowing what they know now, that most mission agencies will not even consider supporting you unless you are debt free or close to being debt free, was dropping more than $80,000 into student loans the wisest decision?

(By the way, this is a question I struggle with for any person entering into a form of ministry. I will never say that the piece of paper representing my degree in Religion: Youth Ministry is worth more than $80,000, and that is not meant to reflect on the quality of professors who have instructed me, as I believe they are among the best in the world. I am just not sure that I should have paid three years of a typical pastor salary for my education. )

These are the thoughts that I have been struggling with in terms of missions. Yes, I am unresolved on these issues. I am not comfortable enough to settle and accept the current traditions that may be leading the church down a path unproductive and inefficient. In 100 years if the world has not ended, will the global church look back on American’s ideas of missions and ask, “What were they thinking? $80,000 for a license to travel to another country and lead people to Christ? Really? Six month mission trips, really? What happened to Luke chapters 9 & 14 when Christ called his followers to leave everything, the comfort of a pillow and bed, their family and friends, their hometown, count the costs, and put their hand to the plow working the fields that are white unto harvest and not look back? Confronting this issue I am seeking wisdom. I am not wanting to reinvent the wheel as you cannot reinvent the cross, which is the center of all that is done in the field of missions, but rather I am not sure the direction in which the wheel is traveling and the path that it is traveling upon is one that is the most biblical.

I hope this blog series has not offended you as that was not my intent. My hope is that your thoughts on modern missions will be re-evaluated and that you don’t fall into the trap of comfortable church tradition that can lead to dead religion.

Don’t be silent. Sound off. Let me hear your thoughts.

The Mission. Pt. Three.

Glorified Tourism?: Pt. 3 of a 4 pt. series on modern missions according to the American church.

When I think of great examples of missionaries heading into cultures that are classified as “unreached people groups,” I think of William Carey who left England moving himself and eventually his reluctant family into Calcutta, India to reach a people group unmet with any Scripture or any word of Jesus Christ. He moved there permanently with slim intention if any to ever move back to England. He was committed to a spiritual uprising in Calcutta. Even after losing a son to dysentery, his first wife to insanity and eventually death, he then remarried and soon after lost his second wife to a rare disease, William Carey still stayed true to his calling and did not waver in his relentless pursuit of God’s glory in Calcutta, India. His life was characterized by sacrifices.

Even in the case of William Carey, a totally committed lifelong missionary, his ministry was not overly fruitful. Still considering the “5-7 year rule,” Carey’s first convert was not until seven long years after his arrival. In December of 1800 Carey baptized the first convert from his efforts, Krishna Pal. Even at the time of William Carey’s death after 41 years invested in India without a single time of furlough, through his ministries influence, only 700 converts could be counted in a nation of millions. That is a lifetime invested into a group of people (the 700 converts) who may not even number the size of your local church. And based off of this one man’s life, the “Father of Modern Day Missions,” I wonder if the words mission and trip should ever belong in the same sentence. I wonder if missions should be a call that demands your entire life. I also wonder if we may be doing more damage in our form of modern missions rather than basking in light of the possible success of missions and rejoicing in the glory that God is receiving through modern missions.

In the current structure of modern missions, I wonder, are we just sending people around the world to become glorified tourists who return to the States with an emotional badge of honor having their spirits uplifted and leaving them feeling closer to Christ solely because they stepped out of their comfort zone and did something radical that many Sunday morning church go-er’s would not? Could we not then be compared to the Mormons or Jehovah’s Witness who do their two year “duty” to their organization and then live in the plush lifestyle of convenience within close proximity to family, friends, and other loved ones going about their lives the way they please without any trace of what they were once committed to?

The Mission. Pt. Two.

Lasting Impact: Pt. 2 of a 4 pt. series on modern missions according to the American church.

Throughout my education at Liberty University I have been taught on various occasions that when a pastor takes a new role at a church within their own macro-culture of America it will take that man anywhere from 5-7 years to really begin their ministry. By that they mean it will take them that long for the majority of the members to grow comfortable with that pastor as their leader, to trust their vision and decisions, to respect their ideas and way of ministry, and to follow Him into the spiritual battle of reaching their community with the transforming power of the Gospel. I have seen this play out through many men in the ministry who I really respect. The first couple years have been bumpy. Some of them have felt the “5-7 year rule,” take play earlier around year three or four, even though, this is not the norm.

My question pertaining to modern missions according to the American church is this: If it takes a pastor in America, transitioning within the same macro-culture of America 5-7 years, to have a full impact on a church congregation, then how can we expect a missionary from America to enter into another country with the intention of staying on week or even four years, and have a lasting impact on a tribe in Africa or a town in Europe or a village in East Asia? Does this sound absurd to anyone else?

We are called to fulfill the Great Commission as Christ Followers. Three parts, make disciples, baptize them, teach them to obey all the things Christ has commanded us. Let’s say a missionary has the amazing privilege to lead someone to the saving truth of Christ’s love and redemption around the end of year one or two, but they are leaving in a few weeks or months, then who will finish the Great Commission in that person’s life and teach them to obey all Christ has commanded them? The process of discipleship is then broken and incomplete. Should a missionary move to Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, or Ireland with the understanding they may be there for 25-30 years plus?

Is it better for an American to enter into another culture and assimilate to that culture in attempts to lead people to Christ, or is it better for that same American to train Christ Followers from that culture up in the commands of the Lord and send them into their own culture with the love and truth of Jesus’ redemption story? I have heard it said from friends who have degrees in the field of missions that statistically the best missionaries are those who enter into their own culture or a culture similar to theirs in attempts to lead people to Christ.

As you are already thinking, arises the issue, what if there are no Christ Followers in that culture already? What if we are talking about an “unreached people group?” They have never heard of the Holy Bible let alone Jesus Christ, and the idea of monotheism is worlds away from what many polytheistic religion based societies are accustomed to. Obviously the theory of sending people from that culture into their own culture as missionaries is completely shot in the foot and cannot happen. In this case I go back to the thought of what will the short term mission trip of 1-2 weeks or even the “long term” missionary life of 1-4 years really accomplish?

The Mission. Pt. One.

Intro: Pt. 1 of a 4 pt. series on modern missions according to the American church.

Recently I have seemed to be confronted a lot with the thought of modern day missions according to the American church. I have found myself in conversations or just contemplating if we as the “American Church” are doing modern missions in the most effective way possible. The more and more I roll around in this issue I don’t feel like I come out smelling like roses instead, I feel like the truth of this issue leaves me proverbially smelling like whatever the foul sticky goo your dog rolls in every summer.

Clarification: I am not writing this in order to bash the modern church, as I myself work in one that I love. Rather I am questioning our actions and traditions in order to spark thought and hopefully better the Kingdom of God. Please hear my heart on this.

I also want to clarify what I feel the modern day mission structure is at most American churches:

Time frame for short term missions… 1-4 weeks.
Time frame for long term missions… 1-3 years.
Type of training or education for missions… Typically a 4 year bachelor degree.
Cultures American missions often target… Typically a culture with a very different language, cuisine, and way of life.

In the following days I will be posting my thoughts and questions concerning the structure of modern day missions according to the American church. I want you to understand I am not settled on my thoughts and I am on a journey and in a thought process to try to resolve some of the issues I see in modern missions. My hope is that you would read the next three blog entries with an open mind and an open heart and then confront the questions through prayer and conversation among friends.

“Repent or Burn.” Really?

“Teaching in their synagogues,” “The crowds were amazed at his teaching,” “Jesus went through all the towns and villages teaching,” “Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village,” “So he began teachingthem many things.”

"Burn In Hell"

We see through the Gospel’s that Jesus taught a lot. He built relationships with people he encountered and he spoke the truth to them about what it takes to enter into heaven and to have a relationship with His Father. But nowhere in Scripture do I see where Jesus Christ did not speak to someone whom He wanted to know the truth. If He desired someone to know who he was, who His Father was, and how His Father desired to be Lord of their lives, he stepped out and spoke to them. What he did not do was hang a sign around his neck and walk around the villages or give someone a tract when he ate at the local market… but interestingly this is what happens today in “Christian America.”

I have vowed to always write for this blog in a positive light. And that is a good vow, and one I intend on keeping. I want to share with you though what happened on this past Easter Sunday in my hometown, Lynchburg, Virginia. On the busiest road in Lynchburg a man who was probably 60 years old or round about was standing in the median in front of the local Wal-Mart with a neon yellow

"Repent or Burn"

sign hung around his neck that read, “Believe on Jesus. Repent or burn.” I do not know where in Scripture it is demonstrated to act like this, because I definitely know Christ did not model this behavior. Beyond that I find it hard to see where Jesus Christ used hell as a motivator to scare someone into a relationship with His Father. Rather, I think we see quite the opposite, we see where hell is a side note in the grand scheme of eternity when compared to Heaven and a relationship with God the Father.

