We do Kingdom things in Empire ways. What might it mean to do Kingdom things in Kingdom ways?
It will mean holding Christianity to its own claims: That leadership doesn’t have to coerce. That the Church can bless the world. That the Gospel is actually Good News. That the Kingdom is truly powerful…in a very peculiar way. This exploration will invite us to live as if the Kingdom of God has its own integrity. This life will transform our leadership, our faith, our work, our Church. We’ll discover that we can be as human as Jesus.
Reimagining Leadership
Jesus embodied a way to lead without abuse. But in the Church we rarely see it. If Jesus calls humans to lead, there must be some way for us to lead as humans. How might it look to be as human as Jesus in our leadership?
Reimagining Faith
Jesus embodied a childlike partnership with the Father. But in our faith we rarely find it. If Jesus calls humans to follow, there must be some way for us to follow as humans. How might it look to be as human as Jesus in our daily faith?
Reimagining Gender Dynamics
Jesus embodied a way for men and women to be in peace. But in the world we rarely see it. If Jesus calls men and women to follow Him, there must be a way to do it together. How might it look to be as human as Jesus in our relationships?
Meet Mandy Smith
Photo Credit: Sarah Topp
Mandy Smith is a pastor, author and speaker who, after living and ministering in the US and UK, now ministers in her homeland of Australia. She is a cohort co-leader for the Eugene Peterson Center for Christian Imagination and regular contributor to Missio Alliance. Her books include The Vulnerable Pastor: How Human Limitations Empower Our Ministry (IVP) and Unfettered: Imagining a Childlike Faith Beyond the Baggage of Western Culture and Confessions of an Amateur Saint: The Christian Leader’s Journey from Self-Sufficiency to Reliance on God. Mandy and her husband, a New Testament professor, live in the parsonage at St Lucia Uniting Church where the teapot is always warm.
"Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord.”
– Zechariah 4:6