my reflections on christianity 21

originally uploaded by christianity21

i think i might be forever changed from spending last week with a very special group of people at the christianity 21 event. the experience was so different from other christian conferences that i have been to in the past, and it might have been because of that - that my mind and heart were stretched and shaped in new ways.

these are my personal reflections that i hope will continue to shape me as i return to normal life:

1. "the church must listen to the neighborhood." someone said this during a video and it has yet to stop swirling around in my mind. what if we really listened to the adults and children in our neighborhoods and created church missions and strategies based on what we heard, instead of assuming that the church is exactly what the neighborhood needs.

2. there is a desperate need for women pastors and leaders in the church of the 21st century, and we've done too much in the past to simply talk about women in church leadership. it's time to give women the stage to lead and influence us with new forms of ministry.

3. the glbt (gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, transgender) conversation is not going away anytime soon and i'm grateful for that. it was refreshing and wonderful and quite beautiful to learn from speakers representing the gay christian community, and to be in small group discussions with gay church leaders. something is stirring in my soul as i learn, and discuss, and interact. i hope the same is true for our churches.

4. there is a deep need for people to be safe and loved in our churches. we must continue to reinvent our churches so that people don't need to be right before they can fully belong.



originally uploaded by christianity21

additional christianity 21 resources: flickr photo stream, sparkhouse video, and a fantastic summary from intervarsity press.