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Only God could build something this strange and this beautiful.

An Anglican priest from Uganda, teaching in a carpeted gym in West Michigan, while people who never felt comfortable in church help set up chairs and somebody's made coffee that may or may not be strong enough to wake the dead.

The Kingdom of God is wonderfully strange sometimes.

🕊️ Jesus Had a Mission Before We Called It Missions

In Luke 4, Jesus walks into the synagogue, opens the scroll, and reads:

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…"

Then He talks about good news for the poor. Freedom for captives. Sight for the blind. Liberty for the oppressed. And then He sits down.

Which, honestly, is kind of a power move. The room goes silent. Everyone staring. And Jesus basically says: "This? This is happening now."

The mission of Jesus wasn't escaping earth. It was bringing heaven into it. Healing. Restoring. Reconciling. Setting people free. And somehow — unbelievably — He invites us into that work.

"The gospel refuses to stay small. And honestly? That's good news for all of us — because most of us were outsiders to somebody's religious system at some point."

🔥 Acts Begins With Waiting… Not Hustling

Jesus rises from the dead. Defeats sin. Defeats death. And then the disciples immediately want timelines.

"Lord, are you restoring the kingdom now?"

Translation: "Is this the moment? Are we finally winning? Do we get power now?"

And Jesus basically says: "You're asking the wrong question."

Then He tells them to wait. Which feels offensive to modern people because we love action plans, productivity hacks, and five-step leadership systems.

But the early church started with waiting. Prayer. Dependence. Listening.

Then the Spirit came. Then the movement exploded. Because the Church was never meant to run on human charisma or powerful personalities. It runs on the Holy Spirit.

🌎 The Gospel Keeps Crossing Borders

Acts 10 reaches an earthquake-pounding moment. Cornelius is praying. Peter is praying. God starts connecting people across cultures, backgrounds, assumptions, and geography.

One vision here.Another vision there.And suddenly the gospel crosses another border.

That keeps happening in Acts.

Jerusalem.Judea.Samaria.Ends of the earth.

The gospel refuses to stay small. And that's good news for all of us, because most of us were outsiders to somebody's religious system at some point. Yet Jesus keeps making the circle wider.

🤲 Sending Generously

Acts 13 says the church was worshiping and fasting together. And while they were doing that, the Holy Spirit said: "Set apart Barnabas and Saul…"

Then they prayed. Laid hands on them. Sent them.

That's it. No branding strategy. No smoke machines. No influencer campaign.

Just ordinary people listening to God together and sending people out.

And maybe that's part of the calling. Not to cling tightly. But to send generously. To bless people who leave. To celebrate when God calls someone elsewhere. Even when we'd rather keep them close.

😅 Can We Admit Something?

Most of us think "missions" means somebody else. The super-Christian. The missionary type. The brave extrovert who likes airplanes and mosquito nets.

Meanwhile Jesus says: "You will be my witnesses…"

Not some of you. You.

Your neighborhood counts.Your workplace counts.Your dinner table counts.

Some people cross oceans. Some cross the street. Both matter.

Jesus, thank You for a gospel that refuses to stay contained. Give us courage to listen. Humility to serve. And hearts willing to be sent — across oceans, across streets, across awkward conversations. Anywhere Your Spirit leads.

Dave Barry
Dave Barry

Retired superintendent. EdD. Ordained pastor. Student of how humans grow — in the weight room, on the Harley, at the shelter, and in the quiet minutes nobody else sees.