Study Your City: Key Questions Missional Christians Should Be Asking About Their City

Over the last few years, the word “missional” has gained particular amounts of attention. However, defining missional can be a complicated process. For example, this week I had a conversation with an aspiring church planter who wants to plant a church in a bar in the southeast as I did a few years ago. He’s been reading, praying, and thinking about what a man on mission looks like. Let’s say you’re in this boat too: being convinced by Scripture and convicted by the Holy Spirit to step out, deeply burdened to see lost people in your neighborhood, bars, coffee shops, gyms, grocery stores, and schools meet Jesus. This means you have to think like a missionary—a mindset that requires both studying the culture you find yourself in, as well as engaging with it.

For starters, identifying the needs, the idols, and the history of the city must become part of your routine thinking. This is the prep work, and oftentimes the success of your ministry rides on it. That’s not to say that God can’t use you or accomplish his will or that all the pressure is you, but a call to lead is a call to prepare. A call to obediently make disciples as Jesus commands (Matt. 28:18–20) is also a command to focus on what’s in front of you. This part of the job can be really fun! Most of it can be done by using a concept already in your vocabulary. No, it’s not what some long word theologians constantly debate over—e.g. sublapsarianism, variegated nomism, or penal substitutionary atonement—rather, it is a simple, but often overlooked word: intentional.

KNOW PEOPLE TO REACH PEOPLE

All missionaries (and if you’re a Christian, you are a missionary) have got to be the most intentional people in the world. Asking questions, studying demographics, and making note of trends help make this possible! If you intimately know whom you want to reach, then you will be better set up to engage people effectively with the gospel of Jesus.

What are the goals, values, and beliefs of your city?

Here are just a few questions that we, as missional Christians, should be asking:

  1. What’s happening in my city?
  2. Who’s moving into my city?
  3. What buildings are going up in my city?
  4. What buildings are coming down in my city?
  5. How many schools are there in my city?
  6. How many people are here in my city?
  7. What is the crime rate like in my city?
  8. What are the goals of my city?
  9. What are the values of my city?
  10. What are the beliefs of my city?
  11. What is the history of my city?
  12. How long has my city been a city?
  13. At what times and days does everything come alive in my city?
  14. What do the people in my city love about my city?
  15. What do people despise about my city?
  16. What’s the media saying about my city?
  17. What do people in my city put their hope in?
  18. Who’s hurting in my city?
  19. Who’s succeeding and thriving in my city?

For everyday missionaries, the questions are endless.

Bank clerks, grocery store checkers, hair stylists, and property development workers can tell you so much of what you need to know about your city because they are in the city, working in the city, and up to date on what’s going on in the city.

Perhaps if you don’t know where to start, you should go get a trim and practice asking the person cutting your hair questions.

Dear Christian, are you studying your city?

Read the full story from Alex here.

Download PDF

Tags: , ,

| What is MyVisionRoom? > | Back to Vision >

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alex Early

Alex Early

I planted Four Corners Church in Newnan, Georgia, three and a half years ago with Acts 29. Our church plant was a bit peculiar being that the calling to plant was birthed out of first seeing an interview in 2006 with Pastor Mark where he described his week of ministry as a pastor who was on mission in the city, reaching the broken, burned out, and hopelessly lost. After that I was convicted: I quit my easy church job, got a job at a bar, and started reaching out. Before long, I had a vision and planted the church in Newnan, factoring in a one-year leave where Jana and I moved to London to pursue my second master’s degree in hermeneutics at the London School of Theology. The church was planted and today has over 300 in weekly attendance. Jana and I have been married for eight years and have two kids. Our daughter is Tovah (2), and our son Jude (13 months). I joined the Lead Pastor Residency Program because I deeply love the ministry of Mars Hill and now have the oppurtunity to serve as the lead pastor of Mars Hill Ballard.

See more articles by >

COMMENTS

What say you? Leave a comment!

Recent Comments
comment_post_ID); ?> Thank you for this information. I'm going to use this article to improve my work with the Lord.
 
— Abel Singbeh
 
comment_post_ID); ?> Thank you Ed for sharing your insights into the Church Growth Movement. I have my reservations with Church Growth models because it has done more damage than good in the Body of Christ. Over the years, western churches are more focused on results, formulas and processes with little or no emphasis on membership and church discipline. Pastors and vocational leaders are burnt out because they're overworked. I do believe that the Church Growth model is a catalyst to two destructive groups: The New Apostolic Reformation and the Emerging Church. Both groups overlap and have a very loose definition. They're both focus on contemporary worship, expansion of church brand (franchising), and mobilizing volunteering members as 'leaders' to grow their ministry. Little focus on biblical study, apologetics and genuine missional work with no agenda besides preaching of the gospel.
 
— Dave
 
comment_post_ID); ?> Thank you for sharing such a good article. It is a great lesson I learned from this article. I am one of the leaders in Emmanuel united church of Ethiopia (A denomination with more-than 780 local churches through out the country). I am preparing a presentation on succession planning for local church leaders. It will help me for preparation If you send me more resources and recommend me books to read on the topic. I hope we may collaborate in advancing leadership capacity of our church. God Bless You and Your Ministry.
 
— Argaw Alemu
 

Clarity Process

Three effective ways to start moving toward clarity right now.