In This Month's Issue:
DAILY MISSIONS
Mary takes in a homeless youth
A “retiree” keeps working one of her mission fields
RESOURCES
Explore the “hook up” culture among college students
What the USA and Islam have in common
FOR MEDITATION
A member mission dimension for intercessions
MM SHORTS
Why we talk
“The free exchange
of private opinion
is the bedrock of
democracy.”
– to paraphrase a
Federalist Paper
from the 1780s
Where to begin
Request “Tell me some
of the reasons you are
here.”
You will begin to hear
about one of that
person’s missions.
– David Jones
A verse to live by
“Whenever you did
one of these things
to someone overlooked
or ignored, that was me – you did it to me.”
– Matthew 25:40
(trans. by E. H.
Petersen)
Keep Member Mission Around!
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YouTube: Have You Seen?
February 2012
Member Mission Newsletter #101
Being open
(Click here for a printable version)
(Click here to view this email in your browser)
A member mission hint
Toward the end of an overnight orientation to member mission for the vestry (the official board) of their church, three said -- almost as a chorus, "I wish I’d had this when I was younger!"
So what place does finding your missions have in confirmation for youth and adults and newcomer orientation? [See Activities 1,2, 5, and 6 from the workbook, Living the Gospel.]
Mary takes in a homeless youth
Mary works from home doing financial analysis for a health care insurance company. One of her daughters, a college student, happened to meet a 17-year-old who had run away from his abusive home to live on the street. He had been hanging out at the campus where she was a student and 
her mother had taught her to look for people who seemed to be in need. When her daughter asked Mary to help, she offered, “We have only a space on the floor and a seat at the table for him but he is welcome.”
Tom was grateful to find a home, but suspicious when he saw crosses and Bibles in the house. He said, “Oh, you are one of those Christians aren’t you?” “Yes,” she answered and he said, “I am an atheist and I don’t believe in God.” “Okay, but that does not change whether or not He believes in you,” Mary replied. He thought and said, “You’re only doing this to get into Heaven.” “Honey, if this was all it took to get into Heaven, I would have done it years ago,” Mary answered. As he looked at her in a funny way, she continued, “I’m already in Heaven. My belief says that because Jesus died for my sins, I am already there. What I do here is just my attempt to respond to God’s love for me.” “Everyone has to have an ulterior motive,” he countered. “Not everybody. I don’t,” Mary answered.
His harumpf followed and so did two years of talking with him night after night. She was showing him that God loved him deeply and intimately and cries over his wounds and is really sorry for what happened to him. At first, he argued with and blamed God. She waited patiently and after a while he began to ask about the Bible and where it came from. She gave him “Christianity 101" as she puts it. He asked if he was worth saving. “Yes, God believes in everybody,” she answered and, at that point, humility began to come and the arrogance began to soften. He began to ask God about who he was; what happened to him and why. Deep prayer followed. Mary said, “People who are abusers are not carrying out God’s will. They are having trouble responding to God’s love. It’s not the victim having the problem and it is not the victim’s fault. It’s the offender’s fault for not responding to God’s character.”
He started going to church with her – at first, occasionally, then, constantly. St. Francis became his hero because Francis had walked away from poor parenting too. He began talking with the Christian community and people his age. Now, Tom is praying, reading the Bible daily, and asking about baptism. Mary gave him Torah, the Koran, and Hindi reading so he can be sure he wants baptism as a Christian. He has a sharp mind and wants to return to college to study philosophy and theology. He’s thinking of teaching or being a social worker. He will move out soon to share living, for a month, with a person of similar values and beliefs to test the suitability of the relationship.
Mary has taken in two other foster teens. When foster children turn 18, the state’s social welfare system no longer supports them so Mary takes in those she can care for.
Contact:membermission@aol.com
A “retiree” keeps working one of her mission fields
Ramona, having passed her three-quarter century mark, continues to work half time as an Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselor. She sees her work as a lay mission.
“What led you to desire to continue?”
“I don’t know what I’d do if I did retire. And we need the income. And God didn’t want me to sit around and clean house and travel.”
“What is mission-like about it for you?”
“It started years ago when I was thinking what I can do to work for God. As part of our church’s Women of Vision, I had discovered listening, encouragement, and teaching as spiritual gifts. I decided to use them in developing counseling skills.”
“How do you see God working in what you do?”
“Just that I am able to get up and go to work on any day. When I see the clients getting what I am teaching and that I am able to incorporate faith along with helping them grow spiritually, as well as begin to make significant changes in their lives.”
“How do you see God helping you to do that?”
“I wouldn’t be able to do it if I didn’t let God work through me.”
Contact:membermission@aol.com
Explore the “hook up” culture among college students and young adults [the home mission field]: for college students and their parents, and for young adults. The Christian Century of 1/25/12 has six pages of articles for individual reading and for group discussion. For “opportunities for more egalitarian and family relationships,” see “Mating Games: Changing rules for sex and marriage” at http://www.christiancentury.org/article/2012-01/mating-games?print. For the experiences of college chaplains in ministering to students, see “Sex on Campus” at http://www.christiancentury.org/article/2012-01/sex-campus and, then, click on the author of each entry at the end of the article. For help for young women unsure about starting to date, see “Courage to Date” at www.christiancentury.org/article/2012-01/courage-date. Or order the whole 1/25/12 issue at 312-263-7510 to reproduce these pieces on your own.
What the USA and Islam have in common [the wider world mission field] can be discussed with the help of “Islam and American Exceptionalism” from the Summer 2011 issue of The Review of Faith & International Affairs. John Musselman reviews a book by Abdul Rauf where the author points out that the USA shares many political norms with Islamic teaching: consent of the people, separation of powers, freedom of speech, good governance, and concern for the poor. Especially important is religious freedom which fosters religious pluralism. For discussion groups, request the two page article from membermission@aol.com.
FOR MEDITATION – A member mission dimension for intercessions.
Put a member mission dimension into your intercessory prayers. When you pray, include a prayer that you may find a way to be part of God’s answer to your prayer. If a way to act comes to mind as you pray, make the power and will to take that action part of your prayer. For example: “Lord, I ask your healing for Bob. Grant too that my visits with him may strengthen his trust that your healing hand is on him.” Or “Lord, protect those who lack enough money to heat their homes the rest of this winter. Grant, too, that each of us may look for ways to see that they have the money they need.”
– from Mark Stamm, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University
YouTube Brings You Members on Mission
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* * *
During Lent, ask various members to share one of their daily missions
during announcement time on Sunday.
[Coach them guided by the questions on the worksheet for the mission field chosen.
See Basic Tools 3A and 3B at
http://www.membermission.org/New-Website-Files/basic-tools.html]* * *
Tell us about your work with member mission at info@membermission.org or phone 802-482-7743 (to fax, phone first). You continue on this list because of past interest and / or work together with the Member Mission resources. If you missed or lost any past newsletters, you will find them on the website under Newsletter > Archive.
To be dropped from the list tell us at membermission@aol.org.* * *
God is most interested in how we live from Monday to Saturday.
Sunday – all of church life – helps us to do it better.