Attendance and the Mission Church is an opinion piece about the problem of attendance and our churches in Christianity.
DavidCox
Flawed Modern Missionary Methods
Flawed Modern Missionary Methods Summary: This article is my view of why some of the way we do things in missions today is just wrong.
Topics are:
1) Missionaries are distanced from church people.
2) We expect missionaries to put on a song and dance show for the church people, but the churches never let them actually do what is their ministry.
3) We are locked into a Madison Avenue mentality that says, only with spending a lot of money can you do anything serious.
4) We have distorted and destroyed biblical spirituality.
5) We are experts at missions, all the while never “producing” or “reproducing” ourselves.
Malware problems on my Websites
Pray for protection for my websites.
Some Recommendations on How to Help Missionaries on Furlough
This brief post links to other articles around the web on how to help missionaries on furlough.
Raising your Missionary Support
I found this wonderful website for missionaries, http://raiseyoursupport.com/
I have no idea who put this out, but some of the suggestions are just great for missionaries.
Missionary Software Recommendations
Note: This page will be updated regularly with new recommendations.
I (David Cox) have been a missionary for about 28 years now, and if you count the years on deputation, around 30 years. In my lifetime, I have gone from nothing electronic to speak of to using powerful desktop computers now. When I was in my schooling years (1964-2002) computers hit the scene and are now common. My education (much after school was self-taught about computers, and I even taught myself Foxpro relational database, and programmed my own software) has spanned both no-computer, and computer. So let me start off by a couple of much needed points that people need to understand.
Emerging Church and the Bible
This is a description of “the Emerging Church and Young Seekers” from christianity.about.com
Solomon’s Porch, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a good example. Founding pastor Doug Pagitt saw thousands of college students in the area and knew they had dropped out of traditional church services. Pagitt offered them something different.
Instead of preaching from a pulpit, Pagitt sits on a stool and engages the participants in dialogue. Instead of rows of pews facing forward, Solomon’s Porch has sofas, arranged in a circle. And instead of organ music and 500 year-old hymns, this church has guitars and contemporary music.
Other churches in the movement hold young texters’ attention by projecting fleeting visuals to illustrate messages, accompanied by fast-paced discussion. Some include activities such as signing one’s name on a cross or walking a labyrinth. Worship may engage the senses with incense, candles, and bells.
While some of these new ways of doing church services are a departure from evangelical Christianity, others resemble ancient symbols and rituals of Roman Catholicism.
The writer of this article correctly observes that mixed within the desire to reach these young people is the incorporation of false religions and dubious elements that would probably not be valid for true Christianity.
Q: Are national missionaries better than Americans going?
Q: Are national missionaries better than Americans going? Doesn’t it make more sense to for me to raise funds for national missionaries, rather than raise funds for me to go?
Tips for New Missionaries Support
Tips for New Missionaries Support focuses on raising missionary support, understanding what you are supposed to be doing.