Go

Enabling a growing number of members to directly participate in short-term, long-term, and marketplace opportunities to minister and spread the gospel beyond our church’s walls.

When members begin to embrace the Acts 1:8 Challenge through the responses of learning, praying, and giving, the Lord often burdens their hearts about personally participating in missions by “going.”This is one of the most exciting aspects of mobilizing members for the Great Commission, and one that churches should encourage. Helping your church members assess their readiness for serving in the field is crucial, and encouraging them in opportunities to serve is perhaps the best training they can receive.

The call to “go” is a fundamental, biblical response to Jesus’ command for His church.The opportunities for going on mission are endless.Today’s world is more accessible to churches than at any time in history. Churches members can participate in short-term mission trips and still reach people that a previous generation could only reach through prayer and sending others.

Christians can also be equipped to go as missionaries into the marketplace and local communitiessignificant mission fields in the twenty-first century. Encouraging members to be aware of their mission fields in everyday life is part of the mobilizing process.They should recognize that their families, friends, coworkers, and colleagues all represent significant opportunities for sharing the good news of Jesus.

Direct involvement through mission trips or volunteer mission projects is available from many sources. Following are some ideas and contact information as you lead your members to “go” in response to the Acts 1:8 Challenge. As you read and consider each selection, place in the block the symbol that corresponds with your current or potential use of the idea or resource.

> = Already use idea or resource
* = Implement this idea or resource immediately
? = Consider future use of this idea or resource

Ideas and Resources for Going to Jerusalem

__ Publicize and encourage opportunities for involvement within your own church’s ministries. For example, if your church has a food pantry, help people understand that those who serve in this ministry are missionary servants. Encourage people to explore their skills and gifts for service by first participating in church-related service opportunities.

__ Plan to conduct a “Marketplace Missionary” commissioning service during a worship service. Focus the sermon on the Christian’s challenge to share the gospel in whatever workplace setting (including the home) God places him or her. Invite workers to commit themselves to see and use their profession or volunteer service as opportunities to be ambassadors of Christ.

__ Contact your association mission staff to discover opportunities in your association and community for short-term and long-term service. Associational camps and ministries such as food pantries, clothing closets, thrift stores, and such are excellent places for someone to serve and determine their skills and gifts for mission service.

__ Encourage and equip church members to develop relational bridges through ministry over which they intentionally share the gospel of Jesus Christ. His Heart, Our Hands: A Ministry Evangelism Toolkit is a resource to get your church started in ongoing ministries. It provides a community needs assessment, as well as guidance in choosing the ministry best suited for your church, getting started, sharing your faith, and designing the ministry.To order, call 1 866 407-6262, or visit the NAMB Resource Store.

__ Involve church members in ministry evangelism events called “kindness explosions.”These activities include creative ways of sharing God’s love with lost people. Providing free bottles of water at community or sporting events, washing windows at a local school, taking snacks to local businesses, returning shopping carts for customers at grocery stores, and including a gospel witness in the process can be very effective.A “Servant Evangelism” guidebook offers effective and biblical witnessing strategies based on acts of kindness.To order, contact the NAMB Customer Service
Center at 1 866 407-6262, or visit the NAMB Resource Store.

__ Create “construction mission teams” from among the congregation.These teams can be used for special projects in assisting widows and other churches, and meeting needs locally, nationally, and internationally related to construction. Contact your association, or see the volunteer needs list posted at http://thebridge.namb.net/ for possible projects in your own community or surrounding area.

__ Create “church assist teams” for the purpose of supporting and strengthening churches in your area that need assistance. For example, a church may need help in staffing a Vacation Bible School or other such event.The assist team could provide supportive manpower from student and adult volunteers. Contact your association or state convention office for information.

__ Adopt a local fire or police station and provide firefighters and police officers with year-round ministry, such as providing snacks and leading a weekly Bible study on location for those who wish to attend.

Ideas and Resources for Going to Judea

__ Contact your state convention to determine mission opportunities in which your church can participate. Post details of such opportunities in your church newsletter or bulletin, and encourage members to participate in short-term mission projects throughout the state.

__ Locate missionaries in your state and discover special needs and projects they have for which your church can provide help.This may be something as simple as collecting ministry supplies or doing a short-term project on site of the ministry location. To find information about missionaries serving in your state, contact your state convention office, or visit www.namb.net/missionaries.

__ Consider having your students participate in a World Changers or PowerPlant project within your state. Students are encouraged to meet the physical and spiritual needs of residents in cities and low-income communities by participating in construction projects, home repair, community ministries, and church planting.To learn more about national World Changers and PowerPlant projects, visit www.studentz.com/wc and www.studentz.com/powerplant.

