One Church - Many Different Locations
The 1st Century Church understood how cities can be transformed.
"Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened; and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord (Acts 9:31)."
Notice that the Scriptures uses the singular form of the word “church.” City-reaching is a biblical mindset. "One Church that just happens to meet in several different locations." This is true unity of purpose with transferal transformation power.
God is still at work transforming entire cities around the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Consider the documented reports about Almolonga. Before and after: two simple words frequently used to describe Almolonga, a town in western Guatemala. Locals consistently refer to it in terms of two eras: the period before the power of God came in the mid-1970s and the period after, when 90 percent of the 19,000 residents became born-again Christians.
Before revival, Almolonga was gripped by fear, poverty, disease, idolatry and alcoholism. Today the town is called "The Miracle City" because of the radical changes that have occurred among these Quiche Indians, who are descendants of the ancient Mayans.
How about what happened in Cali, Columbia? The 1995 murder of a prominent evangelical pastor in Cali has sparked an intense revival in the city and its churches. The assassination of Julio Ruibal prompted the pastors of
This brought massive changes in the city, including the fall of the notorious Cali drug cartel. The church in Cali comes together quarterly for all-night prayer sessions, asking God to pour out His Spirit on its community.
Take a look at Kiambu, Kenya - a city of 60,000, which was steeped in witchcraft. Today, the church is experiencing explosive growth in the wake of prayer. This is quite significant in an area where no church has ever grown beyond 30 or 40 believers.
Also consider what happened in Hemet, California where a cult-bound, gang-plagued city became a community sold out to God. This doubled church attendance!
Consider the true story about how God used a 16-year old high school student from Wichita,
Little did she know that God was about to use her to ignite a huge flaming revival among young people in Wichita. Sherri’s courage and witness for Christ inspired other students to plant evangelistic cells on other school campuses in the city, resulting in thousands of young people coming to the Lord. Church and parachurch leaders partnered with parents in prayer and evangelism. The results were phenomenal.
Since that time, over 10,000 "student-led" Bible studies and prayer groups have been planted on school campuses all across the U.S. This all began with one commmited Christian "on fire" for the Lord.
America is now beginning to experience what can happen when Christians unite in prayer, purpose, and transformation. City-reaching coalitions are being formed all across America. They are tearing down the walls that divide and building bridges that foster "relational synergism" - people working together for greater purposes, realized only through concerted efforts.
God is not finished with the Church in America. Now is the time to embrace renewal…revival…and reformation!
