Defining Missional Communities

Since we've decided to officially partner with Renew Communities in the launching of our Missional Community here in Cleveland Heights, I thought it'd be a good idea to share the definition of an MC as stated on their website.  If it sounds a lot like the kind of thing I've been talking about, that's because it IS the same thing.

Missional Communities:
A Missional Community consists of a committed core of believers who live out the mission of God together in a specific area or to a particular people group by demonstrating the gospel in tangible forms and declaring the gospel to others— both those who believe it and those who are being exposed to it.
To clarify, a Missional Community is NOT primarily a small group, Bible study, support group, social activist group, or weekly meeting.
Our hope is that every person who is committed to the Renew family and mission will be fully involved in a missional community and eventually the missional communities in a region will multiply and together form a new expression of Renew Communities.

 Defining Characteristics of a Missional Community

• Is a group of between 10-25 people
• Is unashamed about following Christ, in values and in vision
• While you don’t have to be a Christ Follower to belong to an MC, MC’s center on Jesus, helping people become and then grow as disciples
• Has a defining focus on reaching a particular neighborhood or a particular people group
• Takes place in community and often revolves around shared times of food and fun
• Has a healthy balance of UP, IN, and OUT
• Conducts worship, prayer, and Scripture reading as core practices
• Looks outwards through a mixture of service and verbal witness.
• Has a common mission focus that is the key glue for the shared sense of togetherness
• Gathers informally throughout the week, not just at formal meetings
• Has leaders who receive ongoing help, coaching and accountability
• Has leaders who do not do everything – they facilitate and release others to serve and lead.

The Missional Church ...simple [VIDEO]

Here's a video, which was shown at the [RE]new Communities launch this morning.
It sums up a lot of what I've been talking about in 2 minutes.

What needs renewal?

This morning Melissa and I attended the Official Launch of Renew Communities down in Berea.  We are going to be partnering with Renew Communities in the launching of a missional community here in Cleveland Heights.

The big question for the day was "What can you think of that is in need of renewal?"

What places, businesses, relationships, people, schools, situations, etc. are in need of renewal?

Much as Andy did in setting out to launch Renew Communities in Berea, I ran the numbers for our area:

Population
Cleveland Heights: 47,097
S. Euclid: 23,537
Lyndhurst: 15,279
University Heights: 12,571

That's 98,484 people.
60% of them, some 59,090 people, are not receptive to the current model of church.
What does it look like to bring renewal to these people?  What does it look like to show the transformational power of the gospel to these nearly sixty-thousand people?

Let's work that out.
Join us this fall for the launch of our MC, and contact me IMMEDIATELY if you'd like to be involved.

Sheffield 2011 (Boilerplate edition)

Dear Friends, 

We are writing to you with near overwhelming excitement about an opportunity that we have to participate in an experience that will change our lives and help shape our approach to ministry.

Melissa and I have developed a heart for our local community of Cleveland Heights and intend to start an Christ-oriented missional community here. We hope to see God's Kingdom move in this city in new ways and touch the hearts of the many young adults we've met who may not know Christ. To this end we are looking to expand our horizons regarding what we think a church could look like in a city like ours.

We have been invited by Church Doctor Ministries to participate in the Pilgrimage Gathering at the St Thomas Church, Sheffield, UK June 1 – 9, 2011. This is an immersion experience unlike any other. It is an opportunity to encounter God, be immersed in the life of the pilgrimage center in Sheffield, evaluate the ministry taking place there, and apply the learning here in North America. The program will combine worship, teaching, processing, outreach, and practical mission application in ministry.

Participating in this experience will equip us to help other pastors, ministry leaders, and churches discover how to best live out the mission of making disciples and reaching more people for Jesus Christ. We are living in challenging times and there is not a better time than right now to equip Christians to fulfill the Great Commission.

An important ministry endeavor like this is never done alone and not without the support of friends and family that share in a passion for a transformed and renewed church in America. Please consider this my personal invitation to you to join the “Heffelfinger Support Team.”

We are putting this team together to not only help with some of the costs of this immersion experience but to also become a part of a special prayer team. This prayer team will not only pray for us during the time we are traveling and attending the Pilgrimage Gathering but also pray that God, through this experience, will use us to help bring about revival and transformation in both our lives and yours, as well as those we touch.

All members of the support team will be invited over to our home for a gathering after we return from the trip so that we can share our appreciation and the experience with you. Any member wanting to receive email updates from us about the trip can provide their email address and we will add you to a mailing list for updates on how we are using this experience in our ministry work.

The costs associated with attending the Pilgrimage Gathering including, travel, lodging, and fees associated the gathering experience total around $7000 for the two of us. We are personally committing $2000. We are seeking to raise an additional $5000 to cover the remaining costs of the trip. I have made arrangements with Church Doctor Ministries for all contributions to be made directly to them so that they may be considered tax deductible. You will just need to write, “Sheffield – Heffelfinger” in the memo line of your check. Please send any contribution you feel called to give directly to Church Doctor Ministries using the donate button at either of our blogs.

In these tough economic times I know it may be difficult for you to support us financially. Please know you are invited first and foremost to join this team as a prayer partner in ministry – we know God will provide in all other ways for us.

Should you have questions or would like more information please feel free to contact us directly at adamheffelfinger@gmail.com or melissapaoloni@gmail.com . 

God bless,

--Adam & Melissa Heffelfinger

The Button

With the house show a huge success (and more on that topic to come) Melissa and I are now turning our attention to planning our trip to Sheffield, UK to see the Missional Community model of church in action at St. Thomas's Anglican/Baptist church.

To do that, though, we've got a lot of money to raise.  So while I'll be explaining A LOT more about all this in the days (or hours) to come, the main purpose of this post is to try to test the best way to implement the new "Donations" button that we'll be utilizing for taking some of our donations.