{"id":635429,"date":"2024-02-23T12:56:40","date_gmt":"2024-02-23T01:56:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/?p=635429"},"modified":"2024-03-05T13:12:33","modified_gmt":"2024-03-05T02:12:33","slug":"thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/","title":{"rendered":"Thoughts on Unity from the UK"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our church\u2019s collective global focus on ethnic and racial unity is beautiful to bear witness to. \u00a0Conversation after conversation with different global leadership stirs issues of justice, also testifying of their divine appointment for such a time as this.\u00a0 In todays and future posts, I would like to highlight some of these leaders.\u00a0 The first is Rocky Nti, pictured above and below, who is the Worship Pastor for the UK, as well overseeing their unity efforts.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

If someone saw Rocky and I together I think they would be confused.\u00a0 They might immediately notice our differences and assume we do not have many commonalities.\u00a0 They would base this on what they can see: our race, our ethnicity, our age, and our gender.\u00a0 They would not see that I view Rocky as both my brother and friend.\u00a0 Rocky and I do have different upbringings and were raised in different countries, yet we also have many things in common.\u00a0 Some of these things are that we both: love the global church, are storytellers, have a strong like for Ghana and Ghanaian food, and we both have a deep passionate heart for unity.<\/p>\n

During one of our recent virtual meet ups, I asked Rocky some questions to help give you a little glimpse into the heart God has given him.\u00a0 The first question had to do with where his passion for unity came from.\u00a0 This is what Rocky told me:<\/p>\n

\u201cI was blessed to be born into a family where many tongues and nations are represented.\u00a0 My <\/em>grandma is Dutch, my cousins are Lebanese, my dad is Ghanaian, my cousins grew up in <\/em>Washington DC, and I was born in North London.\u00a0 From birth I was forced to see Christ <\/em>revealed in every skin pigmentation, accent, culture, and nationality.\u00a0 I have had the honor of <\/em> witnessing the Kingdom of heaven being reflected in my brothers and my sisters, my family.\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

But that reflection is not limited to my family alone. It extends to all of humanity.\u00a0 I believe that every human God has created is an extension of my own family.\u00a0 In Colossians 1:16 where it says, all things have been Created for Him and through Him.\u00a0 My mandate as a Christ follower is to see the Christ in all of God\u2019s creation.\u00a0 And that means unity in all things.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Next I asked Rocky to speak to how we as Hillsong Church can steward unity well, to which he answered:<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cOur church is ethnically and racially diverse by design.\u00a0 What started in Australia, stretches to every corner of the world.\u00a0 We are a picture of Revelation 7:9 where every tongue and nation sing salvation to God.\u00a0 But within that is a responsibility to be gracious hosts of God\u2019s dinner table.\u00a0 It is one thing inviting people to the party, it\u2019s another thing of how they are treated when they enter your home.\u00a0 And our mandate as a church is to make sure that every tongue and every nation feels a sense of belonging, that moves beyond our lips and into our hearts.\u00a0 That is my vision for our church.\u00a0 To honor the gift we have been given.\u00a0 And the gift is God\u2019s people, and the opportunities to witness heaven on earth.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

As you can easily see my friend and brother is an anointed communicator.\u00a0 I would suggest reading that again as it is loaded with so many Biblical truths.\u00a0 I asked Rocky what advice he would give leaders just beginning to step into the work of unity.\u00a0 This is what Rocky said:<\/p>\n

\u201cThese concessions only work with a commitment to transparency.\u00a0 I think from the get-go there needs to be a DNA check, a meeting with the stakeholders within your church community to see where we are at.\u00a0 \u201cIf you know whence you came, there is really no limit to where you can go,” says James Baldwin.\u00a0 Understanding where community has been, where your community is now standing, and what unity looks like for your context is integral to know before you start running.\u00a0 Otherwise, you run with no wisdom.\u00a0 You do not know what Biblical reconciliation or healing looks like in your context.<\/em><\/p>\n

The other thing I would say is that you need to really listen.\u00a0 \u00a0If you don\u2019t get people on the mat.\u00a0 If you\u2019re not united to the commitment from the get-go disunity will bring chaos.\u00a0 We need to ask if we are ready to decenter ourselves? Unity does not mean that my story does not prioritize your story.\u00a0 Instead, it becomes our<\/strong> problem.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Discipleship is our foundational global heart posture.\u00a0 It is foundational to what Rocky has shared.\u00a0 More than anything this is what we are going after.\u00a0 Rocky explained to me his perspective on discipleship.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would say that discipleship means to continually position myself as a learner.\u00a0 And as a student of Christ and His creation, I\u2019m forced to listen to learn and to be changed.\u00a0 I view it as a daily choice, to sacrificially love like my Savior loved.\u00a0 And through the lens of racial and ethnic unity that means to behold the Christ that is outside of myself, to champion the Christ that might be marginalized.\u00a0 To stand with the Christ that is the minority in the space.\u00a0 And to witness the Christ that may at first seem unfamiliar, but truly realizing that we are all connected and bound together in God.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The next question was a bit more challenging, as well as laced with complexities.\u00a0 Regardless, I wanted Rocky\u2019s perspective.\u00a0 I asked Rocky to evaluate how we are doing, to which he shared the following.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would say that within the UK, unity exploded in 2020 with awareness.\u00a0 But there is a significant difference between becoming aware and actively engaging in something.\u00a0 And I\u2019m not sure if as a nation we have allowed that awareness to transform how we engage with one another daily.\u00a0 The call to Christ is to love with not with words alone but through action.\u00a0\u00a0 In Matthew 6 it talks about “Be careful not to do your `acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them.\u201d\u00a0 We must act out of a true heart, which requires transformation, which is beyond billboards, social media campaigns, and marketing strategy.\u00a0 We are in the infancy stages of changing our hearts of loving one another.\u00a0 But at least we have begun.\u00a0 I think the same could be said globally.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The last question I asked Rocky was a bit simpler.\u00a0 I wanted to know in his own words his vision for our church.\u00a0 Here are his simple but beautiful concluding thoughts.
\n\u201cI think my vision would be that my future children from mixed heritages, can walk into any location across the globe, and feel like they truly belong.\u00a0 Not because of hype, performance, or fear, but because they are truly seen and loved.\u00a0 And my dream is for everyone to experience that sense of belonging, representation, and unity.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