My intent in writing this is not to bash on Christians. (I am not a fan of cannibalism. And I refuse to eat my own.) I do on the other hand want to challenge believers to live a life completely unhindered and unchained. Part of living a Life Unhindered is fulfilling The Great Commission by making disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them to obey God’s commandments. Christians if we are not fulfilling the Great Commission then… what are we doing? I submit that hanging a sign around our necks with small pieces of the gospel written on it while walking the streets and not sharing the message of the Gospel in love is not what we were called to do. What are we called to do then? Reference Jesus Christ… and live like Him. Bottom line.

Metamorphosis.

I just got home from a monthly meeting of a men’s group which I belong to. This group consists of men from 23 years old, (Myself) to retired men, and it includes all professions across the board. We are diverse, but we gather together once a month with the sole purpose of seeking after a strong relationship with God.

Tonight I have multiple questions mulling around in my otherwise hollow head. (Smile.) I just want to blurt out these questions, so here they are.

• What is my purpose in life?
• What brings me fulfillment as a man?
• What am I devoting myself to that brings Jesus Christ glory?
• What has brought me into this stage of life?
• What will bring me out of this stage of life?
• Why am I so fearful of the next stage of life?
• What awaits me in the next stage of life?
• What is preventing me from entering into the next stage of life?

These questions are weighting heavy on my soul tonight. For the first time in a good while I find myself on a path seldom traveled in my day to day life, and that is one of no words. I am silent. I do not have adequate answers to these questions. Even though confronting these questions tonight has sent traces of fear through my veins I find solace in the fact that every one of these questions have previously been answered at all other points of transition in my life. God is good. He answers prayers of longing, wonder, and requests. I am confident in any stage of life current, past, or future because He is in control.

Bottom Line: Life is transitional. Death is stagnant. I can’t wait to transition. I can’t wait to live.

My Most Desired Label.

“If my life could only be characterized by one thing, what would I wish that one thing to be?”

There are many things that people desire their life to be characterized by today. Success, money, friends, happiness, family, leadership, influence, authority, and the list goes on. None of those things are inherently bad, yet I am not sure if God desires any of them to characterize our life.

Recently I made a video titled, A Lifelong Prayer. This video is based around the question:

“What would it look like if I let the Holy Spirit rule my life?”

I have come to realize these two questions are related in more ways than I first realized. I have a great friend, a best friend, his name: Eric Hoke. He is a student pastor in New Jersey. When people ask me about Eric and how to describe him, a smile comes to my face and my eyes brighten up. I brag about Eric by typically saying and emphasizing only one thing, and that is this:

“Eric’s life is characterized by The Holy Spirit. He is Spirit filled. That’s it. Wherever The Spirit moves he is there. Eric lives in the ebb and flow of the Holy Spirit.”

And I realized that is it. If my life could only be characterized by one thing, I would want others to say the same about me. I want others to say, Cory Ball is in tune with the Spirit and his entire life is centered around bringing God glory through the power of the Holy Spirit. If at the end of the road people gather at my funeral and say that I was a humanitarian, that I was wealthy and gave to the poor, that I had a heart for the social injustices of the world and did something about them… but did not say that I was a mere man who worked through the power of the Holy Spirit my life would have been a waste. Garbage. Vomit. Vile. I desire nothing else than to live in the rhythm of the Holy Spirit, because ultimately nothing other than that will bring Christ glory and praise.

After All….
WESTMINSTER CATECHISM

Q: What is the chief end of man?
A: Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.

The YouTube Curriculum.

My name is Cory Ball and I am the College Life Director at Brentwood Church in Lynchburg, VA. I was recently blessed with this thriving ministry called College Life. College Life is a year and a half old, and I have only had it for the “half” part. I was delegated the ministry from our Student Focus Pastor, Matt Cote, with a year under it’s belt and was given permission to scrap the programming and restructure it to our perceived needs and the liking of college students.

I will provide you some quick insight into the ministry of College Life. The interesting thing about us is that we are in the back yard of the world’s largest evangelical university, which is Liberty University. Our town also contains three other universities, with one more university in close proximity. So with a combined total of five universities within 25 minutes of our church, only one of which being a Christian university, also being geographically positioned in the “Bible Belt” we are left with very interesting demographics and issues that span across the board of college students “age-staged” issues.

Before this semester of College Life, our ministry met every other Monday. This was not enough for our college students. If you work with college students or the “twenty-something’s” age group, you know better than anyone else that they crrraaaave community. Our answer to this good hearted concern was the obvious… have College Life every Monday night. Right?

