Last weekend, I was in Jackson, MS.
The people at Ridgecrest Baptist Church invited me to lead their church leadership retreat. I knew I was in trouble when Mike McCool picked me up and told me he had a sleeping bag for me. Turn out it really was a retreat, bunk beds and all!
We had a great retreat and they have a great church, seeking to engage their suburban community in fresh and mission-focused ways.
Two days before I arrived, my friend Stacey Andrews emailed a few of his friends and added another meeting to Saturday night. Between a camp and preaching at a blended SBC church Sunday morning, I spent the evening with some new friends talking Christ, culture, and transformation in the culturally diverse Fondren District of Jackson.
After I left, I thought to myself: why can't the church of Jesus Christ be like this weekend?... and like these churches? Both groups were seeking to reach their community for Jesus, both appreciated the distinctives of the other, and they were partners in the gospel.
The staff pages sure do look different: The Journey and Ridgecrest Baptist. But, Stacey is on both of them... and more importantly, both are seeking to engage their communities with the good news of Jesus Christ.
I wonder... could Jesus be at work in different kinds of scripturally sound churches? And, if He is, could God use us to build bridges across the divide?
Yes, I believe He could... on both counts.
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