Greg Strannigan
Pastor of Global Outreach, Abundant Life Church, Damascus, Oregon
My first exposure to Mission ConneXion was the year when Steve Saint spoke. I had never heard of Mission ConneXion, but I knew the story of Nate Saint and the ultimate sacrifice that he made in the jungles of Ecuador, so I was interested in hearing his son speak.
I didn’t know what to expect – in fact, I don’t recall having any expectations at all. I appreciate good teaching and the end of the day, not only was Steve Saint’s presentation amazing, but I was struck by the quality and size of the event that had hosted him. The worship, the workshops, the vendors and displays – I had no idea that a missions conference of this caliber and magnitude was right here in my own back yard. I made a mental note to take advantage of this opportunity and attend the following year.
After several years, Mission ConneXion had established a track record of quality and trustworthiness with me. The speakers were consistently inspiring – my heart was stirred as I heard about what God is doing around the world. The booths were always encouraging. The people were friendly and incredibly helpful. The networking of ministries was positive and productive.
As a Pastor of Global Outreach, one of my ministry priorities is education and awareness of all things missions. I realized that Mission ConneXion offered more missions education and awareness in one weekend (and at a higher quality) than what I could provide for the church in a year.
I determined to leverage Mission ConneXion as a resource for anyone who was interested in missions and cared to listen. The year that Bill Job (sp?) spoke, I brought our Business As Mission group. Bill’s relationship with Jesus was so refreshing and authentic. His message was nothing short of life-changing for us a group. We still refer to his ministry on a regular basis.
Because Mission ConneXion This means the enquiry won’t have a negative impact on your credit score agencies . is done with such excellence, I wanted to help out and serve however I could. I knew that an event like this doesn’t just happen in a vacuum – that there’s much planning and preparation (sounds suspiciously like work!) that has to be done behind the scenes. I have been blessed, both personally and professionally, by Mission ConneXion. I didn’t want to just be on the receiving end of things – I wanted to give back. So, I became proactive and got involved.
It still amazes me that Mission ConneXion is free of charge to attend, because there is nothing free about pulling off an event of this scope. The church that I serve has given financially to Mission ConneXion because we see the value of strategic partnerships. This is especially true in missions. Working together, we can do things that simply would not be possible on our own.
Jesus prayed for the unity of believers, so that the world would believe. When we as the church work shoulder-to-shoulder together for the purpose of equipping and mobilizing people to reach the world for Jesus, good things happen. But don’t take my word for it – check it out for yourself.
