We’re heading off to relax and rest in the sumptuous settings of Letton Hall for the Mission Year retreat weekend. As well as resting in God’s refreshing waters, spending quality time together and having lots of fun, Mission Year teams will be hearing from John Hayes, director of InnerCHANGE, a Christian order among the poor.

As the InnerCHANGE website professes, “We are moved by the life and love of Jesus, enticed by his goodness. We have sensed his call to take up our crosses and follow: knowing that as we lose our life for his sake, we will truly find it. Despite the enormity of the missionary task, we do not pursue this work with long faces. Rather, we rejoice in our opportunity to be messengers of the King as he invites all people – poor and rich alike – to his banquet table”.

John’s example of seeking to live out the good news of Jesus among the poor, in places most people want to avoid or ignore, continually inspires us to reach out to the brokenness and pain in our own marginalized neighbourhoods in the UK.

We’ll be taking a look at John’s book Sub-merge: Living deep in a Shallow World. You can read the blurb from  the book below, and check it out here:

http://www.innerchange.org/submerge-book

Plunge in. Go deeper. Sub-merge yourself. Two-thirds of the world’s population lives in poverty. Children go to bed each night hungry, while despairing parents wonder where the next meal will come from. It’s not enough to feel compassion or guilt about this desperate situation. It’s time to make a difference. Join director of InnerCHANGE, John Hayes, as he takes you into the heart of some of the most distressed ghettos and neighborhoods in the world. From the streets of Los Angeles to the forgotten villages of Cambodia, you’ll find that the face of poverty is as close as your own backyard and as widespread as the furthest continent. Learn what it means to do more than give a handout. Discover how building authentic faith-based relationships through can change the world one person at a time.

Calling all Cambridge Students! Fancy working with us to change the world? We believe the local Church has a huge part to play in seeing social and spiritual transformation in our communities and our nation. Come and visit our stand on Thursday at the Work to Change the World Event run by the Careers Service.

When: Thursday 9th February, 1-6pm

Where: Examination Halls, New Museum site, Pembroke Street, CB2 3RS

We’ve got all five recordings for you to hear – on topics from poking the box to shaping dreams. Click on ‘Learn more’ for the rest of the recordings.

Thought for the day 1 – loving one another

Thought for the day 1 – loving one another Why the first place to start has to be loving one another.

Thought for the day 2 – food for thought Hospitality can be done by receiving just as much as giving.

Thought for the day 3 – doing it together ‘Poke the box’ and make a difference as a team.

Thought for the day 4 – shaping dreams Whose dream can you help make a reality?

Thought for the day 5 – a year for change? What things do you want to properly change this year?

So how do we break out of the bounds of our normal social settings and stereotypes, to break down barriers and break through with the boundary-less and boundless love of Christ?

Mission Year participants meet regularly for training evenings covering a range of topics, and last Thursday saw the start of the new term begin with a fantastic talk on challenging class divisions from Paul Brown, leader at City Hope Church, Bermondsey.

Paul has over 17 years experience leading an NFI church Bermondsey, and spoke about the challenges of class divisions that still exist in the UK, and how this is an issue often not spoken about in churches. He cited the statistic that the church in the UK today is roughly 34% male, 66% female, and 98% middle class, challenging us that we will not really see revival in the UK until the church begins to break more beyond the bounds of the middle class. Paul spoke in an honest and refreshing way, and feedback from the evening was extremely positive.

Next Thursday, Jonny Douglas from Christchurch Spitalfields will be speaking about Healthy Christian Discipleship, and one of the highlights of the term will be our Mission Year retreat weekend in mid-February, in Norfolk, with guest speaker John Hayes from Inner Change.

Bart Campolo spoke honestly about his experience of urban mission. Here is the first 15mins of his talk…

Delivered by: SJI, Faithworks and Mission Year
Venue: London
Date: 11 Nov 2011

Click here to listen to the podcast (due to a technical fault the audio only starts 2min into Bart’s talk)

For more info on Bart see www.bartcampolo.com

You need to apply soon for a place in January! Just fill out a few brief details here and we will send you an application form.

If you are offered a place on Mission Year, you will be based with a local, inner-city church, helping to tackle social exclusion in the local community, working with proven and effective social action ministries.

As part of a Mission Year team, you’ll live in a community house, and will receive training and support throughout the year. You can join while in full or part-time employment, or as a full-time volunteer.

Don’t forget, Mission Year isn’t a gap year; it’s a gateway to a new way of life.

If you have any questions please email: contact@missionyear.org.uk or check out the FAQs.

We’re looking forward to seeing your applications!

Date: Friday 11th November
Time: 7.30-10.30pm
Location: Oasis Church, 1 Kennington Road, SE1 7QP.
Tickets: £7.00. Buy on the door or purchase at: http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=gb_london&query=detail&event=458161.

Check out the Facebook event page here

Bart Campolo

Here’s what Shane has to say about Mission Year:

“For years, Mission Year has been the best onramp into radical discipleship for young Christians.  Mission Year is the gateway drug to revolution.  I am absolutely thrilled to see this program, which has been a gift in North America, make its way across the pond.  May we all continue to become the Church we dream of so that we can build the kind of world that we are proud of.  It begins by diving full on into the pain, perhaps for a year, and asking how our deepest passions connect with the world’s deepest pains.”
Shane Claiborne - author, activist, and recovering sinner… and one of the architects of Common Prayer, a new resource to unite our hearts in prayer and our hands in action www.thesimpleway.org