204: Is Cultural Diversity Realistic in the Church?
It’s easy to look across the auditorium–or across the room–and ask why the church and our small groups or missional communities are not more diverse. But are racial differences the only form of diversity there is?
This week on the Lifeschool Podcast, we’ll look at some of the reasons we don’t see greater diversity in the church and why there may be false expectations in connection with some of this. We’ll give you practical ways to look at your own church and community groups and begin to discern new opportunities for diversity.
True, life-giving relationships with others who are different than ourselves take humility. We will have to lay down our pride and any snobbery we have and be willing to include, learn from, and even follow others.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- Why Sunday is the most segregated (or most homogenous) day of the week.
- The “thing behind the thing” when it comes to our lack of diversity in the church (and life).
- Why diversity is not just about skin color and race.
- How when the Bible speaks about “all nations worshiping together”, it is not talking about a giant church service in heaven someday.
- Practical steps to intentionally growing a missional community that is more diverse in every way.
From this episode:
“Diversity isn’t something that happens automatically—which should be clear from history—it’s something that takes place and grows through our intentionality. But most of us live in a pretty diverse community if we choose to acknowledge and celebrate all the differences that God has already brought together.”
Each week the Big 3 will give you immediate action steps to get you started.
Download today’s BIG 3 right now. Read and think over them again later. You might even want to share them with others…
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Links and Resources Mentioned in This Episode:
Free Download of the Big 3 For Episode #204
Missio Publishing – More Missional Books and Resources
Caesar Kalinowski’s Website and Blog with Loads of Resources
In light of today’s topics, you might find these posts and videos helpful:
