The Concordia Mission Institute (CMI) is a yearly missions training conference jointly hosted by Mission of Christ Network and Lutheran Bible Translators. People thinking about future mission service, called Mission Explorers, are invited to join the week-long training as guests of MCN.
It’s a rich and full week of fellowship and learning! Looking at comments from this year’s Mission Explorers, they talked about:
Here are 5 takeaways from the week:
1. Community is key.
As the word cloud above shows, mission explorer responses were full of words like “love,” “community,” and “family.” Relationships are at the heart of what MCN does, not just as we share the Gospel on the mission field but as an organization relating to each other. Being able to gather each year from across the world is a tremendous gift and a unique privilege for MCN missionaries.
“I was overwhelmed by the hospitality, kindness, friendliness, and openness of the mission partners and specialists.” – Nancy
Mission work is a team sport, and encouraging and being supported by a Christ-focused community is imperative for going and returning well.
“This is like a family reunion with people I never thought I knew.” – Matthew
Community is also key for discernment and decision making. When we interviewed a panel of MCN leadership during the conference about how they ended up in missions, a theme of their responses was that God put the right people in their path at the right time who gave good counsel and encouraged them in this direction. Mission Explorers felt the same.
“I feel as though God is giving me direction by the people that he sent my way to speak with.” – Stephen
2. “Don’t bother freaking out.”
Many mission explorers named the Missionary Panel as one of their favorite sessions of the conference, and perhaps no comment from this panel was as memorable as Naomi’s advice: “don’t bother freaking out!” After sharing honestly about how almost nothing she expected when she and her husband left Australia to do mission work in East Asia went the way she expected, she then reflected on how God has continued to provide for and direct them. Spoken not with glib indifference but with the confidence of one who has tested God’s promises and found them firm, Naomi repeated a couple of times, “Just don’t bother freaking out.”
As director John Mehl likes to say, “Missions happens where we are out of control.” And while nothing about this lack of control is easy or comfortable, the power of God and the faithfulness of God never fail.
“This is a community that is human, and for humans, discussing the raw realities of missions abroad and local missions in all their rawness out of love.” – Rebecca
3. A devoted life isn’t primarily about doing.
Monday’s Mission of God plenary from Dr. Leo Sanchez focused us on what it means to live a devoted life by the power of the Spirit. A key take away from this talk (perhaps especially important for service-oriented missionaries) was a reminder that “one can be Christ-like without being Christ-focused.” While being occupied with serving others is in many ways a Christ-like action, if this doing takes precedence over being in Jesus’s presence and focusing our worship on Him, we have lost the thread of what it means to be a Christ follower.
The ancient reminder of “ora et labora” (pray and work) was a beautiful way to start the conference week, reminding us to put the Word before work. When we remember that the Mission is God’s and only He can create faith, then we are free to proclaim the Gospel and say with Martin Luther, “I did nothing; the Word did everything.”
Describe CMI? “Truly transformative.” – Rebecca
4. “One Great Thing” is a myth.
Tuesday’s plenary session, led by Pastor Jeff Leininger touched on a number of characteristics of our plural vocations in life (based on his book Callings for Life). One of his first points addressed the myth of “the one great thing.” Reflecting on decades of campus ministry, he told the stories of students paralyzed by indecision when they looked toward graduation trying to discern the one great thing God wanted them to do – as well as the stories of older people looking back on their lives with regret, feeling they had missed the great thing they were made for.
Instead, Pastor Jeff encouraged us to focus on the faces (the who), the places (the where), and the spaces (the what) all around us so we might live faithfully in the many roles and relationships God has given us today.
For a group of mission explorers trying to discern if God is calling them to cross-cultural ministry, this talk gave permission and freedom to make choices for the future and follow passions and interests without the pressure of feeling like global missions must be (or not be) the one thing they are created to do.
“The opportunities to do mission work are varied. The option for differing locations and durations is appealing to many.” – David
5. Missions here and there have a lot in common.
Multiple times Mission Explorers remarked with a tone of surprise that much of what they were hearing and learning at CMI was applicable to life and ministry in the US, too. Building relationships and sharing the Gospel is at the heart of what it means to be Christ-followers no matter what place or culture we are living in. And we repeatedly told Mission Explorers that we want nothing more or less than for them to follow God’s lead and serve in His Mission wherever and however He calls.
At the same time, it is encouraging to know that serving as a cross-cultural missionary (while unique in its challenges and opportunities) is also in many ways an extension of Christian life in the US. One’s personality, hobbies and interests, and ways of building relationships are transferable to ministry in another culture. And in many ways the impact of these relationships can be multiplied by living in a place where few people know Jesus.
“Being encouraged by the stories and life experiences of both old and new friends at CMI has helped to remind me that God can truly use anyone to accomplish His will, and God isn’t done stretching us and guiding us to be the people He calls us to be.” – New Mission Partner, Katherine
If you are interested in joining CMI as a mission explorer next summer (July 11-17, 2027) or know someone who might be, reach out to Emily and Kayla at recruiting@missionofchrist.org. We’d love to connect!