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Hey guys!

Here are three things to spark your inner missional flame:

💥 INSPIRED BY

Sacrificial Attitude

As I began my early walk with Christ in the local church during college, I met Vivian.

Since the 1960s(ish), Vivian and her husband Hardin had been faithful members of this church I began attending.

Veteran saints, these two.

Something struck me each Sunday about Vivian.

Even though they came from the generation of hymnals, sheet music, and organ wailing, she’d always be there, right in the front row, raising her hands to whatever the latest contemporary Christian worship songs united the believers.

One day, we younglings asked her, “Vivian, you seem to enjoy these newer worship songs, don’t you miss the old ones from back in your day?”

Vivian humbly replied, “Of course I do. But it brings me more joy to see so many young people coming to Christ. So I’m glad to sing along to whatever will serve others.”

🛠️ EQUIPPED BY

The Reconciliation Cycle

As I reflect back on Vivian’s life (she has since passed away), I realized something.

Embedded in her answer was a critical idea that I call The Reconciliation Cycle. The cycle looks like this:

Whenever someone comes to Jesus, he is reconciled between God and man, God and that particular person. Jesus' sacrifice accomplished this.

But embedded in the Christian faith is a critical component that has everything to do with arts and mission: we must die to ourselves. This is what we often refer to as being "incarnational." We empty ourselves like Christ (Philippians 2:7).

To think of our days “missionally” means we put others before ourselves. Our preferences, interests, their lives, etc. The result? Christ becomes meaningful for someone else.

The irony is, as we learn from Vivian’s story, this death-to-self experience produces something in us: joy and purpose. We actually discover a newfound meaning in giving ourselves to someone else.

Vivian found old hymns meaningful.

She sacrificed that preference for the sake of the next generation.

She found Jesus meaningful in a whole new way with greater depth than before.

This is the rhythm of living through the lens of sacrifice and resurrection.

🚀 SENT WITH

Augustine: