The City as a Gift of Common Grace

I've done a lot of walking through urban neighborhoods in Pittsburgh this summer. I've spent time in places like Point Breeze, Homewood, Squirrel Hill, East Liberty, Shadyside, Garfield, Wilkinsburg, and Regent Square. I'm learning to appreciate all of the neighborhoods throughout the East End where I serve as a pastor. These neighborhoods contain many different types of people, architecture, restaurants, coffee shops, businesses, manufacturing warehouses, nonprofit organizations, churches, and lots of different sights and sounds. Each neighborhood has a unique feel and culture.

Cities are a gift from God, not some type of evil human invention that human beings need to escape from. Cities, and the different neighborhoods within them, can be seen as gifts of common grace. A defining narrative since the end of World War II in America has been the idea of the American dream, or the good life, being found outside of cities in suburban or rural environments. There are, of course, gifts of common grace that can be found in suburban and rural places, like good schools and plenty of wide open spaces that are not typically found in urban environments. There are many incredible people who choose to live, work, and play outside the city. However, the goal of families escaping the messiness of the big city may not be all that it is cracked up to be. Individual and corporate sin is just as prevalent outside the city as it is inside the city limits. There is no way for human beings to escape that reality, even though we try.

In Home from Nowhere James Howard Kunstler points out that "The idea of a modest dwelling all our own, isolated from the problems of other people, has been our reigning metaphor of the good life for a long time. It must now be seen for what it really is: an antisocial view of existence. I don't believe that we can afford to keep pretending that life is a never-ending episode of Little House on the Prairie. We are going to have to develop a different notion of the good life and create a physical form that accommodates it."

That is actually what I see when I walk through the urban neighborhoods of Pittsburgh. People are moving back into the city to experience the good life. People who remained in the city all along are welcoming new residents back into the neighborhoods that they love. New buildings are popping up everywhere. Old buildings are being renovated. Block clubs are forming. Community development organizations are networking the city and accessing power. Churches are not only thriving, but working with one another. Religious institutions, businesses, and political entities are working together toward the common good. The signs of a healthy city are everywhere, even when there are also many signs of brokenness. The process of transformation continues on and on when humanity is willing to invest in their cities instead of trying to escape from them. I'm thankful to have a small role in that process in my little part of Pittsburgh where I live and where I serve as a pastor.

God's Got This

I had the opportunity to go out of town on vacation this past weekend with my family. We had a good friend from church house sit for us while we were away. It was interesting trying to explain to him about what to expect while we were away. Sure, we showed him the usual things about how to take care of our dog and also some of the quirks of the house. However, we also had to explain to him about our ministry in Homewood. He needed to expect the unexpected. Our neighborhood is a wonderful place, but it is also filled with its share of challenges. We did our best to prepare him for the week ahead.

Our friend did a great job of house sitting for us. When we returned home, he shared about some of the highlights and lowlights. Right before we left for vacation, I had placed an important letter in our mailbox that needed to be mailed out the next day. After we left one of the kids in our neighborhood had snuck onto our porch, taken the letter out of our mailbox and ripped it up. Our friend heard a commotion on our porch, and he ran outside to try to see what was going on but by that time our little mailman was gone. The Homewood experience with our house sitting friend had started out with a negative event. It's really not a big deal. At different times over the past five years that we've lived in Homewood, we've had drug addicts steal our front porch furniture while we were on vacation so that they could get money from the scrap metal to get high. We now have plastic front porch furniture. There have been other little things over the years, but we've just adapted and moved on. I'll learn not to leave important mail in my mailbox next time I leave on vacation.

After the rocky start, our friend shared that, as expected, a bunch of kids and neighbors stopped by to visit him. This is the best part about living in our neighborhood. On hot summer days, little kids stop by to ask for a freezie pop to cool them off. Teenagers stop by to jump on our trampoline or to talk about the latest drama that is going on in their lives. Adult friends and neighbors stop by to chat. We all look out for one another. We are caught up in one another's stories. Our friend who stayed at the house last week got to experience these things. A little girl who must have been four or five years old rang our doorbell, and in her cutest voice she asked, "Can I have four freezie pops? One for my grandma, one for my mom, one for my sister... and, um, oh yeah... one for me!" We had told our friend about our strict one freezie pop per person per day rule at the McCabe house (hey, you gotta have boundaries, right?), but the little girl was so cute that he just had to give her four freezie pops to go.

Our friend got a taste of the ups and downs of our urban neighborhood. He took walks and got to know people. He got caught up in people's stories, and they got caught up in his. Julie and I went for a walk in the neighborhood yesterday just so we could reorient ourselves after the week of vacation. Children played in the streets and found joy in lighting fireworks for the 4th of July. Our neighbors grilled out and had parties, just like many other people in America on Independence Day. We were also reminded of the pain in our community, though, as a thirty year old man was murdered right down the street from us at 3pm in afternoon on a beautiful Pittsburgh day. Our hearts break for the violence in our part of Homewood.

Our urban neighborhood has many signs of hope and many signs of need. My neighbors do amazing things to love each other well in our little piece of the world. I also have neighbors who steal and kill, causing harm to one another. Sometimes it's all too much to take. Joy and pain. Beauty and affliction. We live in the now, but not yet. The Kingdom of God is here, but we still live in a present evil age. What are we to do with all of this? I certainly don't have it all figured out, but I have hope that God does. Jesus said, "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30 ESV)

This life will have struggles. Those struggles should be handed over to Jesus. In this life we will experience powerful forms of joy, purpose, and meaning as we interact with one another. We must also view those experiences through the lens of Jesus' love for us. God is with us through all of it. I am thankful for that this week as I reengage in the realities of urban ministry. God's got this. 

Looking Forward to the Summer

I haven't blogged in a while. It's been a pretty crazy season of life, but hopefully I'll be able to get back in the writing mode soon. Involvement in urban ministry is intense, and writing helps me to reflect on what God is doing.

There is a lot going on in my life. The young men that I've been mentoring through the LAMP program for the past eight years will be graduating from high school in the next week. At that point, our official mentoring matches will close. I'm sad about these formal mentoring matches closing, but I am excited that God has given me the endurance to be able to make it through eight years of mentoring. I'm also excited about how Tyran, Catrell, and Rafael are transitioning into adulthood well.

I also have a lot to be excited about at North Way East End. The summer gives me more opportunities to be able to connect with people. This has been a challenging year at the church, and yet God is in control and many people are being impacted through our participation in God's mission.

I'm also blessed by Julie, Kyra, and Sierra. We're looking forward to an amazing summer together. My daughters are at a fun age, 9 and 11, and this is a great season to be a dad. We're especially looking forward to trips to Dale Hollow Lake and Colonial Williamsburg this summer.

 I continue to wake up every day and do my best to put my trust and faith in the Lord. God has been good to me, even if this is a challenging season of ministry. Through all of the ups and downs, God is faithful. 

God's Transforming Power in Pittsburgh

In every urban neighborhood there are signs of need and signs of hope. It is important for followers of Jesus Christ to participate in God's redemptive mission by focusing on the signs of hope and building up assets in communities. By choosing to focus on what's right in people and in our neighborhoods, we are a part of a process of transformation.

The following photo, which appeared on the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review website, was taken at the Prayer for Peace March in Homewood that I participated in a couple weeks ago:

The photo was connected to an article on the website that described in detail an act of violence that had occurred the morning of the prayer walk in Homewood less than a mile away from where we had gathered to start the march. Instead of just writing an article about a positive event that happened in our city... people praying for our city... the writer of the article chose to focus on a murder that had happened in a church parking lot that morning and the irony of a prayer march for peace happening on the same morning. Reporters simply report the news, so I'm not upset that they chose to tie the events together. A murder happened. It was tragic. It was violent. A prayer march happened. It was powerful. It was encouraging.

