Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Greetings in the Name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! I’m writing to call your attention to the observance of World Mission Sunday on February 7, 2021. Setting aside one Sunday on our liturgical calendar to highlight World Mission does not fulfill the Great Commission, but it reminds us that we have an eternal hope in the One who will not return until every nation has had the opportunity to hear the saving message of the gospel.
Romans 10:14-15 reminds us:
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in?
And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?
And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
And how can anyone preach unless they are sent?
As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
The question we hope World Mission Sunday will challenge you with is: What part does God want you to play in taking the gospel to the ends of the earth? In other words, where are your “missional feet” taking you?
Are your feet walking to an elderly neighbor’s house to check on them during the Covid isolation? Are they taking a few bags of groceries to the local food pantry to help those food deprived? Are they under your desk as you participate in a Zoom conversation with a global partner or as you pray with other Anglicans on a Global Prayer Call? Our feet, including mine, haven’t boarded as many airplanes or walked on foreign soil for as many mission trips last year, but we need to keep our focus outward, praying about where our physical and our spiritual feet can take the gospel to our dark and hurting world in 2021 and beyond.
This year World Mission Sunday is February 7th, the fifth Sunday after the Epiphany. However, the important thing is not when as much as how you will highlight the global mission partnerships of your parish, diocese, and province this year. We have so many cross-cultural workers and global partners around the world doing incredible ministry that we need to highlight and celebrate! To assist you in mobilizing for mission and preaching on mission this special Sunday, I highly recommend the resources and prayer litanies available online at newwineskins.org/worldmissionsunday.
New Wineskins, led by Jenny Noyes, spearheads the Anglican Church in North America’s Global Mission Initiative working alongside the dozens of mission-sending and equipping ministries of the Anglican Global Mission Partners. Zoom has proven that virtual speakers are the next best thing to being there. Email Jenny Noyes if you are interested in hosting a missional speaker for your World Mission Sunday or need further assistance.
Let’s celebrate that God in his mercy allows us the privilege of being his hands AND feet in the global mission that we are called into together!
In His Service,
The Most Rev. Dr. Foley Beach
Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church in North America
