Missional Community series | Post #3
We’re in a 4 month series on this blog about Missional Communities to celebrate the release of the new book, Launching Missional Communities: A Field Guide, as well as our time leading up to the Exponential Conference at the end of April.
Today’s post is a simple one, but one I think you’ll find particularly helpful and can serve as a tool to use for other people.
One of the things we talk about a lot in regards to Missional Communities is that they need to be balanced in the way that Jesus’ life was balanced. He had three definitive dimensions to his life, and so with MCs, we should have the same dimensions.
- UP: time spent focusing on God
- IN: time spent focusing on others in the body
- OUT: time spent focusing on those who don’t know Jesus yet
If this is done well in the context of a spiritual extended family on mission together (groups of 20-50), the community, mission and discipleship that occurs through God’s Spirit is stunning.
Earlier today, Thomas Willer, a good friend doing some really exciting things in Copenhagen, sent me this picture of how they are teaching their community how these things relate. Thought this would be something worth sharing.
Mike Breen 
Hi Mike. Loving the blog! Glad to see some stuff about balance in MCs. I’ve been reflecting on this a bit and also used UP IN OUT (being part of TOM!) to reflect. My thoughts were:
UP – Glorify Jesus.
IN – Grow as disciples (links up and out)
OUT – Go together in mission
I blog at http://www.luke1910.wordpress.com and am part of Kairos Church in Harrogate. bless you for all you do to equip and disciple us.
Thanks for sharing…this is a good conceptual way to look at this.
Love this!
The magnetic pull toward IN at the exclusion of OUT is so strong, I appreciate that they labeled that extreme as “dying community”. Ironic that healthy community dynamics to the exclusion of the other dimensions can lead to introspection and ultimately death. Strong but appropriate language here.
Mike-this is a very helpful visual, particularly when coupled to up-in-out and the overview of marks if a missional community from Keld Dahlmann. Will use these later on with Legacy. Tha.ks!
What does “secteric closed” mean?
A sect, according to dictionary.com, literally means: a particular religious group characterized by insistence on strict qualifications for membership. So not only that, but one that is closed off to people outside of these strict qualifications. In other words, instead of having any sort of OUTward focus, they focus INward to the exclusion of OUT and seek to preserve what they currently have.
Sounds like my church, and I’m the pastor! help!
Great visual! Now comes the hard part—owning that which we are so we can repent.