Missio Lux Kickoff Training

Missio Lux holds a Kick Off Training at the start of every year (well, it's been two years so far!) Our purpose in doing it is to set vision, call to action, train and pray. Each time it has been a highlight of the year as the enthusiasm is all abuzz, and the dreams get bigger for what God can accomplish through us.

We started out Friday night in our home. We do this because relationships happen around the table, so we eat dinner together. The weather was so beautiful, warm for Seattle, so everyone ate outside and lingered at the tables, catching up from their summers.

It's always surprising who joins us. We had a mother-in-law from Yakima, a woman that heard about Missio Lux and drove all the way from Tacoma in traffic, and some friends of friends. Children come to our home Friday night and have dinner, hang out for parts and then move to a different part of the house to do their kid thing.

The training was led by our Learning Community Team. These five people committed themselves to go to South Carolina for the Learning Community in May and then met bi-monthly through the summer, and weekly for the month leading up to the training.

It was interesting watching all of them come in the door. They were all scattered, it was obvious to me that the enemy was working overtime on them; I knew he had been shooting his fiery darts at me all day.

We prayed. And, as we prayed, we each came into alignment with Jesus' heart and mind--it showed through the presentations too; everyone was right on target. The night was filled with a mixture of prayer, worship, visionary talk, interaction, and sharing. Each person left filled up and ready for the next day.

We started bright and early. This time we met at Pine Lake Covenant, our Mother Church. Our morning was spent exploring how to live a lifestyle like Jesus. We understand that Jesus teaches us first to love God, love ourselves and our neighbors. We are also commanded to go into all the world to make disciples, but first we must be disciples ourselves.

Invitation. Challenge. Our life with Jesus is both simple and hard. The concepts are simple, but walking them out is hard. Our goal is to come to the place in our own lives, and in our communities, where God's heart beats in us. We believe this comes out of a balanced lifestyle of knowing God, loving each other in community and reaching out to love and serve the world.

We explored the Person of Peace. Luke 9 and 10 tells us that there will be people that will want to come near us, listen to what we have to say, and are open to hearing about Jesus' message of grace and salvation. This is a lifestyle evangelism that happens naturally if we are paying attention!

We were challenged to take steps in our everyday walk with Jesus through different ways of engaging the Bible. Did you know that it is proven that those that read their Bible devotionally, not a Bible Study or preaching, are those that will grow the most? We offered several different ways to engage the Bible, in hopes of reaching people in their learning styles and lifestyles. Our other choices for growth included coming together in groups of 3-4 to develop spiritual friendships, as well as a spiritual pathways quiz that helps identify our most preferred worship style.

One of the most exciting parts of the training was when we taught people how to pray for healing. It's four simple steps that everyone can do; as long as we are connected to Jesus' healing power.

Pray in Jesus name.
Acknowledge that we believe Jesus heals.
Ask for the need.
Thank him in advance for the answer.

One woman had a frozen shoulder. She came up and we prayed for her. Within minutes she was moving her shoulder. Jesus loves to show off!

We ended in prayer. I prayed for everyone as the Spirit moved freely through the room, deepening our power to follow Jesus. Each person received personal prayer as a commissioning for their ministry for the coming year.

It was raining pretty hard when we started Saturday. By the end, however, as it usually does, the sun came out in all it's brilliance, giving us hope for what God will do through this coming year.