Mission Conference 2026: Living out church

Salvationist Editor Major Julian Watchorn reports on the 2026 Mission Conference at the University of Warwick.

Grasping the concept of the theme Intero – meaning between, among, within – delegates dived straight into shared learning streams at this year’s Mission Conference. They were eager to embrace the opportunity to go deeper spiritually and to learn from one another and the experts sharing across a plethora of mission topics. To take away and apply that learning in their communities, they selected the stream that they felt was most relevant to them in this season, as well as explored other topics in introductory sessions to spark ideas for further mission opportunities.

Under exciting headings such as Ignite Community, Neighbourhood Witness, Transforming Leadership, Express the Gifts, Renew the Heart and Overflow in Worship, delegates could engage with topics such as APEST ministry, Community Services, Core Recovery Church, digital tools for ministry, family ministry, fundraising, intercultural mission, justice and reconciliation, local officer training, Natural Church Development, older people’s ministry, pioneering, mission resources and whole-life discipleship.

In addition to these streams were keynote speakers Steve Rouse on whole-life discipleship, Dave Csinos on intergenerational ministry, Chine McDonald on issues of race, faith and gender, and Territorial Mission Officer Major Ann Montgomery. Each offered key insights into mission in a specific context and all were memorable and challenging.

Opening these plenary sessions was Steve Rouse, church team director at the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity and a teaching pastor at Balham Baptist Church in South London. Using William Booth’s famous one-word telegram ‘others’ as a clarion call to mission, Steve spoke of the challenge to the Church today: to ‘stop going to church and start being the church’. Acknowledging that The Salvation Army is probably more engaged with the world in this context than most denominations, he used the headings Ekklesia, Exiles and Elect to unpack how we engage with the world around us where we are, not just when we are gathered for worship but wherever we live out our lives. He urged us to remain first and foremost a missional Movement that prioritises living out church in our communities, but also meets together for worship. Using personal examples that resonated with the busyness of Christian activity rather than mission, he added that church should not pull us out of the world but equip us to live in it – we need to be the scattered Church in all the places that God has placed us.

Meeting in two sessions over four days meant that the conference was available to more people depending on their personal circumstances, and it also lent itself to opportunity for crossover and further conversation with colleagues between sessions.

Collective worship formed a golden thread through the gathering, as God was placed front and centre and given his place among his people. Having gathered to receive resilience, relevance and restoration, delegates were sent out to their own front lines strengthened in their resolve to ensure that the wholeness of God is shared with everyone.