The Problem:
I have two married couples on my leadership team with children and a third married couple with a blessing on the way. It would be hard for them to find free childcare or pay for childcare every Monday for almost ten months out of the year.

The Answer:
We decided to meet “on-campus” (@Brentwood Church) every other week, and on the weeks in between we would have small groups “off-campus” (In my Small Group Leader’s homes).

The Issue:
How will each small group be on the same page with curriculum but have the flexibility to answer issues that each individual group may be going through collectively as college students? (Since half of the job in any college ministry is helping college students through their “age-staged” issues.)

The YouTube Curriculum:
One day we met as a leadership team for a creative planning meeting and had the idea to start our own YouTube channel. It wasn’t until a few days after that I realized how much potential this really had. Currently, on the in-between weeks that we meet “off-campus” we are doing something called The YouTube Series. I asked friends to send me videos from YouTube that have spiritually challenged or inspired them to become more like Christ and to share His love and truth. I filtered through them. Some were good, some were great, some… not so much. Then, I “favorited” the ones that really hit home. On the in-between weeks now my small group leaders choose a video off of our “favorites list” and write a few questions pertaining to the video. That is their small groups curriculum for the week.

Pro’s:

• The first and best pro is that a “YouTube Curriculum” is FREEEEEE!
• This is a great way as a ministry leader to lead the small groups without “leading” the small groups.
• Your leaders have the flexibility to provide their own flavor and direction to their small group.
• The students specific “age-staged” issues can and will be confronted on a more individual intimate basis.
• It provides consistency and variety at the same time. (After all it is said, “Variety is the spice of life.”)
• It releases many stresses from your leaders since they are leading from the comfort of their own homes.
• Your students will feel very welcomed as your leaders will provide them with great hospitality and a warm invitation into a clean good smelling home. (Seeing as many of them live in a cluttered old “barracks” we refer to as a dorm.)
• And finally… It is easy to find a video on YouTube that will better articulate a point that you may be struggling to teach yourself.

Con’s:

• It is left up to your leaders to provide any kind of coffee, snacks, or food.
• Your communication must always be clear with highways of information ready and available at all times. This will look different for every ministry.
• Students without cars may find it difficult to get to an “off-campus” small group. Do your best to provide any needed transportation.

I hope this provides you with some ideas and answers to any struggles you may be having within your college age and/or “twenty-something’s” ministry. Below is a link to our YouTube channel. Feel free to use it as you wish. Keep up the good work and never lose sight of the reason you are impacting college students and/or “twenty-something’s”… It’s for Him and His glory. Much Love.

YouTube Channel: Brentwood College Life

Nimrod, More Than A Green Day Album.

Nimrod. A name you rarely hear. Did I say name? Yes I did. Most of us know the name Nimrod only from the famous 90’s Green Day album, but from Scripture?  We find Nimrod first mentioned in Genesis 10. He was the son of another weird named man, Cush.

Genesis 10:8
Cush fathered Nimrod: He was the first on
earth to be a mighty man.

The first? What would it be like to be the first mighty man? On EARTH. EVER. That is a pretty daunting task. What if you messed up? What if you weren’t might all of a sudden? What if you decided to take a break from being mighty? What if when trying to be mighty, you picked up a big rock and dropped it on your big toe, and you cried? Are you no longer mighty? What is mighty anyways, what does it really mean?

Ok I don’t really have answers to those “mighty” questions, but here is my thought: Nimrod was the first to do something. To be mighty. Before Nimrod there was no one else who was mighty. In Genesis there are other instances where men with names like Jubal-Cain were the first to do something, like invent string instruments, forge tools form with bronze and iron, or live in tents. Before these men stepped out risking failure and ridicule these certain things didn’t exist. They lived in the land of the wimpy. They lived in the land of the music-less. They lived in a land of broken wooden hammers. They lived in the land of wet pillows. But then these things changed. You see, they changed everything.

A creative God has created you to be creative. You are called to be inventive, to change things, to better life. So what will you create? What will you do differently? What will you do that others have feared to do, or have failed to do? Have fun being creative, and good luck my friend. I leave you with a quote from Mark Twain.

 

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

Big Bank Account ≠ Life Change

My Thought: I worry about a budget. I worry because I want a big budget to run a great ministry. I think, “I could do A LOT if money was never an issue, the sky would be the limit.” But Jesus Christ did not have a million dollar budget, and His ministry was never limited. He was homeless and with his “budget” and resources, lives were changed for eternity. Life change happens through the heart prodding of the Holy Spirit, the sacrifice on the cross by Jesus Christ, and the love of God the Father… not the size of my ministries bank account. Truth.

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