Posts by Jon Trotter
A Shared Heartbeat for Mission
If the church is made up of disciples, then everything we are part of should replicate. Peter Eberly, pastor of Eastside Church, has missional dreams that from the congregation would come churches in many locations. That replication must begin with individual disciples.
Read MoreLocal Mission on the Map
Skip Tobin, Ministry Coach for USA workers, is excited about all that is happening locally: interactions with workers, requests for tranSend interns from local pastors, hearing from district leaders about their missional hopes, and working at discipleship through huddles.
Read MoreCall to Prayer: Teaching Children to Pray
As believers, we are tasked with the job of bringing the little children to Jesus. We can spend all the time in the world teaching children about God, but if we don’t teach them how to relate to God, we’re not doing any better than the disciples who tried to shoo the children away.
Read MoreA Knock on the Door, Seeking and Finding
“I believe that Jesus is God, and I want to be a Jesus follower.” I couldn’t believe my ears as Yousif prayed a beautiful prayer of repentance, expressing a humble need of Christ. How could this be happening? A Muslim young man, coming to faith so quickly?
Read MoreSharing the Good News in Switzerland
I wasn’t sure if my writing and work on spirituality in the United States would connect with the people of Europe, but the loneliness, brokenness and hunger for a deeper relationship with God is as evident here as at home.
Read MoreSowing Seeds of Good News
A number of workers and staff share holy moments of gospel seeds being sown in the everyday, right here and now. How will God use these interactions to draw people from his diverse creation back to himself?
Read MoreIn Word and With Power
In a slum community in a large Asian city, Anita and Yosiah have gained their community’s trust through deeds of love. Now they ask, “How do we proclaim the gospel holistically? People know we live here and do what we do because we are followers of Jesus.”
Read MoreLoving Our Neighbors in Jail
Jason has seen firsthand the deep hunger for connection to God and loving fellowship that inmates have in the Rockingham Regional Jail. Since being appointed as a VMMissions worker to serve as jail chaplain, he has been introduced to the lives of many men who are serving sentences there.
Read MoreCall to Prayer: Praying Together
Sarah Showalter’s “team” for the last several years has been a small prayer group of young adults from her congregation, Ridgeway Mennonite Church. After joining another couple for an evening of prayer, “we weren’t intending to start a prayer group, but then we were hooked.”
Read MoreBecoming One: God’s Purpose for Community
“Teamwork was never one of my strengths as a child,” Crystal Lehman writes. In fact, I often avoided working in teams if I could. If I was alone, I could make sure every detail was just right. Depending on others felt too risky. But God challenged me by putting me in situations where I needed others.”
Read MoreBetter Together
Mission’s dual foundation of absolute rest in the love of God and commitment to God’s is best maintained in community. We need others to hold us accountable, worship with us, encourage us, and make the logistics of ministry possible.
Read MoreThe Wisdom of Teams
Have you ever tried playing baseball by yourself? Or singing four-part harmony alone? There are some things you simply can’t do without the help of others. We believe mission is one of them. I want to share five ways why team is our preferred mode of engaging in mission.
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