Letter from the
president Dear Friends, For such a time as this, the body of believers must circle in community to have difficult and important conversations. As we dig down deep and ask the Holy Spirit to fall upon us, just as Jesus did in Luke 4, we must be ready to do the work of crying out in lament, praying for change, believing in the redemptive and restorative power of the cross and walking this out in faith. The senseless and horrific deaths of Black and Brown people, as well as the injustice endured by many across the globe, demands this from us. These friends are the captives. These family members are the oppressed. These individuals are our neighbors — the same people Christ calls us to love as ourselves. Jesus does not mince His words when He says that the proclamation of the good news will lead to freedom, recovery, liberty and the beautiful favor of the Lord. Now is the time to cry out in prayer and use our influence and platforms for change. This has been an unspeakably difficult time for God’s people, especially our Black brothers and sisters — we see them, we care for them, we stand with them and we are called to minister alongside them, following our Lord Jesus in His calling to be agents of redemption and reconciliation. The work that is before us in standing together against racial injustice is gospel work. And, the time is now. In this toolkit, you will find detailed information, how-tos, desired outcomes, resources and prompts to help you lead this courageous conversation in your community context. The expectation of our Mission Lead Team is that the conversations, self-reflection and learning that took place at the Leadership Town Hall will also take place in every space of responsibility (e.g., from the divisional to the area level, from the Service Center to our camps) and throughout our entire global community. Our aim is to provide everything you need to easily facilitate this for our mission as a whole. We are praying now that as a mission we will listen to and obey our Lord Jesus, stand together in the power of the Holy Spirit and bring glory to our Father in Heaven by accomplishing the work He has given us to do. In Christ,
Newt
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