The blacksmith works iron on his anvil with great noise. Next to the forge is the inn where you can eat, drink and sleep. Next to it is another small city farm with some cattle and chickens. A little further on is a square with the big church. Parishioners walk in and out; the priest listens to confessions inside. In the street, children, chickens and pigs mingle. This is how I imagine the life of a town in the Middle Ages. There is no separation of functions; everything swarms together.
No separation
Our ancestors of the Middle Ages were closer to the people of the Bible in this respect. The Lord Jesus walked the land and in a single day, so to speak, could speak to crowds, perform miracles, sit down to a meal somewhere, and call out a tax collector from a tree.
Separation
In our neatly raked society, things are different. Our life is broken into pieces. We have a strict separation of functions: shopping streets, industrial estates, residential areas, agricultural areas and remote cemeteries. Our lives are also neatly compartmentalised: during working hours, we wear work clothes, use professional language and interact with our colleagues. During private time, we wear comfortable clothes, interact with family, relatives and friends and relax. Perhaps we have a hobby, which in turn forms a separate 'world', perhaps the ultimate place to escape from all those other compartments, worlds and 'bubbles'.
Distinction
For Christians, the 'box' of the congregation is added. On Sundays in church and during the week at congregational activities, different behaviour, attitudes, clothing and language is appropriate again. A lot of churchgoers are also familiar with the distinction between natural and spiritual. The former is about ordinary, everyday life. The second is about one's relationship with the Lord. For some, these are two worlds that are far apart.
Compartments and drawers
When we think about our missional vocation, we involuntarily tend to put it into one of our many 'boxes'. The 'church' box perhaps, or the 'drawer' of the 'spiritual'. It feels uncomfortable to just start talking about your love for the Lord and His service at work, at the coffee machine. That might still work when you are among Christian colleagues, but outside that Christian 'bubble' it is very rarely appreciated
Breaking through
The task facing Christians is to stretch the boundaries of the various boxes, or even break them. This requires creativity, wisdom, patience, love also for other people. A good example of such an approach is given by English missiologist Michael Moynagh (found on YouTube by searching 'Discovery Bible Study'). He recommends bringing colleagues, friends or acquaintances into direct contact with the Bible, especially the Gospels, by challenging them to put the words of the Lord Jesus into practice, thus 'testing' them for their effect. Recommended to discuss the story of Moynagh in living rooms with each other and look for a form to prayerfully try this too!
Rev. Peter L.D. Visser
missionary consultant
