Church Multiplication Helps Us Reflect the Diversity of the Harvest

by Rob O’Neal, Director of Church Multiplication

Shakopee, the town where I work, is changing rapidly. After many generations of homogeneity, immigrants from Russia, Somalia, many different parts of Asia, and across Latin America are changing the ethnic makeup of our neighborhoods and schools. Change like this has happened in many parts of our country already as the United States remains a nation of immigrants.

Our cities in particular are blessed with people from a variety of nations and ethnicities with a diversity of cultures and languages. What a great blessing!

We want the diversity of our population to be reflected in the Conference. That commitment is happening quickly in the Church Multiplication Movement. We are planting churches in urban and near urban settings, giving us more and more contact with different kinds of people and giving us opportunities to engage them, share the Good News about Jesus, and invite them to become disciples.

Some of our church plants enjoy high levels of diversity. They have people of various income levels, different races, and multiple nationalities. What they are experiencing can and should become normal for our Conference in the future.

The Bible presents a beautiful vision of what the church is supposed to be like in the Revelation. In chapter 7, John (the author) saw a great multitude of those who had been followers of Jesus and now stood in heaven. They were from many different nations, multiple people groups, and a diversity of ethnicities. As different as they must have all looked to John, he saw that they were all wearing similar white robes. John could see not that we would all have one tailor in the future but that we would all have the commonality of being forgiven by Jesus and equally sons and daughters of the living God. How beautiful!

May our churches begin to reflect this kind of diversity. May we be the agents who make this happen. May God look good as we do.