for more than a year persons from all walks of life have been coming together for monthly meaningful conversations on topics of diversity, race, equity and inclusion all through a Fort Wayne based initiative called United Front.

Now this year the concept is expanding.

The concept is to provide churches with the opportunity to equip their parishioners for a thoughtful journey of racial healing, reconciliation and unification weariness is that feeling that you have when you've done everything that you can to accomplish something to make some task happen and you get to the end of it and it still isn't quite enough.

It's a burden that you're carrying but there's still there's still more to do and you don't feel like you can do it anymore.

I would say it's exhausting.

It is it's simply you're working hard to gain ground.

You're working hard to move forward and then only to find out that the ground that you thought you have gained, you either lost it or you never gained it at all and you have this overwhelming sense that you never can quite get it right and that you're always alienating somebody and that's not why we're here.

And so it wears on you.

You know, when you think of the topic and you start talking about race and reconciliation, you you almost think wow, especially for the church we should have gotten it by now.

You know, we shouldn't have to wait for some incident to occur.

We shouldn't have to wait for Brianna Taylor, a George Floyd you know, for something to happen once again for us to be moved to action.

So as we've engaged the issues of race in our culture, it comes at a cost it's a cost worth paying but it still comes at a cost of lost friends.

And I've lost close close church members who said they don't want to be a part of any of this and it's heartbreaking in a variety of levels because we need to right or wrong at least within our own four walls it gets wearying and you pour your heart and soul into trying to build a church that looks like the kingdom of God when we as people don't always line up with those expectations, it can make us weary.

And I think that there has always been a problem and there continues to be a problem with the issue of race within the church and we've allowed race to become a separation factor for us and therefore we are not carrying out the mandate of God and therefore as Dr. King said, we are separate.

You know, sounded to me I don't think we have a problem more than so.

I think we have a problem that we would don't want to talk about and not look for a solution that is there even today in 2012 to that problem still exists.

It exists because of the attitudes and the thinking process that people have.

I think a lot of times what happens is we go about trying to solve that problem by making church services diverse rather than making our lives diverse.

And so the question I always ask myself is not what does my congregation look like on a Sunday morning but what does my living room look like on a Thursday evening or a Saturday afternoon?

It's kind of hypocritical to talk about going to heaven together but we can fellowship or even serve or even work down here together.

We will not be able to accomplish what God has called to accomplish.

You know, we have been called to do great things as a as the body of Christ, not the black church, not the white church, but as the body of Christ.

>> The book of Galatians Chapter five verse one says For freedom Christ has set us free stand firm therefore and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.

>> One of the elements of that yoke of slavery was how we viewed our fellow man.

What race are they?

How much money do they have?

What gender are they?

The Bible talks of creation of all of us as humanity but it ends with the culmination of what does it look like for all races, all people to come together how the human race can be won today we could practice for eternity.

We could practice for heaven now we could look like the kingdom that will be on earth.

>> And so what's happening with the United Front Christian faith?

We're recognizing that we simply want what God is intended all along and that's for us to be a part of his family to come together and to have a place of grace to talk together about this important issue of race in our churches and in our city and in our country and from the oldest person to the youngest child, we want them to learn to love their neighbor as themselves.

We want them to celebrate differences, not divide over what I see with the United Front Christian faith is that our weariness is driving us to get to working and I see God blessing it immensely and I know he is only just getting started.

I feel a champion that's rising up in the church and I believe the time is right now there's a story in history told about Abraham Lincoln who was going to church one Sunday in the midst of the Civil War and during that time he went into this church in DC, sat in the back and listen to the sermon and upon leaving his aide asked him, Mr. President, did you enjoy the sermon?

President Lincoln responded by saying it was a very thoughtful sermon.

The aide asked him again Did you enjoy the sermon supposing it was a very articulate and passionately delivered sermon?

Mr. President, did you enjoy the sermon?

He said no because it did not asked of us anything great.

And I think this movement is asking every citizen of this community something great.

