Tuesday, June 14, 2005

God Values Diversity

Just looking at creation and something is obviously clear - God values diversity. How many species of fish swim in our lakes and oceans? Jesus certainly expressed this in his choice of staff - tax collector, fisherman, former prosecuting attorney - to realize that he wanted a variety of personalities and backgrounds around him in order for his work to thrive. His welcoming of women into the inner circle was scandalous at the time, and yet he assigned to them the task of being the first to bear the message of his resurrection.
The church had better wake up to this reality! Usually, our churches (in the restoration movment) have not been diverse groups. Growing up in Arkansas, we had the "white" church; the "black" church; the "anti" church; the "liberal" church -- all in a small town of 20,000. Even today - our congregations do not reflect the population around us. Soon, the minority will be the majority. Will our congregtions soon be irrelevant? (If they're not already!).
We need diversity -both theological & racial - in our congregations! What can we do to encourage more diversity in our congregations?

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