Last weekend I spent 3 days being disturbed and inspired at UNOH’s Surrender conference. We were stirred by speakers such as Tim Costello, Shane Claiborne, Jackie Pullinger, Mike Frost and Ash Barker. Attending this conference unlike many others I have attended, is not designed to give you a feel good experience or equip you with the ‘10 steps to grow your church’. It is purely and authentically and raw and unapologetic call to each person to surrender everything and follow Jesus with a particular focus on serving the poor.
Every year I attend the conference I need serious debriefing because it really shakes me up as to whether I am being true and authentic in my calling. There is a process of recontextualizing the challenge put to me to serve the poor, and understanding how that is lived out in Blackwood. So far I’ve managed to identify a number of ways I/we can authentically live out the Gospel so that it is good news to the many who need to hear it here in the Adelaide Hills. However our service is much more than just random acts of kindness, we are driven by a deeper calling.
I went to a work shop at the conference titled ‘How to overcome your fear of the ‘E’ word.’ That’s right the ‘E’ word…’evangelism’! It’s a word that makes me nervous because I associate it with many negative experiences friends of mine have had with Christianity. People in the workshop were asking questions of the panel such as, ‘once I’ve evangelized someone how do I disciple them?’ or ‘do I need an ongoing relationship with them?’ Questions that just seemed ridiculous to me.
Evangelism is derived from the Greek word euagelion. It literally means great or joyful news. I would suggest that if what we do in the name of Jesus in our community, whether it be in word or action, is not joyful news to the ears and experiences of the people we interact with, then it’s not evangelism and certainly isn’t the Jesus way. Many people think evangelism is a sales pitch to get people to believe the same things as you as if you offer a tight little package they sign up for.
Good news is spoken into peoples lives in all shapes and forms. As followers of Jesus we must committed to sharing good news in relationship with others, inviting them into a discipleship journey. The good news in the context of the Jesus experience is life transformative. I would suggest that we as followers of Jesus need to become astutely tuned into understanding the shaping of our own story of formation because it is that story of formation or transformation that captures peoples hearts and minds. It is that story that helps people understand why this Jesus movement is so captivating, uplifting and life giving.
All the speakers at the conference were speaking to the theme of ‘Fools for a revolution’. The message was clear that this Jesus movement is a revolution for those who are foolish enough to believe that the world could be turned on its head. A world where the marginalized are integrated into society, the oppressed are set free and those who experience poverty in any aspect of life are liberated by good news. And the leader of this movement is the biggest fool of all, we know him as Jesus, the one we all testify to as being responsible for the way we live our lives.
May you live your lives foolishly through a story, your story, that is shaped to transform the lives of others.
Shalom
Mark Riessen
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