We'll learn more about United Front Christian faith this week's prime time.

Good evening.

I'm Bruce Haines with us from United Front is David Nicole and also with us our pastor Ryan Cochrane of Broadway Christian Church and Pastor Luther Whitfield with New Covenant Worship Center.

>> We're glad you've joined us as well if you'd like to be a part of our conversation by all means you see the number there on the screen as we've widened out to welcome a full house here this evening.

>> Pastor Whitfield, Pastor Cochran, David Cole with United Way, Luther Ryan.

David, thank you very much gentlemen for being thank you for having us building on those words of Abraham Lincoln.

>> What is that something great that united front Christian faith is asking of each of us to do Luther?

>> I think it's asking us to do is no one to to come together and let's let's have genuine dialog together and being authentic and not feeling like someone is putting me in a box because I don't know or because I'm uncomfortable to ask that particular question.

And then secondly it's of it's doing what scripture is calling you know, that Christ did for us to extend grace.

You know that people are not not aware they're they're they're they're they don't know how to ask the question or there's a sense of loss that we extend grace.

We don't take it personally.

How do we how can we move forward if we can't simply come together and have the dialog ?

>> Yeah, yeah.

I'd add to that that in our very polarized culture where people tend to talk past one another on social media or on news networks or again not know how to ask the kinds of questions that are on people's hearts and minds to create a space in the church where that's actually happening so that the church can be an example of that for the rest of culture how we can come and talk with one another and maybe at the end of the day Luther and I might not agree on every single thing but at least I've actually heard what he actually thinks or actually heard the experience that he's had in his life and come to understand that better.

>> I think that that would be a great thing for the church to be a space in our culture where people know they can come and have dialog and to to talk about those important questions that are on their hearts and minds.

>> Dave, what about you, sir?

I mean this is quite a journey from United Front of about what eighteen months or so ago?

>> It it is.

And you know what we learned in United Front was we needed to engage in this dialog and we had pastors approaching the United front saying can you bring something for churches and for ministries from a biblical perspective?

And and we responded to that call through United on Christian Faith and put together an amazing team of pastors and individuals that have really put together a phenomenal curriculum.

>> And I think the the something great is really to change the culture of our community to to engage in the conversation, to engage the discussion, to change the culture of our community, to be more inclusive.

>> We have some images that were taken from I believe in organizing event a couple of months ago and as we share those with you gentlemen talk about that idea of the coming together different beliefs, different corners of the city but still unity in a very special kind of diversity the coming together for us it's really people who who this has been part of their heartbeat.

It's been part of that tug and to create that space where we come together to to have a dialog in that to to learn from one another to that experience.

There are people from a variety of churches that this really is on their heart and they've experienced situations loss family, meet family members from the past or even to the present and so we really do want to create that space.

We want to create that space where people can come and share and and expose their experience .

And as my brother Ryan said, we may not all get along or in regards to Brian we walk away feeling one way I mean walk away feeling one way but one thing it sure is that we had the opportunity to share we had the opportunity to learn and and we had the opportunity, you know, want to to build upon something and that it just doesn't have to end later.

>> I think one of the things about you know, from Christian faith it's been good for me is I have lots of opportunities to come together with other pastors in the city to talk about various issues.

But what's been great about united front Christian faith is we brought together pastors as well as business leaders and leaders of nonprofits and members of the fire department all to come to talk about how their faith informs their ideas about how we should deal with racial reconciliation in our city.

And so to have different members from different cross sections of our city has been valuable for me to be able to hear how how is that affecting you in your business?

How is that affecting you at the fire department?

How is that affecting you in the work that you're doing?

And so that's been that has informed the way that we've shaped the curriculum that we put together and form the way that we want to to help shape these these conversations in our churches.

And you the beauty of that too is the fact that it it it really is what I feel.

But what is God's word saying about the matter?

Right.

Because God's word supersedes my feeling, my politics and really shaping it around God's word that's that's really been the the awesomeness of this organization.

