In a committee meeting the other day someone remarked that in their experience it was rare for pastors to be involved in missions. The intention was to compliment me for having participated in mission trips and being personally involved in the food pantry. But at first glance, you have to admit, the remark seems strange. Pastors, not involved in missions? Isn't that like baseball players who can't bat, and basketball players who can’t dribble?

Sort of. Missions (plural) is a derivative of our mission. The former is subsumed in the latter. Mission trips are one way to express our faith, one way God may lead us to convey our faith, but not the only way. Our missions are myriad and many. Our mission is singular. Our efforts to love the world through activities may be as varied as building a habitat house or traveling to Serbia. They are a part of our overall calling to: “love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, AND to love your neighbor as yourself.” I happen to have a passion for helping people love people of other cultures and places. I enjoy cross-cultural work and I am fulfilled when individuals catch a glimpse of its “heavenly reflection.” (This week I’m returning to Europe to help represent the CBF at the European Baptist Federation’s council meeting. I’ll be meeting with Baptist leaders from all over Europe and the Middle East. I do this because I feel a call to be involved in the global Christian movement.)

However, as much as I am passionate about “missions” I know that this is only part of God’s plan for KBC. We are not only called to mission work, but to be missional. This means that everything we do is subsumed under our mission to be the presence of Christ at home and in the world …and to minister to the whole person. At KBC we worship together, study scripture together, serve one another, extend our mission(s) together, and give together. These five actives are the way we “do evangelism.” Christians are formed, faith is born, as we live out this calling, seeking to imitate Jesus. This formation of the heart and mind does not happen over night. But it is our primary mission. As Brian McLaren says, the question is not: “are we there yet?” But it is: “are we making progress?” A mission trip is part of our missional journey toward faithfulness.