Weekend Reflections

I really enjoyed team-speaking  this morning with Pastor Brad Leach from Church Of The King, in Detroit, Michigan.  Brad is such a good friend and a man of great vision for his city.

Here were some of Brad's most profound quotes:

• The difference between Dr. Laura and Jesus (and there are probably many) is that Dr. Laure gives advice, but Jesus provides news.  The gospel is good news that has the capacity to transform a life.
• 100 years ago only 2% of the world's population lived in cities.  Today, 50% of the population lives in cities.  And by the year 2040, 80% of the world's population will live in cities.
• It's as if God is scooping up the people of the world and depositing them in large cities so that in that place they can be reached.
• The story of the Bible begins in a garden in Genesis 2-3.  It ends in a city in Revelation 21-22.
• Jeremiah 29:7 is a big part of the vision of our church...to seek the peace and prosperity of the city.  Seeking peace is the Hebrew concept of 'shalom' which means to make everything as it ought to be (the way God created it to be).
• Jeremiah 29:11 is a promise to the exiles in Jerusalem who were being commissioned by God to live in Babylon (a hostile culture) as missionaries.
• I don't know that God makes any such guarantees to those who choose to live mission-less lives.

The challenge of Jeremiah 29 is to live in a post-christian world not as refugees but rather as missionaries.

Are you a refugee or a missionary?