About Us

PRIORITIES
by Murray Cornelius, Assistant Superintendent for International Missions.

"Together we are responsible for this generation of souls. It is good to dream together about reaching our world."

Our mission is to make disciples around the world through the practice and proclamation of the gospel. This is a grand vision that can easily become heavy and oppressive. We cannot save everyone and do everything, so we need to give greater focus to our mission. Let me share with you five burdens (or five strategic initiatives) that we are working towards.

The Unreached

First, we must never forget that there are people who have never heard a credible presentation of the good news. While many people have heard it many times, there are probably in excess of 1.5 billion people who have not yet had a chance to hear it once. As a matter of justice we must make the least reached people groups a priority when we allocate our resources. Lost people matter to God, so they must matter to us!

The Poor

Second, Isaiah prophetically proclaimed Jesus' mandate that makes
the poor a specific focus. "The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor" (Isaiah 61:1a, NIV). The whole world is focused on the global poor,
yet they seem incapable of making a dent in the widening gap between
the poor and the rich. Debt, lack of education, disease, corruption and war increase poverty and vulnerability. A walk through the slums of Nairobi
or witnessing firsthand the squalor of Haiti leaves one absolutely overwhelmed by human need. We need to continually look for creative
ways by which our churches can help the poor help themselves.

Children

Third, the state of children around the world is worse than sad--it is oppressive. They are the ones most impacted by war, poverty and disease.
In many countries, children under the age of 15 make up nearly 50% of the
population. We also know that the best time to reach people is when they are still young. Therefore, we need to make children a priority. We need to reach them with good news, disciple them in truth, ensure they get an education and seek to meet needs in ways that offer dignity and hope. Our agenda must include children as a priority for the allocation of resources.

Next Gen

Fourth, I am always challenged by the attitude and enthusiasm of young people. The "connected" world means that young people worldwide are part of a global youth culture that speaks a common language. What a great opportunity, and what a great burden! Unfortunately, there are others who are competing for the hearts and minds of the next generation. Schools and universities where we find this next generation must be a priority! 

Equipping Leaders, Planting Churches
 
Finally, I am always looking for ways to multiply our effectiveness. We must always make the training of indigenous leaders a priority for maximum effectiveness. In addition, the new followers of Jesus need a community of believers to sustain and guide them. Jesus is building His church for that
purpose, so we must keep planting new churches.

Let's take stock! How are we doing? Conventional wisdom tells us that if it is in the vision, it is in the budget; that when your focus becomes clear, the allocation of funds and personnel will quickly fall in line. A quick check of our current allocation of personnel resources suggests we are not quite in balance. While we are making progress, it is clear that we need to increase our level of involvement with the unreached and with the global youth culture.

In addition, we need to be more proactive in helping to make poverty history. As we develop the grid by which we allocate our resources, we will use these priorities to guide us. As your church makes decisions about its mission strategy, we are also asking you to consider these priorities: the unreached, children, the global Next Gen, the poor and equipping leaders.

Always remember that everything we do must contribute to building the church. Together we are responsible for this generation of souls. It is good to dream
together about reaching our world.

"If a person dreams alone, the dream remains nothing but a dream. When people dream together, dreams become reality." (African Proverb)

Murray Cornelius, Assistant Superintendent for International Missions  
(See the full article in the October 2007 issue of testimony magazine)

© 2008 The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada