John Perkins

Today I enjoyed a lunch with Jerry Neill and John Perkins. In the couple hours I spent with Dr. Perkins, I was overwhelmed by the richness of his life experience and wisdom. On the heels of Martin Luther King Day and the inauguration of Barack Obama, Jerry and I were eager to hear him reflect on the week's events.

Dr. Perkins shared that he spoke to a group of African American pastors in Hazelhurst on Monday. He rallied them to the idea that with Obama in office, black America can no longer claim a victim identity. Instead, he challenged his audience to live into a new reality that had been dreamed about by so many for so long.

He reflected on the picture of heaven we glimpse in Revelation: the gathering of God's children (the church) in Revelation has no barriers of race or ethnicity. So then, if we pray for God's will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, why not try to reflect that picture of God's people in heaven in our churches here on earth. Segregation in the church is an American invention, he said, which is appalling to Christians of other nations.

He shared a bit about his upcoming book, co-authored with Shane Claiborne.

He gave us insight into the work God is doing through the Perkins Center here in Jackson.

He spoke to everyone we encountered with love and gentleness. One of the male employees at the restaurant came up to him and embraced him. Dr. Perkins gracefully inquired how they knew each other. The man said that Dr. Perkins had come to preach to him while he was in prison and changed his life. Dr. Perkins congratulated him on his job and encouraged him to work hard.

What a life. This man lives out the gospel in a rare way in our world. He loves poor children. He feeds the poor. He heals the sick. He visits those in prison. He works to right the ways of an unjust society. This is a man who has much to teach about the ways of the Lord.