Welcome to the Mariners Church Life Group leader podcast. This week the conversation is designed to equip and resource you to build a healthy life group community that studies God's word, practices spiritual rhythms and changes the world together. Well, hey everybody, here we are. What would Jesus say to a Christian?
What a great question to a Christian today. What would Jesus say to us today? Maybe you thought that, maybe you had a conversation of, you know, Jesus showed up right now. Like what would he encourage?
What would he challenge us towards? And so we're gonna hit that in this week's conversation as we look at Matthew 28 and not doing that by myself. We got a great member of our team. This is Alison Crawford joining us today.
Thanks for hanging with the podcast. Yeah, thanks for having me. Just tell a bit people about who you are, what you do, and all of those good things. You've been a longtime member of Mariners, our staff team in incredible ways, but give some folks an insight for who you are.
Yeah, so I have actually recently stepped into the role as global engagement pastor. So I've been privileged to actually work on our outreach team for almost seven years now, and have a really awesome understanding of what we're doing in the world. And so I feel really equipped and just privileged to step into this role and get to really help our church engage with what's going on and what we're doing as we're called to catalyze and collaborate with the global church, to advance the great commission. That's it, 11 awesome.
And this weekend is outreach weekend. And for those that have been around for a little bit, you may know that typically we have two outreach weekends a year, one of them has more of a focus on local city engagement opportunities and one is a bit more focused on global partners and the opportunities that are there. And there's room for life groups to play to participate in being part of the story that got the writing through our global partners. Maybe why don't we just start there a little bit?
Just give us some insight of a couple things that might be highlighted this weekend and where groups can even jump in. Yeah, well, first things first, I think what's really exciting is that this week is going to have, you're going to feel something different when you come into any location where you are, any congregation, you're going to feel that there's a little bit of a global flair to it. It's the flavor of all the nations. So we're going to really set the tone and the environment as you walk in to feel something different and know, maybe not what we're going to go into, but let me tell you.
So one of the first opportunities is we get to have a global worship night, which our friend that was born and raised in Kenya is actually going to come and lead worship. So that's happening at Irvine on Saturday night. But then the rest of the weekend, we have multiple countries represented as a lot of our global partners are in town with us right now. And really, Eric is going to be preaching on, what would you just say to a Christian today?
And that is exactly what we get to do in global outreach, which I mentioned was to advance the Great Commission. And so he's going to talk and challenge our church to pray, give, and go. And I don't know how much you want me to share about what's coming, but pray, we are praying that disciples will be made in all nations. We have a really awesome project that we are going to give to with our partners in Egypt.
And we're going to challenge our church in whatever stage that you're in following Jesus, we're going to challenge our church to give to a project in Egypt, which is a conference center where thousands and thousands of people come every year. And some here, the name of Jesus for the very first time in a place that, not just from Egypt, but from all over the Middle East. And this is a place where sharing the gospel is actually not easy. It's forbidden in many ways.
And so we get to be a part of something amazing there. And then to go. So the last thing and pray, give, go, is to go. And as we're going to make disciples of all nations, we are inviting our church to step in to global outreach in some way.
So some of that is going and visiting our partners. But the other side of that too is the nations have come here. So what does it look like to serve the nations that are around us in our community through some of our ministries that we call diaspora, which means the dispersed people. And so yeah, there's a lot of opportunities there that we'll be talking about.
That's great. And so yeah, pray, give and go. And go, both mean you actually go to the context where our church partners are globally, but also go could be locally through those that are displaced and through our partners locally that are serving them. So there's opportunities for you to jump in this weekend.
And I know we're on, we've got on on DASH's goal of raising, I think it's $700,000 to help fund the expansion of that space that God has been each of. That's what you're talking about earlier with that conference center. Yes. It's a huge goal.
We know, but we know that I don't want to say too much because there's some really exciting things. A lot of our outreach volunteers have already played and already participated in helping us to get further down the line in this really big goal. And so we're excited to just invite more people to be a part of it. Right.
So what would you just say to Christian today? Well, to give it away a little bit, he would say go. He would say go. And so why don't we jump into some of the questions here when they're active with this.
