Tom Sanchez (Pastor of Global Outreach: Grace Covenant Church in Austin, Texas)

Beside the fact that God favored us with perfect weather all week long, and we were served and treated like royalty by the service team, and the food was great and abundant, and the fellowship was rich and meaningful; besides all that, I believe that God met with us and guided our work in identifying five of the key issues that the worldwide body of Christ faces in effectively reaching humanity with the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ.

David Lee (GMTC, Korea)

It was a privilege to have met all of you during our time together. Special thanks to you, Bertil and the team for the hard work you have done to make the meeting a success. Most of all, it was blessing to meet old friends and make new friends. May the Lord continue to bless you all richly as you serve the Lord globally,

Sabrina Black (MANI-Continental Coordinator for North America Diaspora / Global Projects for Hope, Help and Healing)

Glory to God in the highest; He is worthy to be praised. Thank you for the time spent together in that sacred space at the Ribbingeback Retreat Center in Sweden. It was a pleasure to meet others along the way at the WEA MC Global Leadership Round Table as we work towards fulfilment of the Great Commission. There many memories of conversations shared, plans made and moments of enlightenment. I gleaned so much from the gathering. Thanks again for the invitation and for welcoming me into the Tribe. It is nice to be connected.

Sas Conradie (Global Generosity Network, UK)

Thank you very much for the past few days. It had been a great encouragement to me that I am not alone in this journey to see the Kingdom of God becoming a reality in the lives of people and communities globally actually by connecting and equipping others to do that. It is even more difficult as I have to walk this journey with all my flaws, weaknesses and baggage. And then communicate in a language which is not my mother tongue! It can be a very lonely journey in my little office in the South Asian Concern office in south London or at home in our obscure town in South England. It was therefore a reassurance to connect and share with fellow pilgrims in similar situations in other parts of the world. Thank you very much for the support, friendship, listening ears and prayers. That gives strength for the next part of the journey.

Ken Katayama (President of Crossover, USA)

I was extremely blessed, encouraged and honoured to participate at the round table. I am looking forward to seeing where God will take us as we all walk through our journey. Blessings.

Prosper Isichau (Nigeria)

I have been so richly blessed by the company of great and selfless servants of God, committed to his mission on earth. I am so sure that the impact of this meeting will yield lasting fruits in my life and in the lives of many others.

Wendy Colon (Wycliffe. Latin America)

Thank you very much for your kindness. This was a very refreshing experience in a very nice place and with a very special group. It was good to see people that we know again.

The overarching themes that were extrapolated from these discussions were:

1. Integral discipleship
2. Role of the church in mission
3. Globalisation
4. Religious encounter
5. Sustainable mission models

These themes were then further explored in smaller groups.

Sustainability within the context of new mission models and churches was highlighted as one of the main discussion points. This theme will be further explored by the new MC Taskforce “The future in mission”. Another key feedback point was the development of global leaders, as well as the matter of creating forums to dialogue and build bridges across the various dimensions of the Body of Christ.

One of the other key points was that the church needs to be continuously mobilised to pray for global issues.

Another key point on the global mission community agenda is to continue to explore what discipleship and discipling means.

The concept of diaspora, bringing people groups on the doorstep of every local church, is also an important point of attention to influence missional strategies and approaches.

These and numerous other themes were brought to the forefront of the mission agenda, and will continue to be explored by the Global mission community.

A more formal report will be designed and made available in the next few days.

The Global Roundtable drew to a close with a powerful time of worship and Holy Communion, shared in unity by the Body of Christ from around the world.

The entire day was dedicated to allow an opportunity for attendees to share from their lives the struggles and victories on their missional pilgrimage.

The encouragement drawn from listening and reflecting on that which was shared was of immeasurable value to those who perhaps don’t often have an opportunity to share their deep concerns and faith stories with peers who resonate deeply with their journeys.

Bertil Ekström welcomed the approximately 60 leaders from around the world, representing various mission networks and missionally focussed national and international ministries, with a word from Deuteronomy 10. He introduced the theme of the Global Roundtable as “Missional Pilgrimage”, and highlighted how the main purpose of the time spent together in Sweden is to discuss what it means to be followers of Jesus on a journey, making disciples.

Bertil shared a brief history of the Ribbingeback retreat center, established in 1637, which to this day remains a place of healing, restoration, fellowship and spiritual refreshing. He expressed a heartfelt hope that it would also be a significant milestone on the pilgrimage of those attending the Global Roundtable this week.

Bertil introduced the main guiding themes for the Global Roundtable, which foremost includes building relationships, then identifying trends in global missions, to outline ways to serve the world. Also, to affirm the process of dialogue to confirm the sense of partnership within the global mission community.

Rajedran also confirmed the purpose of the Global Roundtable as a forum where those who are leading large networks, who have the influence to direct missional practice in the world, can share stories sand insight to prepare a road-map for global missions practice.

Another very noteworthy point to summarize the first evening of the Global Roundtable, is that the pudding at dinner was spectacular.

The MC Forum consists of the Global Leadership Council, the Leadership Team and leaders of task forces, networks and regional movements. The main purpose of the Forum is to work on the integration and co-operation between the different components of the MC (including the docked networks) in order to maximise the potential of our services to the global mission community.

(Bertil Ekstrom)