The Shaping of Things to Come
Innovation and Mission for the 21st-Century Church

The message of Frost and Hirsch is vital for the 21st century church. In essence it is this: we in the West no longer live in Christendom – societies that have a broadly Christian worldview. Instead, we are in the same situation that most missionaries encounter in a non-Christian culture:

• we are in a minority.
• we have no automatic right to be heard, or to receive respect for our worldview. Indeed the default position of those around us is suspicion.
• traditional Western “attractional” methods (“please come along to our church”) are increasingly ineffective on their own.
• as missionaries, we must understand, learn and use the culture around us. Dave Hackett of visionSynergy.net has summed this up as: “appeal to their authorities, speak their language, use their imagery.”
• effective evangelism means building ongoing relationships of trust, and meeting people where they are, not where we are, outside our own comfort zones.

For a more detailed review of this vital book, see Facing the Challenge. [www.facingthechallenge.org/hirsch.php]

Video/audio of Mike Frost addressing these issues.