My heart breaks when violence happens in the city of Pittsburgh, whether it happens where I live in Homewood or where I lead a church congregation in East Liberty. By choosing to focus on signs of hope in my city, I'm not choosing to pretend like bad things don't happen. We live in a present evil age. However, Jesus ushered in the Kingdom of God into this present evil age. Christians have profound hope that no matter how bad things are, God is always on a mission to redeem every person and every place. The church has an integral role in participating in that redemptive mission. God works through us to bring about shalom with marginalized people in vulnerable neighborhoods.

What does that look like, practically speaking? In the photo taken at the prayer march in Homewood, I can point out four different examples. The photographer captured one moment in time, but the people in the photo represent participants in God's redemptive mission in our city. I am pictured in the center of the photograph with a child on my shoulders. Eight years ago, God broke my heart for what breaks his heart in my city. God has allowed me to participate in his redemptive mission by launching a mentoring program in Homewood that has impacted the lives of several hundred children and just as many adults who have served as mentors. God has allowed me to plant a new church that is filled with people who are passionate about positively impacting our city. I've seen hundreds of people serve countless hours in our city, many people have been drawn closer to the Lord and in authentic Christian community since the church opened. We are reaching people across socioeconomic, racial, and neighborhood barriers. It's been amazing! And, my family is now a part of the fabric of the Homewood community. We live in Homewood, and I've seen God do amazing things through my wife and daughters.

The child on my shoulders was adopted from Ethiopia by the Himmler family. They are very good friends of ours... like family to us, really. The Himmlers were a big part of launching North Way East End. They moved from the suburbs to East Liberty right about the time we planted the church. They've attended the Encountering God in the City classes that I've taught at the church. My friend, Chad, has prayer walked through just about every neighborhood in the East End of Pittsburgh with me. Chad and Kristen both serve as mentors to children living in Homewood. They are leaders in the orphan care movement at our church. I happened to scoop up their son during the prayer march because he was tired of walking, and the photographer captured the moment. The Himmlers are amazing participants in God's redemptive mission. God is doing amazing things through their family. They are assets in our city. They know what is wrong in our city. They see the needs. But, they're not focused on what's wrong in our city. They're focused on what's right. They're focused on what God is doing.

The young man to the left of me in the photo is a young man who is a part of our church's mentoring program in Homewood. He was talking to me in the picture, explaining how the relationship was going with his mentor. He was telling me that his mentor was making a big difference in his life. He also told me about his hopes and dreams. He has big goals in his life. He has a plan for his future thanks to adults who are speaking positive things into his life. Our church isn't trying to rescue him or fix something that's wrong with him. We are building up assets in him. We see great things in him. His story is similar to the hundreds of other children that have been mentored over the past eight years. Some mentees have gone on to graduate from high school and go on to college or right into their vocations. Other mentees have struggled while navigating through difficult circumstances and choices in life. Either way, our mentors and mentees have been transformed by participating in the mentoring relationships. Each of the mentoring matches are assets in our city.

The man to my right in the photo who is walking behind me is my friend, Oliver Dent. Oliver has a passion for Christian community development. He participates in God's redemptive mission through organizing prayer  walks and by mobilizing Christians and churches to transform neighborhoods through real estate development. Christians who steward real estate as part of God's redemptive mission are powerful participants in God's shalom community. Oliver is realistic about the struggles in our city, but he is choosing to focus on being a part of the solution by stewarding his unique gifts for God's glory. He empowers the powerless and networks with the powerful. He is a great gift to our city. I don't know if his story has ever been told in the newspaper, but it couldn't be captured in one random photo at a prayer for peace march. Violent acts make the headlines in our newspapers, while people like Oliver are quietly working behind the scenes away from the spotlight by building up the good things in our city.

I know it's just one picture. It's one snapshot in time. But, this is a powerful picture. It's a picture that captures just a tiny fragment of God's transformational power. Still, God is in control in our city and God is working through many people to accomplish his purposes. My heart still breaks for the many signs of need in my city, but I choose to focus on how I can continue to participate in building up the people in the places where God has called me to be. I am thankful for the many people who are with me in the journey. We have much pain to reflect on, but we also have much to celebrate. There were many other people present at the prayer for peach march... politicians, activists, many Homewood community members, friends from churches and neighboring communities, pastors, bikers, suburban people, urban people, and people from across to socioeconomic and racial spectrum. The consistent, unifying theme for all of us was prayer. Prayer is powerful. Prayer builds people up. Prayer focuses on assets. Prayer advances the Kingdom of God in our city. 

