How I Got Here - Missional Community

A year or so after reading the Cutting Edge article about Vineyard Central, I picked up the magazine again and noticed an article about a church that had been started in Washington D.C. in 1947. That church was called The Church of the Saviour, and the planters were Gordon and Mary Cosby. I guess I had skipped this article because I was so excited after reading about Vineyard Central. But I also think it was a timing issue.

Probably the biggest takeaway from this was the idea of Inward/Outward Journey. It's definitely influenced the vision of our church today. It was the idea that the church exists for God's mission. It's much bigger than simply coming together once a week. And it's not meant to be done alone. It was also around this time that I first heard the term "missional community". I don't remember where I first heard it, but I was impacted by it, and primarily so because of what I read from this church.

Here's the quote that I couldn't get out of my mind for a long time:

...the greatest impact on the world comes about by small, highly committed and disciplined communities of people focused on outward mission, inward transformation, and loving, accountable community.

This became a mission statement for me, and something that I desired to be a part of more than anything else.