A huge buzz-word in the missions world is to be “incarnational”. What incarnational means may vary as widely as a person’s definition, but at its core, to be incarnational means to be engaging with an intimate knowledge and love for the culture of ministry. Some organizations and missionaries embody this well, while others don’t. Christmas is a great lesson for missionaries in speaking to their vocational call to missions.
Christ, of course, is the key reason for Christian missions, and advent is a great time of reflection and learning. What does it mean to be like Christ – incarnational – in this local culture? How did Christ become incarnational, and what would that look like in my unique ministry? These two questions can be an instructive meditation and great way to begin the Christian calendar year in ministry. Let the incarnation of Christ be the meditation from which inspires one’s ministry for the new year.
In this issue of the Deep Missional Review read in Ashbrook’s Mansions of the Heart as to how to go deeper into God in order to be sent by God. Read in Mae’s Social Justice Handbook how to be incarnational with those suffering from social injustice. Read the life of Ernie Fowler in Not in Vain, Latin America Mission missionary and martyr in Colombia and see how his incarnational life as well as his incarnational death has been carried on. Finally, read about preparation for incarnational missions by learning how to be incarnational at home in the second section review Global Missions Handbook, by Hoke and Taylor.
Let this new Church year be inspired by Christ’s incarnational work so long ago, and how He is ministering incarnationally through His body throughout the world. Practice incarnation.
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