In this episode, we have the gift of hearing from Rev. Grace Imathiu, Senior Pastor of First United Methodist Church in Evanston, Illinois. Pastor Grace is a citizen of the world for whom ‘the world is her parish’. As an African who is married to a European and is raising an American son, Grace is fluent in three languages, was educated in Kenya, U.S.A., in England and Israel. She has preached in Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Togo, Liberia, Denmark, Australia, Malaysia, Brazil, and all throughout the United States. Grace has a passion and gift for inspiring and nurturing prophetic communities of faith to live out loud the Jesus Story. For Grace, the quintessential expression of the resurrected Lord’s presence is a community whose very DNA is a radical hospitality which births a loving and a healthy tension that is ideological, theological, racial, ethnic and cultural. She thrives on diversity. Grace is married to David Jones and together they are the parents to Erik.

Pastor Grace invites us to hold the posture of a prophet as she encourages us to imagine a new future. If it is true what Einstein said, that “Imagination is more important than knowledge,”— then the task of prophetic ministry according to Walter Brueggemann is “to nurture, nourish, and evoke imagination.”

Show notes:

Grace tells a story at the beginning of the episode about the Kazuri bead factory. Follow this link to see images of that factory.

Episode tracks: “Far Side of the Sea,” “Versailles,” and “Fearless” by Amy Stroup, used with permission.

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