When Missions Shapes the Mission: You and Your Church can Reach the World (Horne)

"Why are more churches not engaged in practical, substantial ways of taking the gospel to the nations?"

When Missions Shape the Mission unpacks a statistical study of traditionally evangelical churches that reveals their anemic level of commitment to the biblical mandate of making Christ known around the world. Veteran pastor David Horner makes the data easy to understand, challenging other pastors to radically assign their best leadership and resources to missions as he looks at where the church is today, how it got there, and where we must go from here:

"Let's dream a godly dream. What if you committed to step up and lead your church in the pursuit of becoming a mission-focused church? Then, what if you invited ten of your pastor friends to join you in the effort—and each of them did the same? What would happen to the available missions force beginning right here in the West?"

Table of Contents:

Section One: Where We Are

1. The Place of Missions in Today’s Churches

2. Recognizing the Hurdles

3. Missing the Point

Section Two: Where We Want to Be

4. Always about the Kingdom

5. Major Obstacles to a Kingdom-Focused Ministry

6. The Value of Missions Models from the Past

7. Marks of Past Missions Movements

Section Three: How to Get There

8. A Survey of Best Practices

9. Catching the Vision

10. Thinking and Acting Strategically

11. Missions with Staying Power

Section Four: Closing Considerations

12. Do I Want What God Wants?

13. Summary and Conclusion

Appendixes

Appendix A: Elmbrook Church Global and Local Mission Vision

Appendix B: Disciples from All Nations

Appendix C: Assessment and Evaluation Ideas

Appendix D: Missions Survey Respondents   

Author 

David Horner is the founding and senior pastor of Providence Baptist Church in Raleigh, North Carolina. He is also the author of Firmly Rooted, Faithfully Growing and A Practical Guide for Life and Ministry and speaks overseas each year in various mission contexts. Horner and his wife have three children and one grandchild.

Endorsements 

"Feel the weight of this reality: At this moment millions of people in thousands of unreached people groups have a knowledge of God that is only sufficient to damn them to hell. For this reason we are obligated to preach the gospel to the nations. I thank God for David Horner - for his life and for his leadership, for the church he leads and for their commitment to missions. I pray that the Lord will inspire, teach, educate, and motivate us all though this book." - David Platt, author of Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream

"What an important book. A sobering analysis of the weak Great Commission involvement of most evangelical churches and practical steps to change this...Best practices of churches are reviewed with an undergirding focus on the Spirit's empowerment by our people learning to walk by the Spirit." - Frank Barker, pastor emeritus, Briarwood Presbyterian Church