I remember when we moved to Manchester, people asked me my favourite thing about living here. My answer has always been: I love being where I know God has called me to be. And, I love the diversity of this city.

You can see the nations walking nearly every street. It’s a beautiful picture of the Kingdom of God—every tribe, nation, and tongue that will one day stand before his throne. It’s a beautiful reminder to me how much God loves all people groups of the world and longs for all of us to encounter his love.

Now, I not only have the joy of living in a diverse city, but I have the joy and privilege of pastoring a diverse church. The diversity of Ramp Church is a beautiful picture of our city and a beautiful expression of the Kingdom of God—where our eternal citizenship is.

Many in our congregation have experienced first-handedly the cruelty and injustice of racism, and the recent events in America have not just been disturbing but brought new waves of grief and pain for them. And, therefore, over our whole church body. When one heart bleeds among us, all hearts bleed. We grieve about what the injustice of racism has stolen and destroyed in all our lives.

The Kingdom of God celebrates and expresses itself through all the beautiful cultures and nations of this world. God's Kingdom brings all who trust in Jesus together to live, co-exist, and co-labour together for his glory. We're truly better together!

Together—nations, tribes, and peoples—magnify the unsearchable depths of the God we serve, and help us to accurately represent him to the world around us.

An intercessor from America sent me something yesterday. It encouraged me, and I think it’ll encourage you, today. We represent disciples from various cultures and nations, who've been called to this city to make disciples of nations. Here's what she sent:

I felt the Lord taking a moment to draw your eyes to the mission of ‘making disciples of nations’. That is what he is using you and your family for. . . . It’s the command for all of us. I particularly sensed this Scripture was for you today, . . . to help you see the bigger picture:

‘For the Lord will be your everlasting light. Your days of mourning will come to an end. All your people will be righteous. They will possess their land forever, for I will plant them there with my own hands in order to bring myself glory. The smallest family will become a thousand people, and the tiniest group will become a mighty nation. At the right time, I, the Lord, will make it happen.’
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭60:20-22‬ ‭(NLT‬‬)