Dear friends,

In 2016, Tina Dyer attended her first residency at the Renovaré Institute. While it isn’t always the case, in that particular 45-student cohort Tina was the only African American.

“I began to think I might have misjudged Holy Spirit’s leading,” Tina shared on the podcast this week, ​“but I remember the Lord saying, ​‘Let’s just get through tonight.’”

And she did. The following morning she met fellow student (now Renovaré Content Manager) Grace Pouch, and the two began a lasting friendship rooted in mutual listening.

I’m thankful for Tina’s obedience and courage to stick around that night seven years ago. She now serves as the treasurer on the Renovaré board, and her presence and perspective are invaluable to this community. 

Grace joined Tina on the podcast to discuss The Narrative of Sojourner Truth, the final book in this season’s Book Club. It’s inspiring to hear them learning from each other and together learning from one of America’s most influential abolitionists. 

Many of us gravitate toward people like ourselves and to books that confirm what we already know. But spiritual growth requires listening to Christians whose lived experiences and perspectives differ from our own.

That’s why we choose books like Sojourner Truth, and why we try to create safe spaces where Christians from different backgrounds and traditions can worship together and listen to each other and to God.

RēGathering, the upcoming national Renovaré event in Denver this June, is intended to be just such a space (early bird pricing ends today). If I had to list prerequisites for RēGathering — or for anything Renovaré does — they’d be…

a hunger for God,
hospitality of heart,
and a willingness to listen to each other.

It’s incredible what God does when these qualities are present in his gathered people.