Jesus' Church: Q & Dee Phillips
The Phillips are a part of the Eastside City Group, Q serves in Big City, and they attend the 11am gathering on Sundays. This is their story. This is what Jesus is doing in his church.
Since our very first visit to The Paradox, we felt a peace we hadn’t felt in any of the other churches we attended. Something was different about the atmosphere, as if the pomp and circumstance had been removed. This place felt Jesus-centered. The word of God was preached intensively and everything was centered in the gospel.Even though the peace we felt was real and tangible, it did not eliminate a clash of cultures from taking place. The church attire was casual. Although we had previously attended services with casual attire, this seemed to be casual to the next level. Someone presented us with the heartfelt gift of a cup of coffee… in the sanctuary …to consume during the service. Seriously?! And as Pastor Jim poured out his heart, passionately expounding the word of truth, we had to consult one another to see if those really were crickets chirping in the back of the room. We weren’t accustomed to the congregation being silent.
"One of the main attractions was the focus on loving the city of Fort Worth and the desire to see God’s love spread throughout our great city."
Nevertheless, after prayer and some weighty conversations we felt that the Holy Spirit called us to partner with this ministry. One of the main attractions was the focus on loving the city of Fort Worth and the desire to see God’s love spread throughout our great city. This was also one of the desires of our hearts. All signs pointed toward our personal mission and the mission of the church aligning.As grateful as we are to God for leading us to The Paradox Church and as wonderful and loving as the people of The Paradox have been, the transition has had its challenges. The decision to partner with a predominantly white church was tough, to say the least. Dee and I grew up and learned of Jesus and his gift of salvation in predominantly African American churches. The culture of those churches was vital in shaping us into the people we are today. Throughout our lives the Black church has been a staple in our community that provided aid when needed and leadership even when we felt overlooked by society.
"The decision to partner with a predominantly white church was tough, to say the least."
One of the tensest struggles in our decision to partner with The Paradox came while discussing the future of our children. By attending a church filled with people of color, we could be almost certain that our sons would see positive images of their people on a weekly basis. At times we feel as though we have to search intentionally for positive images of Black people on television and in other mediums, because they are not always readily available. The Black church has been a place where we could interact with and look up to people who resemble us as they love God with great character. We didn’t want to rob our children of that opportunity.
"We feel called to a mission greater than ourselves… the mission of building God’s Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven."
Yet we feel as though God has called us to The Paradox Church for a time such as this. We feel called to a mission greater than ourselves… the mission of building God’s Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. Heaven seems to be a picture of all of God’s children worshiping harmoniously together in spite of the differences that currently segregate us. Diversity will no longer have to be sought after or pointed out when it occurs because it will be woven into the very fabric of existence. We do not want to drift through this life waiting on eternity to see this come to fruition. God is very capable of allowing this to occur now. It has to begin somewhere, so why not with us? Not many people in this church family look like us. The culture clashes against what’s been engrained in us. And the music seems to be an acquired taste we’re still attempting to acquire. But for all of that… thank you, God.
"Diversity will no longer have to be sought after or pointed out when it occurs because it will be woven into the very fabric of existence."
We started the Eastside City group in October of 2013, and the Lord has already begun to show Himself in a mighty way. Our weekly gatherings are a wonderful picture of family showing and experiencing God’s love through the lens of racial diversity. We enjoy a room full of people, half Black and half White, mingling together in our greatest commonality: the life altering power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. There is still much work to be accomplished even amongst the diversity of our group, but we are in constant prayer towards that mark. Although we are only one group within the larger landscape of the church, we remain hopeful the desire of our collective hearts will permeate the culture at large and serve as a catalyst towards the ongoing transformation.
"...our greatest commonality: the life altering power of the gospel of Jesus Christ."
As we continue to step outside of ourselves and our preferences to love our neighbor, God will be glorified. In truth, we are making a sacrifice to remaining at The Paradox Church by surrendering some of our preferences and comforts. However, after the sacrifice our Father made for us there is little room to boast or complain. The gospel of Jesus Christ is bigger than us. Our desire is towards racial reconciliation and beautiful diversity within the church through the gospel. God has called us here to play our role in the beautiful story He has authored for this city.
