Breaking the Missional Code Continued

Breaking the Missional Code (Chapter 2)

In this chapter, Stetzer and Putman give us the basic principles of breaking the missional code in any context. What one should do is learn from this principles and apply them in their context, in their community in a way that the people they wish to reach out to will embrace.

The process (of breaking the missional code):

1. Calling from God – We need to be called by God to a certain people. The key to breaking the code of a community is to have the heart of the Father for that community. We need to guard against the urgency to press ahead before we have heard from God. So, who has God called us to?
2. Exegeting the community – the example of Rick Warren, he surveyed his community and found why people in his community did not go to church. Warren developed his strategy from an analysis of the community. Since people had four common complaints, he determined to try to address those concerns in his outreach. We don’t use the same techniques, but learn from Warren how he exegeted his community. What are the questions we need to be asking at MU? As we decipher our community, we may discover similar methods that have been used effective in other like-minded communities.
3. Examining ways God is working in similar communities – we need to ask what are some “successful” campus ministries at MU. What are some “successful” campus church planting movements at similar campuses?
4. Finding God’s unique vision for our ministry – not every church (campus ministry) is called to reach the same people, worship using the same music, attract the same people, and appreciate the same values. Churches that break the code seek to communicate the word and connect through worship with local people and culture. This takes place as they enact God’s vision for their local church. In the process, they develop a unique vision for their church that both honors God and connects with their community.
5. Adjusting that vision as you learn the context