__ Visit http://thebridge.namb.net frequently to discover mission project opportunities posted for your state. If you are unable to gather a group for such projects, encourage individual participation of your members.

Ideas and Resources for Going to Samaria

__ Participate in national initiatives such as Strategic Focus Cities. Several major cities in North America have been highlighted for massive evangelistic, discipleship, and church-planting efforts. The goal is to bring the gospel to several heavily populated cities using media, special events, ministry projects, and personal witnessing.To learn more about the Strategic Focus Cities initiative, visit www.namb.net, or e-mail mdodson@namb.net to find out how you can get involved.

__ Lead students to participate in national World Changers and PowerPlant projects. Students are encouraged to meet the physical and spiritual needs of residents in cities and low-income communities by participating in construction projects, home repair, community ministries, and church planting.To learn more about national World Changers and PowerPlant projects, visit www.world-changers.net and www.power-plant.net.

__ Encourage youth and college students to participate in student mission groups, which are designed to assist churches and campus groups in conducting student mission projects in North America.These projects include resort ministry, inner-city ministry, new church work, and construction work. For more information, call 1 800 462-8657, e-mail volunteers@namb.net, or visit www.studentz.com/smg.

__ For information on volunteer mobilization opportunities in North America, visit thebridge.namb.net where you can search for projects by date, type, and location. You can also call NAMB’s Volunteer Mobilization Team at 1 800 462-8657, or e-mail volunteers@namb.net.

__ For information on special ministries such as resort/leisure, trucking, ministering to internationals, and creative arts ministries, visit www.namb.net/evangelism/specialministries.

__ For assistance in planning a volunteer project, consider the online resource “Volunteer Mobilization Logistics Manual: Creating Better Pathways for Greater Kingdom Growth,” available online at www.namb.net/vols/logistics.

__ Encourage young people to consider summer, semester, and US/C2 missionary positions through the NAMB. Information on these short-term mission experiences can be found at www.answerthecall.net.

Ideas and Resources for Going to Ends of the Earth

__ Lead students to participate in International World Changers projects.These projects provide students an opportunity to use Bible clubs, children and youth ministry, drama, school programs, prayerwalking, sports, and light construction to build relationships, share personal testimonies, start Bible studies, and assist in planting new churches. For information about International World Changers, call 1 800 999-3113 (ext. 1355), or visit www.thetask.org/iwc.htm.

__ Receive information on international volunteer opportunities by calling 1 800 999-3113, or visiting http://going.imb.org.

__ For international volunteer mobilization opportunities through IMB and WMU, visit http://going.imb.org or www.wmu.com. Mobilization resources are also available through WMU by calling 1 800 968-7301.

__ For information and opportunities for overseas service, explore options at http://going.imb.org, or order the booklet “Opportunities for International Service” at http://resources.imb.org.

__ For help in preparing for an overseas mission project, a downloadable guide titled “Volunteers in Mission Preparation Guide” is available at http://going.imb.org. A leader’s guide called “International Mission Training Institute Manual for Volunteers” is also available. For more information, call the IMB at 1 800 999-3113.

Ideas and Resources for Going to All Fields

__ Create “construction mission teams” from among the congregation.These teams can be used for special projects in assisting widows and other churches, and meeting needs locally, nationally, and internationally related to construction. Contact your association or state convention office for construction project opportunities, or see the volunteer needs list posted at http://thebridge.namb.net.

__ Lead members to participate in disaster relief efforts locally, nationally, and internationally. Tasks usually include such things as food preparation, cleanup and recovery, repair and rebuild, communications, crisis counseling, and childcare.Volunteers can receive practical training through their association or state convention and can respond whenever and wherever disaster strikes. For more information about Southern Baptist disaster relief, contact your state convention office, call NAMB at 1 800 462-8657, or visit www.namb.net/dr. You can also access church, family, and associational disaster relief preparation manuals at this site.

__ Enlist members to be part of “medical mission teams.” Nurses, doctors, dentists, emergency medical technicians, and others may be included from among your congregation.This group can be available to serve locally, nationally, or internationally on special medical missions projects. “Medical mission team” information is available nationally at www.namb.net/ccm, or for international opportunities, visit http://going.imb.org.

__ Lead Sunday School classes and other small groups in your church to appoint their own mission coordinator.These key leaders can work in cooperation with the mission leadership team to involve their group in various mission projects and partnerships.

Use the following worksheet as a tool to plan your church’s strategy for mobilizing member to “go” in response to the Acts 1:8 Challenge.