mission Archives - Keith Shields

Bonhoeffer, 1944

Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote these words around 1944 while he was imprisoned by the Gestapo in Nazi Germany. He would later be executed as a traitor against the Nazi regime. “During these years the Church has fought for self‑preservation as though it were an end in itself, and has thereby lost its chance to speak a…

Saint Columba Day 2016

Today is the traditional celebration day for Saint Columba, an Irish missionary who did the work of God in Scotland. The following quotes are attributed to this man of God. Alone with none but Thee, my God, I journey on my way; what need I fear when Thou art near, Oh King of night and…

What is Church? Chapter 2

In a blog on January 6th, I suggested that one purpose for gathering as followers of Christ is to search for God and allow others to do the same. Today I want to address another reason why we gather as the Body of Christ: mission. As most of us will know, Missional Church is very…

Your Mission, Should You Choose To Accept

We are in the midst of a mission. If we are attentive and listen to God, he has a mission for us. The Creator of the universe has made each of us unique and has gifted each one with a mix of talents, given to us at birth, and gifts, given to us at the…

Presbyopia

I remember the day an older friend came to me and said that he was planning on joining a church that was made up entirely of young people. This man had already lived more life than these young adults expected to live. He had had a successful career as a college president, had written a…

Patrick

St. Patrick (originally Patricius) was a British, Roman, Christian, missionary in Ireland during the second half of the 5th century. He was taken to Ireland as a slave from Roman controlled Britain. In Ireland he toiled as a shepherd-slave for six years before escaping. He trained for ordination and returned to Ireland as a missionary…

Purpose in Life

In his book, “At The Crossroads,” Charlie Peacock quotes John Henry Newman as saying, God has created me to do Him some service; He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission. Therefore Iwill trust Him. Whatever, wherever I am, I can never be thrown away.…