Photo credit: rosslester.com
NASHVILLE – The men and women of the Acts 29 Network, a church planting network of pastors, gathered this week for the Acts 29 Global Gathering conference. Among the keynote speakers at the event was Ross Lester, pastor of Bryanston Bible Church in suburban Johannesburg. Pastor Lester spoke to the audience regarding ministry in a suburban context. Though several churches within the Acts 29 Network serve suburban areas, the network had long been known for its emphasis on planting in urban, population-dense environments.
“(Suburban ministry) doesn’t sound very exciting, or missionally hip, and doesn’t fit the mold of urban church planting that we have all been espousing for the last decade or so.”
However, Pastor Lester’s address caused quite a positive stir. Many conferencegoers took to social media to discuss how the message challenged their thought. The buzz led to Pastor Lester tweeting the post found below.
For quick reference, we’ve pulled out and listed below some of the primary points from the address. Those interested in reading the address’ transcript in its entirety can do so by visiting the link at the end of this article.
- You have to fight hard for genuine community in places that revolve around the cult of the stand-alone nuclear family unit
- You have to strive to model and teach the value of diversity in spaces built around homogeny
- You have to continually highlight God’s desire for justice in spaces designed to remove people from feeling and experiencing injustice
- You have to remind people of God’s great mission and their place in it, in the midst of routines, school-runs, commutes and survival
- You have to make big calls of sacrifice in the midst of surroundings designed around comfort
- You have to promote and celebrate advance in spaces designed for retreat
- You have to preach and believe the scandalous gospel of grace in environments designed around performance and self-help
