Lausanne World Pulse – Perspectives Articles – Learning from Ants: The Possibility of Missionary Swarms
Theories about Church Planting Movements
In addition to these ten universal elements, theories about CPMs also list ten common factors.3 These factors are often, but not always, found. These are less applicable to ants; however, there are some parallels. They are:
1. Worship in the heart language. Obviously, not really applicable for ants. (Perhaps ants sing hymns by St. Anthony?)
2. Evangelism has communal implications. Virtually everything an ant does has communal implications. Ants just are not individualistic creatures.
3. Rapid incorporation of new converts into life and ministry. Once ants are out of their infancy they begin working. They start work in the nursery, graduate to food maintenance and eventually become foragers or colony-defenders.
4. Passion and fearlessness. Since (as far as we know) ants don’t really have emotions, it is hard to attribute passion and fearlessness to them. Still, we can see the results of seeming fearlessness. Ants are single-minded creatures. If you see an ant on the pavement, try putting your finger down next to it. Likely, the ant will move away from you but keep on walking. Ants just do not understand the concept of quitting.
5. A price to pay to become a Christian. This isn’t really applicable to ants, since ants do not have a choice about being ants. They are born ants and, viewed as pests, pay a price—but they do not personally choose to pay the price.
6. A perceived leadership crisis or spiritual vacuum. Ants do best in empty biospheres—areas without any natural ant predators. They can rapidly expand into these areas.
7. On the job training for leadership. This pretty much defines the life of an ant. We do not know how ants “learn”; however, there are no four-year degrees in Queen Care or Lizard Stripping.
8. Decentralized leadership authority. Repeat after me: every ant a leader, every leader an ant.
9. Outsiders keep a low profile. Once the queen ant lays the first few eggs in a new territory and cares for them until they hatch, she buries herself deep in the colony. She continues to lay eggs, but never comes out again. That is pretty low.
10. Suffering persecution. Ants successfully endure nearly any level of “persecution.” As one writer said, “Any attempt to eradicate an ant colony is at best only a temporary solution, because ants simply cannot be destroyed.”
Relationship to Mission Swarms
So is it possible to build a “mission swarm” that can recruit and send out forty-three thousand teams? That can tackle any problem it is faced with—be it lack of the gospel, poverty, disease, corruption or war? Where multiple “colonies” can become a “super-colony,” while not losing their distinctives? Where shared values and purposes enable the accomplishment of the overall goals? Pages: ALL Prev 1 2 3 4 Next