For the past week I have spent time in Frankfurt, and I now understand exactly why the change happened. I can only say that God wanted our group in Frankfurt because it was the most fun, most impactful week of my life. I absolutely loved every minute that I spent there, and I fell in love with this adorable coffee shop and group of people who are so lost in the love and mission of Christ. The man in charge is named Cris, and he got fed up with the stagnant churches in Frankfurt and decided to do something about it. His focus became the missional church and out of that grew a ministry in a pub, a hospital, and a coffee shop. We spent the majority of the time at the coffee shop, and I fell in love with the place. I mean it was literally the best coffee shop I had ever seen, and if I lived in Frankfurt I would go there ALL the time. Just take a look for yourself!
Do you see what I mean? If I wanted to ever own a coffee shop I would want it to look exactly like this one. Seriously, it was the most adorable/comfortable place ever. Definitely a nice place to visit everyday we were in Frankfurt. Below is the outside of it, and it sits beneath a tall skyscraper.
This is our fearless leader Kathleen! She was beyond sweet and super helpful. She volunteered to guide our group around Frankfurt, and she did a wonderful job! We all loved her, and I really enjoyed getting to know her as well! She helped keep us informed with what we would be doing during our stay in Frankfurt. Most of the time I didn't feel like I was accomplishing much, and the most manual labor we did was deep clean the coffee shop. On our last night there we went around the hospital inviting patients to come and attend the concert service, and it was exciting to see so many show up to it.
The first night that we were there Cris spoke to us about what missional church was, and what he has been doing the past 2 years. I was very skeptical that first night because it was very different than anything I had been taught before about church. It intrigued me, but I was still unsure about how I felt about the whole thing. Basically, they have this coffee shop that is not tied into the church at all, and they don't put anything in the coffee shop for people to think that they are. There are no subliminal messages to trick people. The people that work in the coffee shop are all Christians who all work together with the idea that they are bringing Heaven on Earth.They focus on building relationships and loving people. The same thing happens at the pub. Every wednesday night a small group of them go to the pub and hang out with the people there. They do mission projects that do not directly tie to the church, but they do explain their mission. The people in the pub whether christian or non-christian normally help out. For example, when we were there we spent our wednesday night at the pub, and the project was collecting money to send care packages to Romania through Helping Hands. People in the pub had given money in order to buy the supplies and the night we were there, they got to pack the care packages. It was really cool to see everyone working together for the same cause. There were Christians and non Christians working together for the Kingdom of God. Something that simple was already planting seeds in the minds of those that were helping without even having to bring up the Gospel right away. The thing that really stood out to me that night was that to me it was obvious who felt the love of Christ and who quote on quote was "still lost." Everyone was super nice, and I had a blast meeting new people, but I could tell by their actions and the things they said who was filled with a joy that could only come from Jesus himself. At first when Cris explained to our group what their mission is, he presented their mission as if they were hiding who they really were and that bothered me, but that was not the best way to explain it. When they are talking with others and people ask about their personal life and as they get to know that other person they are more than willing to talk about themselves and their love for Christ. It is a part of them, and they do not go out of their way to hide it, but neither do they go out of their way to throw that knowledge on someone. They want to love the people just like Jesus did when He came to this Earth. I think that what they are doing is remarkable.
The thing that I struggled the most with is that they were very clear that their mission was not to bring people to church. Their end goal was not to help people find a church, however if that's what they wanted then they were happy to help them. To Cris his mission is his church. That was a new concept for me because I was raised to be at church every Sunday morning, night, and Wednesday evening. Now, I am not saying that church is not important or that people don't need to go, but I see where Cris is coming from. He says that he people of Frankfurt are not searching for a church or for a religion, but they are looking to be loved and to be accepted. And Cris and his team accomplish that by spending time with them. By showing them God's love and listening to them when they need someone to. One of the success stories Cris shared with us was about a girl named Jenny. She is a student at the nearby university who needed a job. Now, the only workers at coffee shop are Christians because they do have a mission to reach others, and they want to achieve that through the service at the Awake. But they needed workers, so they decided to hire her on. Jenny spent time with the other workers and Cris, and she saw in them something different, something that she wanted to have. She saw Christ in their lives, and she decided that she wanted that too. Cris invited her on a retreat and while she was their she accepted Christ as her savior. This might seem like an unconventional method to some, but it works. I think so many times people want to go in, help the person open their eyes to God, and then leave, but it's not a wham, bam, done process. It takes time and sometimes it takes more for some and less for others. But the reason we were put on this Earth is to 1. Love our God with all our hearts and have a right relationship with him and 2. Help reach others and show them the love of God, so that their eyes too can be opened by Him. We need to put our whole focus on God and make sure that that focus remains on Him.