But I think we just want to encourage you, as always lean in, set the tone with your group, be excited about the message this weekend and go for it. And like respond, you set that response and invite your groups into response. You want to just come and hear a great message and be inspired when we want to be moved into faithful action. Great.
So let's get some of the questions here. We got to lean in. It says, describe a time when you had to accomplish a big task alone. And there's a reason behind that question ties into the Great Commission that can seem a little bit daunting to go and make disciples of all nations.
And sometimes you may feel like, well, how can I do that with my part to play? So there's a reason behind that question. But if they come to mind for you, how would you interact with that one? Yeah, I think, I mean, even for me, as I walk into a new ministry role of feeling like, you know, I have to kind of take this new responsibility.
And sometimes it can be really easy for me to feel like I have to do it alone. But I think something that comes to mind for me in this right now is recognizing how, even as it relates to global, how all the nations are here, like actually the nation that we are in right now counts as part of that Great Commission. And so as I think about doing this, making disciples of all nations, if that's the task that I'm trying to accomplish, we're working together, we're collaborating with this global church. So I'm not doing that by myself.
That's good. It takes all people to reach all people. This isn't just a Western mindset. We're going to reach the nations.
It's like, no, it takes the nations to reach the nations. I'm doing this in partnership to get a nice great, I love it. Call it out. Mine was slightly less spiritual.
I just, as we're saying, I was thinking about, we bought some powder, you know, from the backyard, and I thought, you know, I'd be the big husband and put the thing all together. And it was like an eight hour experience. And then when we were done, it was like, this is not even comfortable. I would have known that by opening it up.
I'm surprised that you spent that much time putting it together. I was like, well, I was trying to do the thing. So when we do things by ourselves, we get frustrated and we can feel overwhelmed. But that's not the call, right?
We, it takes all nations to reach all nations. All right. And then that's really what should be a familiar message, the famous words of Jesus, the great commission, which Eric noted in his message, the Jefferson Bible, one of many passages that he pulled out, pulled out of the Bible. And how we do that, right?
I mean, we don't actually put scissors to paper, but there are so many words of Jesus. They're like, I couldn't admit that. Yeah. Let enemies, yeah, but not that person.
Go, yeah, but not me. But the whole command is for the whole of the Jesus, for the whole, for the whole of the church. So let's read the passage. And then there's a couple that look down questions to interact with here.
It says, what's the command of the passage? What are the corresponding actions? You could ask in a different way what you learned about the commands of Jesus from the passage where you see it. You could also say something to the effect of what do you learn about the discipleship from the passage?
There's always different ways where you can ask the question. So let's read it. The 11 disciples, this is Matthew 28 from 16. The 11 disciples traveled to Galilee to the mountain where Jesus had directed them.
When they saw him, they worship him, but some doubted. Jesus came here and said to them, all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded to you. And remember, I am with you always to the end of the age.
So what stands out to you, Elson, as you read this passage? Well, I'm a little bit of a Bible nerd. So one of the things that I love about this passage is actually you look at it and you're like, wow, in the English language, this looks at a whole bunch of different commands. And maybe that's kind of where that question of what are the corresponding actions feels like you can answer this by just hitting all those things.
Go make baptize all these things. But really what it says is as you are going, go and make disciples. So as you are going, we should be making disciples and baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. And so the expectation is that actually you're already living your daily life.
You're already going. So in the meantime, we're not talking about necessarily going by getting on a plane and going to some foreign country that you've never heard of before, although some people are called to that. But really what this passage I think what stands out to me is as you're going about your daily life, the people around you and your workplace, the people that you see at the grocery store, how are you making disciples? How are you kind of bringing them one step closer to knowing the love of Jesus that you know?
So that's kind of what stands out to me. Yeah, that's right. It's in the everyday algorithms of your life where God has already placed you in the activity of your day. How are you having that posture?
I mean, my posture is to proclaim him, proclamation word acts indeed, so that others are drawn to him and follow him. So good. I love that it says to you. It's not sit and be a disciple.
Like we often think that my primary function is to be the best disciple that I could, that I could be. It's about my own formation journey, my own spiritual practices. Like, there's some truth to that, but there can be a shadow side of that where it becomes like a version of just project self, but be becoming my best self. And actually, Jesus says the way to become your best self is to go and serve others.
So it's not just sit and be it's go, it's going to make it so much in the passage too. I love that he calls out that it says here that when they saw him, they worship it, but some doubted, unbelievable. This is after the resurrection of Jesus, you know, and those that follow him and that were close to him still were unsure. Right.
And what does Jesus do with their, with their doubt is beautiful. He doesn't say, okay, great. Only those of you that got completely figured out that all the answers to all the questions, you know, that you're with me. You know, he actually commissions them all, which is really good news for us.
He commissions them all. And then he promises them, I will be with you. That's right. Yeah.
My presence with you is the thing, not like your inability to have any doubt. It's my presence. That's with you. I love that there's intrusion now because, you know, we may think again, like, well, I'm not qualified, you know, that's for somebody else.
You know, that's just for the pastors or whatever it is. It's like, no, it's all of us. It's our certainties and everything. We put our trust and follow him.
That's it. Yeah. Really good. And we don't do it alone.
That's right. That's right. I'm with you always to the end of the earth. Awesome.
All right. But look out question here. What are other slogans that people live their life by and what do those practices look like? So if the slogan here is go and make, what are other kind of mantras that people live by and how does that work out?
We listed a couple of them. You know, say, lovey. Say, lovey. That's one of them, right?
When in Rome. Yeah. When in Rome or be your best version now or, you know, live, even live your truth. That's one that we hear.
We hear all the time where it's just based off of my reality and I set the boundaries of the truth yourself. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
As we're talking about it, right? A lot of those life slogans are what they're in refocus on my achievement in my goals. Yeah. I think what we're trying to get people to see is, no, there's a rich, there's a full life as we go.
Right. Awesome. Looking question, we've highlighted this a little bit already. We talked earlier.
I want you just to read it, just kind of to be challenged by it. So how can you go individually as a group or engage beyond your local context to go and make disciples? Anything further you want? We encourage life groups?
Is there just one thing about this question? Yeah. I would say that just to kind of double down like every single believer, every single believer, this great commission is for you. This is not for, this is not for the pastor only.
This is not for, you know, the, the super Christian or the Bible nerd or whatever. It's actually for every single believer, whether you said yes to Jesus yesterday or, you know, you've been with him for a really long time. This great commission is something that Jesus gives to every single person. And so I think even thinking about global outreach and what we're doing in the world and outreach in general, we have such a privilege to be able to be able to make disciples of all nations.
There are people that are in our community. There are some of you that maybe are from other nations. And I think to be able to say how am I just going to ask God to open my eyes and see literally the world around me, that's really my challenge of how can you open your eyes, see the world around you and take a step as you are going to just move somebody from maybe like, like, not even knowing anything about Jesus to the next, you know, sort of notch on this line of this journey of faith of maybe today, all I do is I let somebody know my story and let somebody know that I follow Jesus and how he's changed me. So I think it doesn't have to be that you go into a different place or it could be as you're going, make disciples by just having your eyes open to what Jesus wants to say to you.
That's awesome. And as your church family and Alice is leaving, leaving the charge for us in great ways that we want to help you. We want to come alongside you and to equip you to point towards our great partners that we've had a long standing relationship. I mean, you're going to hear this weekend, the impact, the stories, both through Eric's message and videos, they're astonished, but what God is doing is unbelievable.
And so you are at a church where you get to be a part of that. You get to be a part of that as you pray, as you give and as you go. And so leaning this weekend, it's going to be a great weekend to be encouraged, but also to be encouraged to motivate us into faithful action. Awesome.
Allison, thanks for your time. Thanks for your time. Thank you so much. Fun time.
You mentioned the night of worship after the 5.30 here at Irvine. Yes, you got to be there. It'll be a party. And if you don't like to dance, you're going to probably learn to move a little bit.
There you go. Yeah. All right, you guys. All right, leaders.
We'll have a great week and we'll see you on here next time. All right, we'll see you on the next week. All right. Thanks for watching.
We'll see you guys later. Bye. Bye. Bye.
Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye.
Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye.
Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye.
Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye.
Bye. Bye.