>> And I saw references in to that point.

I'd like to get your perspective on this too but references about united front Christian faith that this is to equip parishioners with, if you will, Christ's perspective on race.

>> And so I wrote what is Christ's perspective on race?

Yeah, that's God made us in Genesis Chapter one and two made us in his image and from the very beginning that he made us all in his image that we are we are one race at the very beginning and that are our divisions then are a result of our when we are divided in culture it's a result of our own sin and that Jesus through his death and resurrection and through the message of the Gospel provides a place for us to come together and recognize that all of us are sinners in need of forgiveness.

All of us have fallen short of God's glory and need forgiveness and so Luther and I and David that all of us come together at the foot of cross of the cross in need and that's a place where we can all begin and start that conversation.

>> I think it's just you know, the beauty of that we're one in Christ but we are unique that that diversity is something that Christ created for us that and he was so much into diversity that no, not a single person has the same fingerprint.

>> He's that much into the city.

But yet even though we're uniquely made we are what we really are and that's my brother is so well put it and so eloquently put it that through Christ that's what makes us want and yet I don't have to deny who I am but it enhances me that I am a child of God and that I have brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus and so that's been the beauty of this this whole thing.

It's helping us to really find our identity and celebrate that and celebrate who we are in Christ, in our identity in him.

>> I think also what we see at you know, I talked about things beginning in Genesis and the Scriptures that at the end in Revelation the vision that we have the hope that we have as Christians and that we are all going to be gathered together in revelation talks about every tribe and tongue and language and nation on joining together to worship that that's our end.

That's our that's the hope that we have.

And so we are trying our brother Kevin on the on the video talked about practicing for heaven that today if we can begin to gather together and practice for this eternal life of worshiping together that the Bible holds out for us as our hope that makes me excited to to sit down and to talk and talk about how we can be more unified together in our expressions of church and the way we live life in our city.

>> David with a united front working with the faith community in this regard and sensing the need for content, for curriculum, for pillars around which to base the programs on the tools to share with parishioners.

>> That's no small homework aside.

It's it has not been and it's one of the reasons why I'm very grateful for these two gentlemen and other pastors that have come alongside us to really help build this curriculum and Dr. Lisanby as well.

So the this the the pillars of healing and reconciliation and unification is because we are all fallen right.

And we all need Christ Christ forgiveness and then to come together as that one.

So having these gentlemen and our other pastors to put together this curriculum that is allowing us to to allow us to provide to our faith community churches and ministries lessons that are going to be about 20 minutes in length and then discussion questions that are going to allow those congregations in small group settings to really dove deep into identity honesty ,humility, grace all under that the theme of healing so really diving deep into those.

>> Do you feel this is the kind of opportunity to for some parishioners that say I'm I am willing I don't know which end of the tools to use much less what tool to have in hand that if at a particular time but if this can work count me in.

>> Yeah I know I'm praying that we get every church engage in it that we in the time in which we live I believe the church can no longer be silent in this area.

>> We got to speak truth and how do we mirror Christ if we're if we're not willing to speak truth and to be vulnerable and transparent with one another and extend that grace.

And so I'm praying that our brothers and sisters will engage with us, join in with us.

I got to it.

It will stretch us.

It indeed will stretch stretches.

But yet I think anything that is is going to help us to be calm and to reflect the kingdom of God.

>> It's worth it.

I think there are a lot of people who don't know the tools or the language.

They're afraid they're going to say something wrong that might offend somebody in a way that they weren't expecting to or or say something or ask some sort of question where somebody is going to label them racist or bigoted or whatever and they're just asking a question.

>> And so I think that this is going to provide some tools for us to have some some common language and a foundation from scripture and a common language to talk about this with one another.

So I like the way you ask that question.

Some people may be hesitant not know what tools are available to them for effort to have that tool come in from the scriptures and then a shared conversation together with shared vocabulary about what what God really has in mind for race I think is I hope that people will have the freedom to walk into that and know that they're going to be able to to learn some things.