Prayer

Prayer is powerful. Prayer makes a difference. I'm learning that more and more as I journey with Jesus through this life. Ideas and movements come and go. Leadership styles go in and out. Programs make an impact and then culture changes and the same programs can become stagnant. What doesn't change is God. We can always connect with God through prayer.

God's redemptive mission doesn't change. He is always ready to intervene on our behalf. God desires a relationship with us, though, which means that just like any other relationship we need to cultivate it through time together. I pray in many different ways... sometimes I prayer walk, sometimes I pray in the quiet of my house or office, and sometimes I pray when I'm driving around or listening to music. Sometimes I pray with my wife and children. Sometimes I pray with elders at the church or with friends when we meet for coffee.

The point is to pray. There is no perfect formula. We simply start with an attitude of wanting to grow in our relationship with God and then we tread into new waters with the Lord. We find that God has been tracking with us the whole time. God is right there with us in our journey. God is for us. God is close to us. Prayer helps us to be able to intimately connect with our Creator and greatest ally. 

Looking Back on Last Week

I had a chance to step back and reflect this week following the intensity of the season of ministry leading up to Good Friday and Easter. I enjoy serving a church that values leading people closer to Jesus and passionately participating in God's redemptive mission. Our church is filled with creative people and amazing leaders. It's important for us to reach out to our friends and neighbors in order to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

The week after Easter Sunday for me is filled with rest. I'm catching my breath. I'm still working, but I'm taking time to pause and reflect on what God has done. God does different things every year at North Way East End. No one Easter worship service is ever the same, just as no one worship service is the same over the course of a year. The Holy Spirit is wild and free, moving at will in many different creative ways. I love slowing down, even if for a few days, because I have the opportunity to hear from God and to have my heart refreshed by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus actually had a pattern of engaging and disengaging during intense seasons of ministry. Jesus was passionate and he also rested. He spent time with people and he spent time alone in prayer. There is no one perfect way to accomplish ministry objectives or to be an effective church. There are many different creative ways to point people to Jesus. It's important for me to sense God's timing as a leader. I'm focusing on all of these things this week.

Good Friday and Easter

It's been a powerful Good Friday so far in the East End of Pittsburgh. I had the privilege of walking once again in the 5th Annual Prayer 4 Peace March in Homewood. We had another great crowd turn out this year to pray for our city!

This has been a meaningful event on Good Friday for each of the past five years. Transformation is a process that takes time. So many urban outreach efforts fizzle out in cycle of one and done programs led by people who give up when things get too difficult or inconvenient. Yes, transformational urban outreach is difficult, but one of the best things that leaders and people who support local outreach can do is continue to show up and be present over the long haul. A lot has happened in Homewood since I first started joining the work that is going on here, but I am so glad that God has given me the strength to stick with it even when it gets hard. I'm thankful that the church where I serve as a pastor, North Way Christian Community, continues to be present in Homewood year after year. It's important to be focused and to partner with the work of the Holy Spirit that is going on through so many amazing leaders in this part of our city.

I'm looking forward to the Good Friday worship service at North Way East End this evening at 7pm. It's important to be active in our city in terms of prayer and integral mission, but it is also important for the church to gather to worship God, preach the word, and to encourage one another on in the journey of following Jesus. The focus of the service tonight is all about honoring Jesus Christ. Pastor Freedom Blackwell will be teaching the message. Then, we'll gather back together at North Way East End on Sunday morning at 9am and 11am for Easter worship services. I can't wait to teach live on Easter Sunday! It's shaping up to be an amazing last couple of days of Holy Week here in Pittsburgh. I'm praying for all of the other churches and pastors in our city this weekend! I'm expecting God to do big things in our city.