Vision
Tentmakers: Outside the Box
by Homer Trecartin, courtesy Adventist Review
"Some years ago an Adventist couple in Atlanta, Georgia, felt a growing burden to work for the thousands of people who lived in a low-income housing project. . . .
"The family quit their well-paying jobs, took lower-paying positions, sold their middle-class house, and moved into the projects. They began visiting their neighbors, organizing community cookouts, arranging games and activities for neighborhood kids. They were tentmakers."
Through several inspiring stories, Trecartin offers a less-common approach to reaching some of the world's least-reached cities. 2017.
Read MoreMission to the Cities in Southern Asia-Pacific Division
South-Pacific Division President, Glenn Townend, discusses the importance of reaching SPD cities, and suggests approaches for the work in this 2017 address.
Methods of Metropolitan Ministry
by Jared Thurmon
Three 2016 interviews with Adventist pastors in urban settings consider what is being done, what is working, and what advice they would share. Pastors interviewed include:
- Jessie A. Lopez, Associate Pastor for the Atlanta North Seventh-day Adventist Church
- Marquis Johns, Senior Pastor of the North Philadelphia Seventh-day Adventist Church
- Myron Edmonds, Senior Pastor of the Glensville Seventhday Adventist Church in Cleveland, Ohio
"Baby, I Don't Fly": Facing the Challenges of the Cities
by Gary Krause, courtesy Adventist Review
"Today more than 500 cities have populations of more than 1 million people, and these cities are social and economic powerhouses, generating more than 80 percent of global gross domestic product.
"Now consider the Adventist populations in these cities. On average, there’s one Seventh-day Adventist congregation for every 89,000 people. Forty-five of these cities have fewer than 10 Adventists; 43 have no Adventist congregations."
Krause's 2016 article examines the challenge, and shares stories of what it means to understand the city you serve.
Read MoreI Shall Be in the City
by José Cortes, Jr.
In this 2016 article, José Cortes, Jr., Associate Director for Evangelism in the Ministerial Association of the North American Division notes that there are more than 58 cities of a million or more in this division. Read the North American Division's vision for reaching these cities.
Tweeting in New York City
by German H. Alferez, courtesy Adventist Review
A data scientist brings sentiment analysis to an archive of New York City tweets to learn which areas of the city tend to tweet more positive or negative sentiments. He identifies four neighborhoods as good potential locations for Life Hope Centers, and reveals the potential that social media data analysis holds for urban work anywhere in the world. 2016.
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