Five
Suggestions
by Captain Diane Hobbs
Captain Diane Hobbs
- Hobbs started a corps
several years ago in Victoria Australia that she continues to
lead and that continues to prosper.
For
Peter Hobbs and I in the ministry
commenced on the Bellarine Peninsula, Victoria, Australia, we
believe that it clearly tells people within Luke 10 how to
advance the Kingdom of God.[1]
This then has been fundamental in establishing the ministry
and has subsequently been the blueprint of our church plant
within our area. Obviously the context in which Jesus
instructed the disciples has changed but the underlying
principles remain the same. It is within the context of a
western modern missiological approach with which I write.
However, I believe that these principles are transferrable
within any socio-political, economic context.
Tip no 1: Go with
someone- do not go alone:
Within Luke 10 we see that Jesus sends
out the 72 in pairs[2].
I am in no way saying it needs to be gender specific i.e
married couple. I am simply speaking numerically[3].
Gender, nor gifting, is specified in this story.[4]
What is specified is that they do not go alone and I think
there is good reason for that. In the next sentence you get a
picture of the realities of the mission field. You are being
sent out as sheep among wolves.[5]
In other words you will have opposition; there is no escape
from that reality.[6]
Opposition will impose a threat to you and at times will be
extremely intense. Isolation increases the risk of
vulnerability and chance of being consumed by the opposition.
Partnership immediately doubles defence.
There are a lot of practicalities within
this specification. Having a chosen partner go with you who
shares the mission and vision[7]
provides you with companionship, someone to talk to, someone
to share your highs and your lows with, to pray with, seek
advice, seek strength from, be strength for, etc. This person
often keeps you grounded in reality. This person minimises the
sense of being alone.
Tip no. 2:
Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers
into his harvest field.
“The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few”.
[8]
The need is great, but the people available for mission and
ministry are few. So pray! Peter and I were commissioned as
prayer warriors- and for our commissioning song some of the
lyrics included “prayer is our warfare, Come lead us Lord!’
For all followers of Jesus, prayer is essential to ministry.
There are multiple reasons for that, one of which is simply
that the wolves are real. The reality of ministry is not easy
and certainly requires personal sacrifice. That sacrifice at
times can be too great, and many get put off by the realities
of ministry. Jesus insists; pray continuously for God to raise
up workers for the harvest.
These people are not necessarily always
going to be leaders of groups, but they will be your alliance.
Some of these people of peace will initially be simply the
people that fan your flame. These people are powerful within
themselves and within their networks. They will come from
within the community that you are going to, or find yourself
in. The nature of their influence may not be predictable or
foreseen. Nevertheless, they will hear the gospel message and
respond; often not just them but their family and their
networks. They are people of peace. Jesus insists ‘whoever is
not against us is for us’.[9]
The seed that is planted within their own lives will grow.
They will become passionate about the mission of God and will
join you in the mission.
Often I think we graft people from outside of the community
that we have been sent to, people that might already be strong
in their faith, but nonetheless from outside of the community.
I believe the workers for the harvest that you are praying for
will come from within. From my experience, the best workers
for the harvest are new Christians- or these ‘people of
faith’, who have been raised up from within the new community
of believers.
Tip no. 3: Go with
minimal resources!
Do not take a purse or bag or sandals.[10]
There are again practical reasons for implementing this. Often
today, we go into communities, with a building plan, or
programme being our main priority. From the beginning we can
become focused on what we want to achieve rather than what God
is already achieving within the community that we are simply
going to tap into, and partner in. Often a temptation in
ministry is to have the greatest and best resources because it
is falsely understood that that is what will ultimately
attract and keep people. Jesus is actually saying- that is not
what is important. I actually believe that what Jesus is
trying to say to his disciples in this instance is to ‘Go! Be
dependent on the community that you are being sent to’.
Resources are not finite. Believe that what you need for
ministry will be found within the community you are being sent
to. What you are taking with you, the message of the Gospel,
the reality of Jesus, is enough. There is no hiding the fact
then, that you are there for one reason only. People will
either want what you have- the message of the Gospel, because
you have nothing else to give them, or they won’t.
By going into a community with limited resources- this forces
the disciple out of their comfort zone. They are then reliant
on the hospitality of the community that they are being sent
to. Accept that hospitality. This stops them from saying-
‘come to me- see what I have to offer’ and instead forces them
to look at what the community has to offer them. God has
already gone before them and is already working within that
community. By going with minimal resources, this allows us to
have eyes to see what God is doing within that community,
which we can then tap into, enhancing community contacts,
building and establishing relationships.
Tip no. 4: Find a
person (people) of peace and sow the seed
Speaking obviously from a modern day
missiological approach, when you go into the new community
with nothing, you will begin to establish relationships from
the natural rhythms of your own family life, interests and
hobbies. i.e. the shopping centre, the post office, the
kindergarten, school, your next door neighbours. I find it
interesting in this passage that Jesus suggests for them not
to stop anyone on the street.[11]
We too have taken this quite seriously, in that we do not
chase people on the street or stand on street corners
preaching the Gospel. I am very aware within Australia, the
majority of people are extremely wary, cynical, sceptical of
people who do this. Obviously Jesus and the apostles spoke
often in public places however, in this instance, I think that
the advice, given by Jesus, additionally addresses another
practicality.
When people are busy moving from place to
place, often the relationship cannot be well established, is
often superficial conversation as one of the parties is
usually distracted, and keen to get to their point of
destination. The Message Bible also says-
‘Don’t
impose yourself.[12]
What Jesus might be implying with this, as he exampled often
within his own ministry i.e Zaccheus, Mary and Martha, we go
into the comfort zone of the person of peace and relax with
them in their space. Rather than inviting people out of their
comfort zones into our space- we go where they are most
comfortable, into theirs and build and nurture relationship
there. By going into other people’s spaces it also affirms
them. This is
where personally I think hospitality is one of the greatest
gifts, which cannot be under-estimated.
