Why the city?

On Sunday, July 13, 2014, FBC Avondale Estates, GA voted for me to assume the responsibilities as Pastor of their church. Avondale Estates is a community tucked just inside the perimeter in the Atlanta Metro Area. In other words, we are ITP. Today there are close to 300k people in a 5-mile ring of this church.

The decision to leave the Federal Bureau of Prisons was one that I knew had to be made. It was time -- for many reasons. But, this blog opportunity isn't about my leaving, but about my arriving in this new and important ministry context.

I want to share a heart breaking stat with you --

"In 1965 there were 166 Georgia Baptist churches ITP; today only 38 remain; 25 average less than 100 in attendance. That is a 77% decline in just a half century." - Christian Index, Joe Westbury, Managing Editor, Published February 6, 2014

That simple stat shook my world. As you reflect on that -- I wonder if you would ask yourself has the population of metro ATL grown or shrunk in those 49 years. Of course the population has grown exponentially. 

I would like to refer you to this link.

http://www.businessinsider.com/half-of-the-united-states-lives-in-these-counties-2013-9

If you look closely at this map you will see the urgency to reach these counties and the metro cities they represent. 

I pray as a friend of mine and a follower of this blog -- you will commit to pray for my new ministry and this context. Additionally, I ask you to pray for our cities and the people they represent. There are literally millions of people in our cities that need to be reached. And, the wonderful news is that reaching them will be accomplished through a variety of methods and means. The are thousands of church plants and church revitalization endeavors occurring in our metro cities. I know that that there has been a lot of energy and effort put into church planting education and strategies. It is comforting to hear voices champion the cause of church revitalization. I sense that to reach these cities there must be a balance of both church planting and revitalization.

http://thomrainer.com/2013/06/03/a-humble-plea-for-church-revitalization/

I sense that God is not done working in our cities. He loves the cities and those that live there.

"Life in the garden was always intended to grow into life in the city." Why Cities Matter