If
you are a student, ALOVE wants to hear from
you. Through ALOVE Engage, we feature a
number of articles on faith as a student,
and we really want to gather articles/thoughts
from different students around the UK.
If you want to share your thoughts and questions
on what mission looks like in your university
– get in touch today! Just email us
at alove@salvationarmy.org.uk
In this article,
Amy Pinwill, a former student (currently
working with ALOVE), kicks off with a look
at mission in the world of students ...
My
thoughts on mission ...
University is a great place for meeting
loads of people from all walks of life,
going deeper with things we’re interested
in and joining unusual societies, but where
does God fit in amongst all of this?
I think we often see mission as a big thing
way out there, but actually we can do it
in everyday life. When I was at uni and
involved in my CU we had a ‘mission
week’ once a year where we put on
events in a marquee right in the middle
of our campus. I helped out with some of
these, got a few of my friends along to
various talks, gave out life gospels –
but felt like somehow I was missing out
on what mission was really about.
In my opinion while these planned mission
events were good in the short term –
a bit like giving food parcels to a starving
country, they made it seem too simplistic.
We couldn’t just tell people about
God in an hour, we needed to be showing,
listening and helping them find Him themselves.
I know I often felt pressurised to get my
housemates who weren’t Christians
to go to these sort of events – nearly
all of the time they’d politely refuse
– until it suddenly clicked that they
were finding out about Jesus from me everyday!
In some ways it was easier when I remembered
this, but most of the time it meant washing
up when I didn’t want to, not joining
in with gossip and facing criticism when
I failed miserably at all these and more.
John 1:14 really sums this all up for me
– ‘The Word became flesh and
blood, and moved into the neighbourhood.
‘ (Message)
Questions
to think about:
We’d love to know more about what
you think about this stuff. Why not share
your thoughts in the ALOVE Connect section?
Some questions to consider include: |
Useful
Books:
• The book of Acts in the Bible –
see how the disciples engaged in mission…
• ‘Transforming Mission: Paradigm
Shifts in Theology of Mission’, David
J. Bosch
• ‘Church after Christendom’,
Stuart Murray
• ‘Mission-Shaped Church’,
report by the Church (foreword by Rowan
Williams) |
