David Fitch on Missional Networking (What We're Trying to Do in St. Louis Next Week)

Marty and I are no David Fitch, but his missional non-conference/conference in Ft. Wayne, Indiana last week is very similar to what we are trying to do in St. Louis next week, January 12-13. See my last post for more details.  They had a one day gathering with no cost (oops, we're charging $30 to cover expenses - we're too poor to do that ourselves) and little advertising (we've got that one down!). They had short times of teaching (yep), lots of dialogue (yep, again), and times of prayer and interaction (again, that's us!). If I didn't know better, I'd think that Fitch and crew ripped off our idea! But, I do know better. They did the same thing last year. The big difference is that they had 89 people just show up. We'll have nowhere near that many. We didn't do a lot of publicity on this because we wanted it to be an intentionally small gathering. Plus, we knew that we couldn't get that many people there so we thought that we'd come up with a REASON why we wanted it to be small. Aim low and you're more likely to hit your target!

I don't know about you, but I'm tired of going to conferences where I already know most of what is being said and I'm just hearing stuff I already agree with. I want to be challenged and engaged. I want to explore what God is doing in the world and I want to leave sharper and more focused on what God is doing than when I came. Everyone learns differently and I have found that I learn best through dialogue, questioning, and interaction around ideas. I also like gatherings that are dynamic because they encourage interaction and group processing instead of just having one person lecture a passive audience. So, that is what we are doing.

We believe that the future of global and local missions belongs to those who will take initiative and network from church to church. The day of large denominational bureaucracies is passing. They are too expensive and cumbersome and are becoming more and more difficult to maintain. They have their place, but if churches passively sit and let parachurch organizations (which is what denominations are) do the heavy lifting, then we will never effectively reach the exploding global population. The good news is that there is an indigenous church all around the world that is doing things a different way. Maybe we could join them as partners?

Anyway, leave a comment if you want to come and I'll get in touch with you. Here is the conference information if you are able to make it:

Place:
Dorsett Village Church
2240 Bennington Place
Maryland Heights, MO 63043
314.576.7729

Schedule:
First Dialogue- Power and Purpose of Networked Churches - Monday Night (6:00-8:30 pm)
Second Dialogue- Church as Missionary: Planning and Practice in Networked Churches - Tuesday Morning (9:00-11:30 am)
Third Dialogue- To the Ends of the Earth With Networked Churches - Tuesday Afternoon (1:00-3:30 pm)

Recommended Reading:
Transformation: How Glocal Churches Transform Lives and the World by Bob Roberts, Jr.
The Starfish and the Spider:  The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations by Ori Brafman and Rod A. Beckstrom

Hotel Accommodations:
Hampton Inn St. Louis/Westwood
2454 Old Dorsett Road
Maryland Heights, MO
314.298.7878
*Ask for The Church as Missionary Conference Rate*

Rate is $99/rm/night  (until Jan 5th) for king and double rooms.  Free shuttle from airport if needed.

Conference Reservations:

Meeting space is limited, so register as quickly as you can.  Please mail a check or money order for $30.00 (payable to NBBC) to:

New Bethany Baptist Church
The Church as Missionary Conference
6302 Holiday Road
Buford, GA 30518

Comments

[Ron Mackey]

would it be ok if I brought my payment with me to the conference? Otherwise I can put it in the mail today and it may arrive after the conference begins.

[Alan Cross]

Sure, Ron. You can bring it then.