Multiculturalism is here! It is not coming. It is here. We are living in a day in age where everywhere we look, we see people who look different than we look. They dress slightly different than we dress. Their taste, their customs, their perspectives are all different than yours, and mine. Mine are different than yours, and yours are different than mine!

Today in America, what was once the minority has fast becoming the majority. In fact, by 2050 the sum total of the United States ethnic minority groups will total over 60% of our population.

The question that Efrem Smith proposed in his dynamic talk, yesterday at the NACC convention was, what will be “the church’s” response to multi-culturalism? “The increasing diversity in America does not stress God out,” Efrem exclaimed! “God desires to use us to advance His Kingdom in this multi-ethnic world.”

We live in an increasingly divided world that desperately needs Jesus followers to be “gap fillers,” as Efrem says, “to step out of the comfort zones of our homogeneous church networks, cross racial lines to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.” Efrem went on to say that, “ we no longer need to be a far missionary. All we need to be is mission motivated right in our own communities.”

I truly believe Efrem is right on point.

What I appreciated most about his message yesterday was the way he demonstrated how the blood of Christ was/ is multi-ethnic blood, and “…in the blood line of Jesus are all the people that God created. Rich people, poor people, men and women, red, yellow, black, and white, sinful people, cursed people; Jesus has that much multi-cultural, multi-racial blood flowing through his vain that it represented all of humanity. When Jesus was on the cross and blood was coming from his hands, and blood was streaming from his head, and blood was coming from his side that was multi-cultural, mutli-racial, multi-ethnic blood from the King of kings and Lord of lords. That means when we say Jesus died for our sins we can take that literally because ALL of US was flowing through all of Him.”

Multiculturalism is here, and now! It has always been here, and Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection was for all of us, now. One for ALL, so that ALL would be ONE!

If you are missing the NACC, you are missing something good!!!

Unity Through Diversity!

BEYOND: A Note from Ben Cachiaras, 2010 NACC President

“Come to the North American… It’s going to be one to remember!
This is no time for business as usual, protecting the status quo in our lives or our ministries. The needs are too great. The call is too urgent. And God is on the move!

We truly follow Jesus, we will be moving, too. So we’ve created a program God can use to shape us and move us BEYOND where we are right now — in so many ways. The Church needs leaders who recognize the need to be confronted with a disturbing urgency, and a need to grow.

Let’s come together because in so many ways, God is calling us to go BEYOND. It’s time for our Movement to go beyond. Your church and our ministries need to go beyond. And I need to go beyond — to the place where Jesus is calling me — and so do you.”

Dream of Destiny is excited about this year’s NACC in Indianapolis Indiana. There is a line up of great speakers and breakout sessions. From Tony Dungy, Rick Warren and Francis Chan, to Efrin Smith and Gene Appel. The call is to go Beyond. Beyond racial lines, beyond comfort zones, and beyond the great omission…

We are called to go and BE the church that challenges and changes the world around us. Are you coming?

Dream of Destiny is hosting a breakfast Thursday, June 8th at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Ball Room CD.

You are invited!

We hope that this will be a time for ministries and bible colleges to network and share best practices, as well as their road blocks, as it relates to fostering unity through diversity.

We hope to see you there.

Unity Through Diversity,
Byron

If you have not attended the NACC summer convention in a while, you will NOT want to miss the one coming up in summer 2010.  The theme for the convention is, BEYOND, following Jesus to a place you’ve never been!  Ben Cachiaras, the 2010 NACC President, shared the vision for this summer’s conference, and I am already excited about attending.

I just got back from the NACC executive meeting, held in Indian, where executive and continuation committee members plan the schedule for the 2010, and 11 conventions.

Hold onto your church hats, and bible covers! Big change is coming down the pipeline.  I have been told, by several committee members, that the energy at this past meeting was higher than any in years past. God is definitely doing a new thing.  For one thing, it was definitely more diverse. We had more diversity in ethnicity, gender, and age at this meeting influencing who will speak at convention and in workshops.

Francis Chan has confirmed to speak.  Dick Alexander from LifeSpring Church will speak. If you have not heard about Ephran Smith, you most definitely will within the next year.  He’s confirmed to speak.  And more! The conference is in Indianapolis, July 6-9th 2010.

All I will say for now is: Register Now!

Go Beyond! Connect With the NACC on FaceBook.

Video to come… Stay Tuned…

Phil Allen, lead pastor of The Vine (Porter Ranch, Ca), shares a poem he wrote on the celebration of diversity.