Living Stones Church is committed to following the challenge of Jesusgiven in Acts 1:8. Jesus told his disciples, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Acts 1:8 is a global plan for sharing the Gospel that begins in our community and extends around the world. Jesus described four mission fields that we are called to reach:
- Jerusalem
- Judea
- Samaria
- And the ends of the earth
Our vision for impacting the world involves reaching people in each of these fields through the following partnerships and activities:
Cumming
Our local community needs the Gospel, but many may never set foot in our churches. They are our “Jerusalem” mission field. We desire for every believer to serve as ambassadors for Christ by sharing the Gospel with family, friends, and neighbors. We want to challenge and equip each follower of Christ with knowledge of the Gospel and methods that reach our culture without compromising the timeless message of the Bible.
We believe that God has called us to express His love in words and actions, and to communicate God’s love for them in simple, practical ways. From giving away a cold bottle of water on a hot day to mowing the lawn of an elderly couple, we want people to know that we love them by helping them at their point of need.
We want to be a positive influence in our community by serving others at community wide events, supporting our schools, and meeting the spiritual, emotional, and physical needs of our neighbors.
Our Sunrise Seniors ministry cares for the elderly in assisted living. Volunteers lead a worship service with music and devotion on the second Sunday night of each month. Volunteers also lead Wednesday morning devotion each week.
Georgia
With more than 4 million people, metro Atlanta represents a microcosm of the world with its multi-ethnic communities marked by both extreme poverty and lavish wealth. Despite the assumption that our “Judea” is located in the “Bible Belt,” perception doesn’t fit reality. With more than 9 million residents in the state of Georgia, studies show that seven out of 10 residents do not claim to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
We are partners with the Georgia Baptist Convention to multiply the ministry of other churches in our state.
We are committed to helping ministries like the Abba House which are making an impact in people’s lives.
North America
While we often think of North America as “Christian,” the reality is that an estimated 250 million people in our “Samaria” have no personal relationship with Jesus Christ. That is three of every four people! The unbelief of North America runs deep, and the Gospel often meets a calloused response in this modern-day Samaria.
- We are partners with the Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board to plant churches across our continent.
- We are committed to participating in disaster relief by partnering with the Southern Baptist Convention to meet the needs of those in crisis. Disaster relief training is available through the Georgia Baptist Convention.
- We coordinate short-term mission trips in the US that involve ministry to underprivileged communities through Bible study, backyard Bible clubs, and community improvement.
World
Thousands of people around the world are coming to a saving faith in Jesus Christ. Yet the stark reality remains: 1.7 billion people still have little or no access to the Gospel message. And while Southern Baptists are going to international mission fields in unprecedented numbers, many more are needed. We are committed to spreading the Gospel to the ends of the earth with the power and help of the Holy Spirit.
We coordinate short term mission trips with partners like Four Corners Ministries and Christian Missions Unlimited to share the Gospel, build churches, and provide material and medical needs.
There are more than 60 million orphaned and vulnerable children in Africa and some three million live in Uganda. We’re encouraging individuals to partner with Four Corners Ministries in a new project called Abaana’s Hope. Abaana’s Hope is a comprehensive children’s village that will provide holistic care for orphans. You can contribute to the orphanage capital campaign, sponsor an orphan, or support FCM missionaries.
Today there are over 11,500 people groups in the world. Of that number, around 6,700 of them are what we call “unreached”. This means that less that 2% of their total population would be considered evangelical Christian. Within that number of unreached people groups, 3,800 of them are considered unengaged meaning no one is working intentionally toward a church planting strategy among them. Many of these unengaged people groups are unengaged for a reason. There are significant barriers of access to the Gospel. We are committed to take the Gospel to an unreached/unengaged people group (UUPGS) and are taking the following steps toward accomplishing our mission:
- Pray for UUPGS using PRAYERthreads and www.call2embrace.org
Begin exploring God’s heart and His direction for our church using the online interactive people group map called “Getting There”: www.seetheunreached.com and these other tools:
- Visit Peoples Around the World
- Select Global Research to open a spreadsheet of all UUPGs – select the first link under heading of Unengaged Unreached People Groups (UUPGs)
- Research all people groups at Datasets or Peoplegroups.org
- Explore people groups using Google Earth
- Adopt an UUPG by Fall of 2012 and develop a strategy for reaching them
- Engage an UUPG by 2013
