How To Do Summer with Missional Intentionality

By: Kati Berreth

What would your summer look like if as you made plans for yourself, your family, with your friends, you did so with missional intentionality? Would it look any different than the plans you are making now? Would it place the Gospel first and have everything else line up in accordance with that? Would it give purpose to the conversations you have, the camps you sign your kids up for, the vacations you aspire to have, and the time in the sun you so desperately are hoping for after our rainy winter?

Join me this spring in making our summer vacations, our plans for our kids to be home, and even where and how our Gospel Community are going to meet intentionally missional.

Jonathon Dodson, a lead a29 pastor and author of the article “8 Easy Ways to be Missional” defines being missional in this way:

“Missional is not an event we tack onto our already busy lives. It is our life. Mission should be the way we live, not something we add onto life: “As you go, make disciples….”

So how can you, your family, your roommates, your Gospel Community, your kids be missionally intentional with your time this summer?

Over the next few weeks, I will highlight some specifics and ideas for doing just that, being missional this summer in Bellingham and Whatcom County, but to start let’s pray together.

“Father, You are a good and gracious God. You are mighty and just. We praise You alone for speaking this world, this universe, into existence as well as knowing even the smallest details of our lives as the number of hairs on our heads.

Even as we pray this prayer, we confess that our motives for making plans and pursuing ideas can be selfish, seeking worldly comfort, safety and peace, as well as worldly excitement. We confess that we often love the gifts of this world more than the Giver of those gifts – You.

Please God, change our hearts and our minds to put You and Your mission, “To make disciples of all nations” first in all we do, especially as we think about this summer. Please remind us of the good news of Your Gospel, that Jesus died for our sins, taking on our punishment, the Your wrath, then rising from the grave, defeating sin, satan, and death, so that we might be in relationship with You, the eternal and everlasting God. And please ignite us to share this amazing news with those around us…intentionally this summer.

Father, we thank you for what Jesus has done for us. We thank You that we live in a time and a place where we have the ability to even ponder what our summer plans will look like. And we thank You for loving us even when and if we don’t do this right.

God be with us as we seek to be intentionally missional this summer.

In Jesus precious name we pray.

photo credit: Whiskeygonebad via photopin cc