North Way City Christmas Concerts

It's so amazing when God puts a vision on your heart, combines that vision with a passionate calling, and then orchestrates other followers of Jesus to bring it all together into reality. Last night was a dream come true for me because of the opening night of the North Way city campus Christmas concert. God has given us a clear calling to reach the East End of the city with all of it's diverse people. God gave us a strategy that was missional, cross-cultural, and contextualized to the urban environment. The city Christmas concerned most importantly gave glory to God, and it did so through musicians and artists from the North Way Oakland and East End churches combining to create a powerful worship experience. The music mixed in rock, gospel, hip hop, and classical arrangements. The experience also incorporated video, spoken word, and creative lighting. The performing artists on stage represented the diversity that is located throughout the city.

We still have two more nights of Christmas concerts at the Kelly Strayhorn Theater on Penn Avenue in East Liberty. I can't wait to see how God is going to work as we continue to advance his mission to reach the city in the name of Jesus Christ.

God Is Doing Something Amazing in the East End

As a pastor, God has given me a calling to a city. God has also called me to advance his mission with people in powerful and powerless places. My calling is to marginalized people and influential people. I build relationships with people across racial, economic, and neighborhood boundaries, and I am always amazed at how God is able to work in those sometimes difficult places. When I was first involved in launching North Way East End last January, God gave me the vision that the church would reflect my calling. North Way East End would reach people in a complex urban environment representative of all of the diversity in our city. We are definitely a work in progress, but God is leading us through an incredible season of impact in the lives of many people in the East End of Pittsburgh. Our little body of believers is growing in relationship with Jesus and also with one another in community.

Just this past Sunday, God did something miraculous with one of the people who happens to attend our church. He was homeless when I first met him last February, and God has taken him on an incredible process of transformation as our church has welcomed him into our community. He rededicated his life to Christ, we walked with him to empower him to get off the streets, and this past Sunday morning he shared with me all about his powerful journey from the streets of East Liberty to being empowered to live a life that serves Christ and serves others. He is in a very good spot in life right now, and it is only through the grace of Jesus Christ and his transforming power. This man of God went from receiving support from Christians when he most desperately needed it to now living a powerful life on fire for Jesus. We will continue to walk with him in authentic Christian community because just as Christ is transforming his life, Christ is also transforming my life and the lives of our entire church community.

I am excited to share that God is moving in profound ways in the lives of people at the church. God's mission to the city of Pittsburgh is also making a tangible difference in the community. God is working through many churches and Christians to impact lives for the kingdom of God. This is all transcending the differences that usually separate us across cultures. God deserves all of the glory for what is going on!