I echo all the things Rocky so brilliantly shared.\u00a0 I don\u2019t just agree with them, but they are also my prayer.\u00a0 My prayer is that we as Hillsong Church would continue to allow God to transform our hearts into a radical authentic love, where every tongue and nation experiences belonging, representation, and unity.\u00a0 That we would remember that God\u2019s design for our church is for us to be ethnically and racially diverse.\u00a0 That what God started in Australia, now stretches to every corner of the world, to the glory of God.\u00a0 We collectively as a church are a beautiful picture of Revelation 7:9 where every tongue and nation sing salvation to God.<\/p>\n

In closing, I invite you to pray this with me:\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Help us God as individuals and as a church, to make sure that every tongue and every nation feels a sense of Biblical unity, that is authentic and moves beyond our lips and into our hearts.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Written by:<\/em><\/p>\n

Hillsong Global Ethnic and Race Diversity and Inclusion Manager\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

Maria Hansen-Quine, LASW, MSW<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

We acknowledge all First Peoples of the beautiful lands on which we live and celebrate their enduring knowledge and connections to Country. We honor the wisdom of and pay respect to Elders past and present.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I think my vision would be that my future children from mixed heritages, can walk into any location across the globe, and feel like they truly belong.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":54160,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15414],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThoughts on Unity from the UK - Collected<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"[:en]Thoughts on Unity from the UK[:] - Collected\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"[:en]I think my vision would be that my future children from mixed heritages, can walk into any location across the globe, and feel like they truly belong.[:]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Collected\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-02-23T01:56:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-03-05T02:12:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/cdn.hillsong.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2024\/02\/23125359\/Rocky-1-246x300.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"angelaheberley\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/\",\"name\":\"Collected\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cdn.hillsong.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2024\/02\/23125359\/Rocky-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/cdn.hillsong.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2024\/02\/23125359\/Rocky-1.jpg\",\"width\":903,\"height\":1100},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/\",\"name\":\"[:en]Thoughts on Unity from the UK[:] - Collected\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2024-02-23T01:56:40+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-03-05T02:12:33+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#\/schema\/person\/af99347982fc4288fa5cffd4ddceb03e\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Thoughts on Unity from the UK\"}]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#\/schema\/person\/af99347982fc4288fa5cffd4ddceb03e\",\"name\":\"angelaheberley\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/537fd1c9422190dbf8b7e4170763b280?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/537fd1c9422190dbf8b7e4170763b280?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"angelaheberley\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/author\/angelaheberley\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"[:en]Thoughts on Unity from the UK[:] - Collected","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"[:en]Thoughts on Unity from the UK[:] - Collected","og_description":"[:en]I think my vision would be that my future children from mixed heritages, can walk into any location across the globe, and feel like they truly belong.[:]","og_url":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/","og_site_name":"Collected","article_published_time":"2024-02-23T01:56:40+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-03-05T02:12:33+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.hillsong.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2024\/02\/23125359\/Rocky-1-246x300.jpg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"angelaheberley","Est. reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#website","url":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/","name":"Collected","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/cdn.hillsong.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2024\/02\/23125359\/Rocky-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/cdn.hillsong.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2024\/02\/23125359\/Rocky-1.jpg","width":903,"height":1100},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/#webpage","url":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/","name":"[:en]Thoughts on Unity from the UK[:] - Collected","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/#primaryimage"},"datePublished":"2024-02-23T01:56:40+00:00","dateModified":"2024-03-05T02:12:33+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#\/schema\/person\/af99347982fc4288fa5cffd4ddceb03e"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/blog\/2024\/02\/thoughts-on-unity-from-the-uk\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Thoughts on Unity from the UK"}]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#\/schema\/person\/af99347982fc4288fa5cffd4ddceb03e","name":"angelaheberley","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/537fd1c9422190dbf8b7e4170763b280?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/537fd1c9422190dbf8b7e4170763b280?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"angelaheberley"},"url":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/author\/angelaheberley\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/635429"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/54160"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=635429"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/635429\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":635437,"href":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/635429\/revisions\/635437"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=635429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=635429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=635429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}