>> You both touched on something I'd like to speak to and everyone join in.

But this is an opportunity for all churches.

This is not a we've got our first task our cohort developed wait for the next cohort and how does a church then make its contact to say this sounds of interest?

>> How may I learn more and yeah, let's start there.

>> So our website United Front Christian Faith Dot very original if you go to our website United Front Christian Faith dot com if you're a church or a ministry inside our community you can go scroll to the bottom and click enroll.

It's got a great opportunity for it'll ask some questions and help the organization begin to get enrolled in United Front Christian Faith in the late springtime here may time frame our first set of the healing discussions will be released to those organizations that have enrolled and then we'll begin to have those conversations inside those churches and ministries and an opportunity to in the coming weeks I believe something special.

>> That's right this week we are really excited.

We have author Pastor Global Leadership faculty member Albert Tate is going to be joining us for our United Front Christian Faith kickoff on April 14th at six thirty at the Klyde Theater again to register for that go to United Front Christian Faith Dotcom, scroll down a little bit and click on register and we are really excited about having him here to kick off United Front Christian faith and and to begin this journey in our community.

>> We do have that contact information to share as they say graphically.

So let's put that up there.

Well, folks may be looking for a way to write all that down but there is no doubt or dash or anything except right before come.

>> But there is the information before it.

>> You've made a point in the video that you would think we would have figured this all out by now.

>> But we we are slow learners but we are still sincere it would seem.

Let me ask you each in kind of summary for the for the moment with this program your sense of optimism looking ahead to how this will play out in your particular congregations and for that matter your hope for the program with the city.

And I'm I'm really excited for our Kongregate.

We have a diverse congregation and but there are some word that we can there are some more brothers and sisters that we can spend time with and engage and and I hope it's just not something that we CHAKO often say, hey, you know what?

We did this in our church and let's move on.

But something that continues on this perpetual and that I want to be able to build other relationships with other brothers and sisters outside of the church and I think we have to do that and and and it shouldn't always be as you heard me say earlier, that we we suffer some incident that that rattles our home.

Nasch and then we want to talk about it.

But I think this gives us an opportunity to jump ahead and in and if we just move the football a yard, I'm happy because at least the ball is being moved in right now.

>> About you, sir.

Yeah, I really there's people in in our congregations that are that are hurting because of us.

There are people who have who have been wounded by things that have been done by things that they've seen, by things that have and said to them um and it it's my hope that as we come together and again be able to ask some questions, be able to get some answers from scripture that some of those wounds begin to be healed, some of the wounds people carry with them and they're they're hurt.

They're angry other people they may be more hidden internal but they're carrying them and any time that there is a division between people in the church, the scripture says and one of us suffers all of us suffering.

And so this is a way to begin to to bring that healing together.

So that's that's part of my hope is that those people who are who are hurting who who feel that they need a space to talk about this that this will provide that for them and will not just provide new information for them but will offer an opportunity for transformation that that my heart will be changed to this process and that's what we hope for all of our congregation members on any Sunday morning will gather together that there be not just more knowledge in our heads but but changed hearts and and change relationships and connections with one another.

>> Yeah.

And David, you have the final 30 seconds.

>> So our hope is that as Luther said, as many churches ministries inside our community join us on this journey this is a safe place to explore Christ perspective on race and where grace is given for those.

I don't quite know how to say this and we are excited to we want to see a community where Sunday is where we're not divided the most and here is the beginning of the steps of that journey.

You can just go over to any piece of paper United Front Christian faith dot com and let your computer help you out and it's an exciting time in our community again breaking new ground.

Gentlemen, thank you all so very much.

Pastor Luther Whitfield with the Covenant Worship Center.

>> Also Pastor Ryan Cochrane Broadway Christian Church and David Nichol with the United Front for all of us with prime time, I'm Bruce Haines.

Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your evening.

Take care and we'll see you back here again next week.

Goodnight