Life as Mission, Farming as Mission

All this time later, and I thought it should do us well to plant.

We had traveled over oceans, deserts and desires and have now refined our love; life as mission. Life as mission answers so many things, but the one thing it answers is: how can I make a massive impact, right here, right now, and feel fulfilled doing it?

Life as Mission is the answer.

How does one perform it? Is foreign missions forsaken? Not for a minute. Is local missions the locus of my attention? Yes and no.

Life as mission is not a method. It is not a technique, tactic, or transition to something greater.

Life as mission is simple. It is life intentionally. It is looking at each day, totally and completely, as an abundant ministry opportunity.

• Do you find yourself at the espresso machine serving coffee to customers? Gusto is far better fraternization than a frown.
• Do you find yourself on the foreign mission field? Smile, enjoy the distance from the pace of mankind and enjoy the pace of the world; then serve.
• Do you find yourself returning, oh returning, from the mission field? Accept the blessings you find, and turn them, turn them!, into something grand.

We find ourselves in the middle of discovering a new level of Life as Mission. We have astounding opportunities both here and in Haiti (and some elsewhere we still have yet to have time to chase down.)

For us, Life as Mission is becoming Farming as Mission (you heard it here first. I am trademarking it, and writing a book about it now!)

+Nate Mundell & +Adam Whelchel,
community, setting up raised beds.

Planting seed. 
Sowing seed.
Tending the sprouts.
Weeding the choking weeds.
Waiting and tending.
Watering, but not too much.
Chasing away the crows that may eat up the seed.

The metaphors are endless, with Farming as Mission. I dare tell you that it is only now, as I plant, water, weed, wait, and harvest, that I understand anything at all about the hidden messages of our messiah; written in an Agrarian Age for those who would farm their meanings.

Our budding blueberry bush!

Our foreign mission is moving forward. But only as I see our life lived as mission. I plant and water and grow our food, and we harvest self-reliance. In so doing, our soil is better and better, in fact a total re-invigoration of the land, for the next season; which will certainly be a season for the foreign mission.

And the pace! The pace! Hardly the hours. We choose to live our life in seasons, not in minutes.

Life as Missions lends itself to all of this. Farming as Mission ever more so.

#farmingasmission #growufarms #rookiemissionary

My MANIFESTO, At Last & Things That Wake Me Up At Night

I woke up at 3:00 a.m. It is not often that I do, so when I do, I take notice.

This was not the typical "myeh, I rolled over, noticed the time, and fell back to sleep." This was a full blown wake up call; get dressed, pack up the computer, and head to Starbucks for a coffee press.

I have been fully convicted about writing.

Dabbling in a variety of things, seeing some success in a few of them, and receiving massive breakthroughs in our Grow University (farming as mission, the stateside version of our Haiti work, PhilanTropics), I have consciously been avoiding the thing I really want to do most; Write and Launch a Generation of Mission-Minded Individuals Through My Writing.

You see, while on the mission field, I spent massive amounts of time writing one particular piece. This is the project that I am most proud of to date. I believe that it is a powder keg, full of explosive, powerful content. This piece has been on my mind. It has actually been finished for some time. And I am here to give it to you.

This is that piece, and it is my gift to you.

I went through the normal procrastination.

• "My site is not perfect."
• "The links do not go where I want them to go."
• "Do I have enough content to serve people if the masses arrive?"
• "Marissa, could you read it again?"

Enough! I have to ship it. I cannot hold onto it any more.

Thus, my wake up call this morning and my total conviction to return to writing about missions and let the rest of the pieces fall where they may.

 Get The Rookie Missionary Manifesto
at RookieMissionary.com.

Without further ado, here is the Rookie Missionary Manifesto.

I wanted to have a massive launch party. I wanted to get all of my network to help me spread the word on it. I wanted to have back-room deals to make it a sizzling Manifesto-of-the-hour. ENOUGH!

I am just shipping it. Let those who love it, love it. Let those who don't continue sleeping.

What you will learn from this powerful and passionately written manifesto:

• The Wake Up Call For All Of Us
• The Single Most Important Thing For You To Know
• Your Most Crucial Moment in History
• Actions To Take Right Now To Make An Impact & Save The World
• 7 Gifts From Our Mission To Yours

Please, keep a few things in mind:

It is not for everyone.

I sincerely believe that some of you may be irritated by some of the things I write. Others may be bored with it. But, for those who are ready to launch into a life of missions, I think it will make you tingle.

It will challenge a few of our beliefs.

The mission field challenges the missionaries core beliefs. That's because most of the things a rookie missionary believes are, well, rubbish. That is what we found. So The Manifesto reflects this.

It is full of passion and, thus, could chap a little.

I cannot tell you how pumped I was in every minute I wrote the Manifesto. Sparkles ripple through my skin. Lightning shoots through me. When I get excited like this, I get a little pushy. Do not take it personally. Passion makes me lose sight a little bit, admittedly.

It is not about theology.

Do not come seeking any new theological revelations. I am not interested in theology. I think much of it is bunk. (Much, not all.) I am more interested in theoginosko (yeah, I just made that up; you heard it here first); the revelation of knowing WHO God is.

If you can accept these things, then I would love for you to read this awesome manifesto and tell me what you think. Be sure to download it and print it off. I think you will get a ton more out of it that way.

If the Manifesto is of any value to you, please comment on the page you downloaded it and share the page with a friend or two who you think needs to hear about it to launch their rookie missionary journey.

Gratefully,

Grant!