"North America is the NEW mission field."
Such is one of the taglines for the upcoming "Glocal' Church Summit.
The summit, which will take place from November 17 to 19 at Ttokamsa Mission Church in Los Angeles, aims to focus on the fact that within North America, churches have the ability to reach many nations even within their local communities - hence the word, "glocal.'
"Churches have this tendency to think of bringing people into the church, rather than going out into the community," said Charles Kim, the coordinator of the Korean ministry at Christian Reformed Church of North America. "God is actively moving in our communities, and we want to encourage churches to be a part of that."
Kim further mentioned, as an example, that many churches and mission organizations may have a desire to reach Muslim people with the gospel, but that they may not realize that there is an Afghan church within the city of Los Angeles, or that there is a Pakistani church in New York.
The event features speakers such as Alan Roxburgh, Dave Gibbons, Moses Chung, and Tim Soerens, and various leaders from different ethnic groups. These speakers speak out of their own experiences and serve as examples for the attendees, as they have been doing things such as starting schools or opening cafes to engage and serve their respective communities.
Christian Reformed World Missions, Christian Reformed Home Missions, Calvin Theological Seminary, and Fuller Theological Seminary are co-sponsoring the event. Organizers invite not only church pastors, but also lay leaders and seminary students, to join in the conversation on how churches can more effectively and actively be a gospel witness to the neighbors in the local communities.
For more information and for registration, visit www.glocalchurch.net.
