There have been just a couple of times in my years of ministry when I have felt like I was playing a part in an initiative that dwarfed me in what God was going to do with it.

That’s how I feel now as we return from our first EvangelismSHIFT weekend in Perth.

Even the impact on that church family alone. Think of it. 65 leaders from that church—pastors, elders, deacons, ministry leaders, and small group leaders—all joining with us to learn to live the life of a witness. We will meet with them 18 times during this year.

In between those meetings each person will be reading daily devotions written to help them develop this mindset of sentness in their encounters with people. They will also be reading the challenging book by Kelly Talamo: Ambushed By God. Each of them has also formed with others a group of Sent Connections who will mutually encourage and challenge each other in developing this way of life.

That year of focus would transform any church culture. But it continues into the second year when they will take the whole congregation on this same journey.

Some will then come with us to take other churches on the two year EvangelismSHIFT journey, multiplying what is happening into a movement. Already next year we will be taking EvangelismSHIFT to more than ten churches.

What is God doing? I don’t know, but I can’t wait to see!

Here are some of the sentence prayers written out by some of the leaders this weekend: