22-06-09: Moving Mountains

Mike Frost, author of Exiles (well worth checking out) and The Shaping of things to come (also worth checking out) is a pioneer when it comes to missional church. A phrase that he used at a talk at LICC last year has been etched on my mind ever since - particularly because of its relevance for discipling young people who've had no prior contact with church - 'choose your mountain'.

Mike, an Ozzie himself, was referring to a missional approach used by Australian missionaries to Papua New Guinea. When the missionaries arrived they realise there was pretty much a different tribe with a different regional dialect on each mountain on the islands. The missionaries had a choice: they could learn the dialect of each tribe on each mountain or they could choose one tribe - one mountain - disciple them and equip them to reach the tribes on the other mountains.

They wisely opted for the latter option.

What are the benefits of this approach? Discipleship is always about training others to do mission. If the missionaries had gone to each Mountain the likelihood is that the tribes they reached would never have the incentive to go and reach others.

Also discipling people who have little or no understanding of the Christian faith is intensive, focussed work. It's only those who have the long view who'll make any headway - most cross cultural mission bears witness to this. If you attempt to reach a wide variety of social groups en masse the chances of faith taking root is slim. Better to work intensely with a smaller number.

Added to this is the fact that 'indigenous' peoples make the best missionaries ie. Once you've educated them in the faith they know best how to make it relevant to their contemporaries- it becomes viral mission.

Does this mean when it comes to young people are our efforts diluted by trying to reach lots of different tribes at the same time? Should we choose our mountain be they middle class, working class, skaters, emo's, goths etc?

Without doubt when it comes to missional youth work it's doing sustained work with smaller numbers that's going to make a real difference. So maybe we need to get out our climbing gear.

For a more detailed discussion of this idea within a missional youth context look at the HUG (homogenous unit group) principle in Jo and Nigel Pimlott's Youthwork after Christendom - chapter 4.

Jason Gardner