North Fresno Church Blog

Welcome to NFC's blog

Our goal with this blog is to provide resources on the missional church, interact with congregants, invite comments, answer questions, etc. Please join in the conversation with the church staff and leaders by leaving comments or questions. We hope this blog will be an open forum for discussion, not just a one-way dissemination of information.

What lies below are what we consider the most essential resources for our journey as a congregation, a kind of Missional Church 101. Read posts, scan articles and selected chapters, and watch videos. All of these are outstanding resources for entering the conversation.

If you want more information about what is specifically happening at NFC, you can dig deeper by clicking on any one of the categories up there on the right. We'll keep adding content as we journey further down our road together.

NFC is a church of brothers and sisters desperate to hear the voice of God through listening to each other. This is just one church's journey. We invite you to travel with us....

"The Missional Church" by Alan Roxburgh

Here is an article from a Presbyterian publication called Theology Matters. In his article, "The Missional Church," Alan Roxburgh provides one of the most concise and thurough descriptions of the development of and need for the missional church movement. Take your time with this one; it's rich and full of important themes and concepts.

Read it here.

Why I am Missional...

In his book, Generous Orthodoxy, Brian McLaren has a chapter entitled "Why I am Missional." It's a great introduction to the conversation.

McLaren was the keynote speaker, along with Alan Roxburgh, at Fresno Pacific University's annual Ministry Forum in 2005. He is a well-known writer and thinker about the current situation of the church in North America.

Read the chapter here.

FAQs on the Missional Church

If you are confused by all of the this talk about the missional church, realize this - you're not alone. Get some of your Frequently Asked Questions answered in this concise FAQ sheet.

Some of the questions:

• What is the difference between a missional church and a church with a mission?
• Is "missional" a real word?
• Does being a missional church mean starting a lot of new activities? People in our congregation are already so busy.
• Is this a technique to help our congregation grow?

Get the FAQs here.

What is the Missional Church?

In this video watch and listen in as Alan Roxburgh and Craig Van Gelder, two pioneers of missional church theology, discuss the question, "What is the missional church?"

View the video here.

For the "What is Missional Church?" series of videos click here.

NFConnection, June

In the June edition of NFConnection, the church's newsletter, there were several articles regarding the missional journey of our congregation.

• Pastor James Bergen introduces the conversation. "I invite you to be a significant part of this missional conversation. It is not just my mandate, it is our mandate." Read more here.
• Tim Neufeld discusses a survey and other listening opportunities that will help the leadership of NFC ask the question, "What is God doing in our midst?" The survey is online and open to all NFC attenders June 1-18. Read more here.
• Ray Bystrom gives a thoughtful and creative interpretation of what a missional church is through a fictional letter to his father. "In your letter, you indicated that your pastor is using a new term in the pulpit, the term 'missional.' You implied that his usage is different from what you have heard in the past. I can appreciate your confusion...." Read more here.

If you would like a copy of the June NFConnection please call the church office at 559 431-0333.

North Fresno Church: on a journey

North Fresno Church is on a journey, an exploration of what it might mean to be a missional church. NFC, like many churches, supports and sustains missionaries, but what would it look like if every attender of a church would see his or her role as a missionary in whatever context God has placed them? NFC seeks to bring the presence of Christ to neighborhoods, campuses, workplaces and foreign countries.

The purpose of this blog is to provide resources in the conversation and to record the journey that we are all on. Please read, view, follow links, and most importantly, leave comments for one another to read.