Since childhood, a strong desire to be missional has lived in my heart. Because a church that does not recruit, dies. But more than that: if we truly believe the gospel, we are also moved by all the people around us. At the same time, it is a great challenge to put that missionalism into practice in the context in which you find yourself as a church.
Deaf World
When I became sign pastor for the Interdenominational Deaf Ministries in 2015 (www.doofenkerk.nl), I stepped into a whole new context. Step by step, I was initiated into the world of the deaf. Frankly, I didn't know that world existed before! It turns out there are some 70 million deaf people worldwide and most of them have not yet been reached with the gospel.
To reach deaf people, sign language is a prerequisite and indispensable. Because deaf people think and communicate visually. But it is much more than that. The deaf world has a culture all its own. Having immersed myself in that world and culture for five years, I was eager to look for (new) opportunities to be missionary present in the deaf world.
Being missionary together
That's why I took the Church Outside course, together with 1 CGK colleague and 22 PKN colleagues. The programme offers solid theological reflection and many practical tools to shape missionary action. The beauty of it is that you mainly learn how to do that together with others (church council and church members).
There is a lot of emphasis on the context in which you yourself are engaged. How can you share the gospel in a contextual way? The training certainly does not offer one single model for this. You are offered a lot of reflection and plenty of room to form your own vision. Fortunately, I was also given every opportunity to apply the training to the specific context in which I work: the deaf world in the Netherlands.
The course is broad, so all sorts of things come along. But that is precisely what is instructive. I learned an awful lot from the conversations and discussions, not least from lecturers and colleagues with whom I differed.
Missionary project
One of the aims of the course is for you to set up a missionary project with others. This does not have to be big. But you will be guided step by step as a team. And you can do something that suits your congregation or work situation. That fits well with my vision that you together missionary congregation. It does not depend on you as a pastor. At the same time, as a pastor, you can play a very good and clear role in it. So I found the module on leadership very interesting and instructive.
Highly recommended
A course like this requires quite an investment (on average 7 hours a week for 1.5 years), but I can recommend all colleagues and church workers to take this course. It gives you a strong incentive to be (more) missional together in your place.
Rev. Martin Visser
pastor of deaf chaplaincy, Christian Reformed Churches and Interdenominational Deaf Chaplaincy
