Posts by Jon Trotter
Reflections on a Missionary Identity
While there is a particular need for more Christians to move and to bear witness in places where the church is not yet, this impulse, this DNA of being sent ones should be the DNA of the whole church. The church should think of everywhere as a mission field.
Read MoreMinistry in the Marketplace
VMMissions seeks to support and equip believers to live out their faith in every sphere of life, including places of employment. We are called to be ambassadors of the gospel whether that be in our hometown and first language or as one sent to cross barriers of culture and language where the church is not yet.
Read MoreLoving Your Neighbor as Meaningful Work
In recent months, I have been drawn again and again to Luke 10 and the Parable of the Good Samaritan. I am realizing that the illustration Jesus provides for “loving your neighbor” beautifully embodies “meaningful work.”
Read MoreWorker Profile: Marcello Arrostuto & Marianna Vaglica (Elia)
We are located in a small neighborhood community in Palermo, Italy. Marianna serves with the Sunday kindergarten class, in the choir, and with the women’s group. Marcello’s main roles are preaching and leading the evangelization committee. He also sings in the choir.
Read MoreCall to Prayer: Praying and Fasting
It wasn’t until I did a 72-hour fast that I began to truly understand what fasting meant. Along with prayer, it does the mysterious work of drawing us close to God so that our desires and perspectives align with his. All of my doing needs to flow from that place of abiding and praying, with words or without.
Read MoreAn Unexpected Path to Mission
Serving in missions work overseas isn’t something that I ever imagined myself doing, but through the process of moving to and serving in Germany, it’s become evident to me that even when I didn’t even know what I was doing, God did. I now recognize all the ways God was preparing me for this assignment.
Read MoreGod is Still Saving This Generation
Serving in college ministry for the past few years has deepened my conviction that the Great Commission is as relevant and urgent as ever—and it’s especially meaningful for a generation that’s wrestling with deep confusion, fear, and spiritual brokenness.
Read MoreFor a Generation to Come
The mission of the SLAQ program is to raise up youth as serving leaders through practices of adventure, service, and wisdom. In our day, SLAQ wants to create a context where the next generation can step out of the comfort-driven streams of culture, and listen to what life expects of them.
Read MoreEngaging the Next Generation
Mentored ministry is now more relevant than ever as the next generation is joining the work of missions. The recent generation does not prefer to receive verbal instruction and then go and do. Rather, they are looking to go and do alongside mentors who help them succeed, even through experimentation and failure.
Read MoreFive Qualities of a VITAL Church
How do we engage the next generation in the life and witness of the church? That was the key question I wanted to answer six years ago in my doctoral dissertation. Five overarching themes emerged, which I sum up with the acronym, VITAL.
Read MoreThe Anabaptist Mission Flame
Recently I discovered that my ancestors had been invited to adopt Anabaptist faith by neighbors in the 1660s. The flame of Anabaptism spread rapidly from neighbor to neighbor. Today, the mission flame of the early Anabaptists is still very much alive.
Read MoreAuthentic Disciples on Mission
A bold, irrepressible witness characterized both the Early Church and the early Anabaptist movement, who fearlessly, prophetically, and persuasively shared the good news of the Kingdom in a dangerous environment, under threat of severe persecution and even death.
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