We simply meet people,
their families, their neighbours, our neighbours, contacts
from other people…we listen and are often directed to people
who need help or who are interested in what we do, or who
simply want to be friends. In the process we sow the seeds of
the Gospel. The people who accept our message are by
definition ‘people of peace’. These people welcome you into
their home, not just you but the message you bring.
Tip no. 5: Stay with
them!
‘Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for
the worker deserves his wages’.
Do not move around from
house to house.
[13]
I think this also taps into the
instruction- do not meet people on the street. Because what
Jesus is encouraging are genuine relationships. Accept the
hospitality of the community that you are going to. When you
find that person of peace do not move from house to house. Now
I know this seems quite contradictory to Jesus’ own ministry
and the ministry of the apostles, Paul in particular- because
they did move around a lot. But what it is saying in this
instance is when hospitality is offered to you, take it. Stay
with them. Don’t go look for something bigger or better. Meet
people on their own turf and accept their hospitality, and in
so doing you humanise and validate this person. You are
modelling the Good News of the Gospel with them. Don’t just
move on- perhaps assuming that this one person is not
responding to the message of Jesus in the way anticipated, or
this person can’t offer me what their neighbour can, and in so
doing move on to the next person. No one can determine how a
person is going to respond to the Gospel.
Go with no assumptions
and with great patience.
Jesus’ ministry is again a great example of that, in that he
called his disciples to follow him. The 12 men that were
probably not the most ideal candidates to be followers of the
Son of God were however chosen by Jesus. Why? Down the road,
or in the next town there certainly would have been more
educated, more articulate, more self-controlled, more
financially established men… but Jesus stopped and stayed with
these 12. Why? Because he saw the potential within all of
these flawed individuals. Even when he was exasperated at
their lack of faith, their unbelief, their squabbling for
position, their abandonment, he remained with them, never
forgetting and investing in their potential. The seeds sown in
their lives were seeds that slowly took root, that required
great suffering and periods of doubt to become deeply
established, but Jesus never left them. He remained with them
and from this- they saw the reality of the Gospel. Through the
life lived by Jesus. We are to be like that to the people
within our communities. The reality of Jesus.
Be prepared that sowing the seed of the
Gospel does take time. The nurturing and growth of the seed
takes care and time. We plant the seed. We are also reminded
in Scripture clearly- that the Spirit of God is the one who
grows the seed.[14]
We can become anxious in ministry, wishing our little
seedlings would grow and mature into plants faster; this is
again an area where prayer is vital. We need to pray believing
that God will grow the seeds that have been planted. However,
the realities of ministry again are not hidden from us in
Scripture. The parable of the Sower in Matthew 13 exhibits the
realities to be anticipated. As the sower we might anticipate
how our seedlings could grow, but there can be no guarantees.
Whilst I said never assume, anticipate that potentially a
person of peace could become the greatest asset to the
advancement of the mission of God. As with the disciples it
might take time for the reality of Jesus to be revealed. Jesus
does also say that for the people who are not ‘people of
peace’- who do not accept the message- you tend to know
quickly who these people are…then move on.
In conclusion: having implemented these key tips, within Luke
10 it tells us to heal, set people free, bring people into the
reality of Jesus. I can testify that people of peace, have
come to know Jesus as a reality, not only themselves as
individuals but their families.
Currently we have four generations from one family who have
come to faith and are now a part of our community. When we
first met them- they had little to no knowledge of Jesus now
they are all followers of Jesus.
One is employed by us and another is leading Junior
Soldiers. All are members.
One person within our community was on hard drugs and had been
for years. Her children were malnourished and neglected. Her
eldest daughter at a territorial youth camp prayed that her
mum (the most unlikely of people- she actually was not a
person of peace when we first met her) would find Jesus. The
mother one day prayed that if God was really real that he
would help her. At that moment Captain Peter Hobbs knocked on
her door. She stopped taking drugs immediately (which was a
miracle in itself) she required no detox, and she commenced
study and has now gained qualifications.
We started caring for a family whose son became a Junior
Soldier. The mother and son both became followers of Jesus,
and subsequently she found the courage and strength to leave
an abusive relationship that she had been unable to leave for
16 years. She had been unable to share that abuse with anyone
else. Only her children knew.
By implementing these instructions by Jesus, stories of faith,
healing, restoration, forgiveness have been evidenced. The
stories could continue but I have run out of time
J
Of course, there are many other fundamental principles that
could be covered however, these have been for us, the
essentials.
[1]
Similar to the instructions echoed in Matthew 9.
35-10.42 and
in Luke 9 when Jesus sends out the 12 disciples.
[3]
Contextually obviously gender considerations could be
variable
[4]
However, I do think there are
benefits to having a male and female contingency or a
combination of personality types: extrovert/introvert,
alpha-beta personality types; a variety of gifts
expressed- apostle, prophet, evangelist, shepherd,
teacher (APEST teams). I would certainly add the gift
of hospitality as being high on the agenda too. The
importance of gifts for ministry can be elaborated on
in another paper.
[6]
The similar account in Matthew 9, elaborate on the
implications of ministry in even greater detail.
[7]
Sowing seeds of the Gospel which will lead to the
expansion of the Kingdom of God.
[11]
The message Bible specifies :’Don’t
loiter and make small talk with everyone you meet
along the way’.
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