MOBILIZATION

The Purpose of Mission20 is to Mobilize Prayer, People, and Power to change the lives of individuals with the Gospel and transform nations by establishing the Kingdom of God. To understand Mission20 you have to understand the concept of Mobilization.

Dictionary.com includes the following in the definition of mobilization: “to marshal, bring together, prepare (power, force, wealth, etc.) for action, especially of a vigorous nature.” Other definitions shed light on the meaning:

1. To assemble or marshal (armed forces, military reserves, or civilian persons of military age) into readiness for active service.

2. To organize or adapt (industries, transportation facilities, etc.) for service to the government in time of war.

3. to increase or bring to a full stage of development

4. To assemble or organize for war.

I like this definition very much: “Mobilization is the process of making something capable of movement, or to have people and resources ready to move or act”

We complain a lot that the people of God don’t do much or that the church isn’t doing anything---- “people just sit on the pews and do nothing” They need to be mobilized!

To understand mobilization in the context of ministry we must think about 2 other terms – motivation and activation. Motivation is the general desire or willingness of someone to do something. Most of our preaching/teaching is motivation. We tell people what they should do and why. For example, “You need to win the lost." “Serve Jesus because of all He has done for you.” We motivate and encourage and if we are successful they will have a desire or willingness to act. Motivation is important. BUT THAT ISN’T MOBILIZATION! How about activation?  Activation is the action or process of making something active. In the church we talk about activating leaders. Activation is important. BUT THAT ISN’T MOBILIZATION!

Christians can be motivated and can be activated in positions of leadership, but without mobilization very little of lasting value will be accomplished. Mobilization brings together motivated people and activated leaders with God ordained strategy, God provided resources, and God directed training and development. In mobilization people partner with a ministry/church that has been adapted to war not just an activity.

We need to motivate people to pray and activate prayer leaders but there needs to be an effort to mobilize fervent and effective prayer. In war you do what needs to be done. Prayer need not be something that is sometimes done. People can be mobilized – taught, trained, equipped, and placed on teams – to be a part of a strategy to advance the Kingdom of God. Perhaps the greatest need is to include the Power of God in our mobilization plans. For too long the church has been trying to reach the lost with programmed evangelism and secularized events. We need to demonstrate the power of God to a lost world.

Do we really think that the church will prevail without doing ministry God’s way? For way too long we have done what we were taught or knew whether it was or wasn’t successful. We might try to tweak it and do it better. But what we need to do is look at what Jesus did in the Gospels and how the church worked in the Book of Acts. Like the Book of Acts Church we need to mobilize for an all out effort to heal the sick and preach the Kingdom of God.