Organic Ministry: Early Church Practices of Mentoring and Mission

Abstract

<p>Organic ministry is a term that describes the matrix of life-to-life mentoring that is found in the biblical tradition of the spiritual community of families, house churches and mission teams. The familia Dei and the missio Dei inform our focus on mentoring and mission. The family became the organic structure around which the early church community was built. House churches provided a place for transformational social dynamics to be worked out as spiritual fictive kinship challenged blood kinship as well as social structures. Ministry was developed through a network of organic relationships in the early church, and this should cause leaders to reconsider approaching ministry merely as a leadership function that requires institutional support.</p> <p>Mentoring that is grounded in community and mission builds authentic relationships and develops organic ministry. The missional community advances the Kingdom of God and engages in the mission of God by sharing the gospel through relational networks. Mentoring in this context provides for transformational growth, is focused on character development, and maintains a missional focus. Modern patterns of mentoring help to inform our understanding of mentoring, but often are contrived or individualistic. The organic missional church will provide a backdrop for exploring missional values and practices that reinforce authentic mentoring relationships.</p>