One morning Cris' father, Hans, shared a story with us during devotion time, and it went something like this:
The hill billy went into a church that was very nice and sophisticated and everyone was dressed fancy. The church and pastor were disturbed by the hill billy's attire and so the pastor went to him after church and asked him how he liked the service. The hill billy responded that he thought it was okay and he enjoyed it. The pastor then asked if he would be coming back. The hill billy said yes that he would like to come back again. The pastor went on to say okay well for next time how about you talk to Jesus and ask him about how you should dress when you come to church here next time. The hill billy said that he would. - The next Sunday the hill billy showed up at the church and he was wearing the same clothes as last time. The pastor and church were very upset about this and so the pastor approached the hill billy and said I thought last Sunday we talked about your clothes and you said you were going to talk to Jesus and ask him what you should wear and look like when coming to church here. The hill billy said that he did talk to Jesus and he asked him how he should dress. The pastor said well what did he say? The hill billy then responded "Jesus said that he has never been to your church so he doesn't know how I should dress or look like when coming here."
I found this story to be so true for some churches. I am not saying all churches are this way, but there are some people who are so concerned about the way people dress or if the pastor is wearing a suit and tie on the platform when he or she preaches. I don't mean to be offensive to anyone, but I find that to be slightly ridiculous. Since when does eternal life and a relationship with God become dependent upon what you wear to church? I do think that you should wear your best for God on a Sunday, and I understand that concept because I was raised that way, but that should be no one else's concern, but our own for our own wardrobe. It is no one else's job to judge how nice or how not nice we dress for service. If that's what our focus is on then we have completely lost sight of the true mission of the Kingdom of God. Cris and his group are in the world trying to reach out to others to draw them in, but they are not of the world. There is a difference.
Cris shared 4 points with us in our devotion time, and I want to share them with all of you now:
1. Choosing a sub culture brings/opens up a huge harvest.
We have become so static. Expecting people to come to us. But the great commission is to GO.
2. Action teaches more than teaching does.
Don't be limited to Sunday morning fellowship and service.
3. Erect symbols of the kingdom of God and people will be drawn to it.
* rent out a theatre and pass out movie tickets to the homeless. Then have food and talking afterwards.
* throw a party for the sick children.
4. Don't wait on the Lord before you enter into foreign territory. You will be praying as you step into it.
* apply to career- why keep waiting for this big epiphany? Pick something that you have a passion for and go all in...then start praying.
When you are drowning you will pray. You pray when you're walking on water but there's no need when you're sitting in the boat. If you're not satisfied with your prayer life then get out of your comfort zone and it will intensify.
Stop praying abstract prayers asking for God to bring people to church. Get off your butt and go to where those people are.
* Don't do something with intentions to step on toes. But don't not do it because you're stepping on toes.
* You need an inner conviction or you will give up and not be determined and persevere during troubles.
* Am I living out Gods vision and call as radically as I can?
I do not claim to know everything about this idea of the missional church now, but I do know that many of the things that Cris shared with the group really resonated with me, and it really challenged me to take a closer look at my life and my relationship with God. He made me question if I am really doing everything that I can for the Kingdom of God. You will never get yesterday, today, or tomorrow back. Are you doing everything in your power to reach others for the Kingdom of Heaven? Just some food for thought. Til Next Time.
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| Cris, me, and Anemone |
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