Heartbeats of a City

Heartbeats of a City: Confessions of an Uber Driver Note: Algebra is the branch of mathematics dealing with more abstract formal structures, such assets, groups, etc. Many of us who studied algebra may have wondered when, or if we would ever use it outside of the basic math that we use in managing our day to day lives. Years ago, when God gave me vision to pioneer ministry that I had never seen or heard of, what little revelation I had came through an understanding of the manifest sons of God that are spoken of in Scripture. In respect to this, I was given specific people groups as the focus for the purpose of the ministry that I was about to embark upon. In going forth, the Administrations of 1 Cor 12:28 became as algebra to what we have known as basic math through Ecclesia. If you don’t have Ecclesia (to occupy from), you can’t advance through Administrations. This word is not for the purpose of defining or expressing the ministry, or the paths of ministry that followed. It’s for the purpose of sharing the conversations that I have engaged in from my riders as an Uber Driver. You see, being an Uber Driver was never up there on my bucket list of my jobs of preference. If I was serving my own needs alone in this, I would be back sitting at a desk behind a computer as I have done for much of my working career. Even as I do enjoy driving overall, as well as the flexibility it offers, I have also fought God pretty hard in this at times. Ultimately, over time, I have found that this job has caused me to cross paths with so many who represent the pulse of the city that I began to hear in Atlanta just after COVID. After driving through the barren streets and Interstates of Atlanta two years ago, I wept knowing that the pulse of the city had changed. Even though I was uncertain as to what events would follow, I was certain that these events would bring greater disorder and upheaval than what we presently knew. God’s purpose in the times that followed placed me in what was needed to cause me to hear from those who He identified as the pulse of the City. These bear up the heaviest yokes from the responsibilities and the burdens that they carry in how they serve us. Personally, I have grown in discernment of how many of us relate to these from what is desensitized and detached from seeing them first as human beings. Rather, from the lens of how they serve us, many of us view them as the Super Humans waiting to meet our needs and demands. Not only have I heard from people who served us, but I have heard from great professionals. I have also heard from drug addicts, prostitutes, and others who live from the lowest state of being within our cities. During my time of “hearing the pulse of the city”, I never let on that I was anything more than the Uber Driver. (Except for those I have ministered to and led to Jesus.) It has actually been the hearts that I have heard from that has caused me to stay faithful to a difficult path. What I share below is for the purpose of raising awareness of where and how we need to be more sensitive and discerning from what we expect of others in their service to us. Faith, along with the word of God, paired with service, serves to build people from where they serve. This agreement is what God will build us all through in our going forth. The Pulse: PTSD is real. Nurses, Medical Professionals, and all First Responders: these take part to heal the body while oftentimes knowing that the spiritual and the emotional wellbeing of those they heal may continue to languish once they’re sent back into what made them sick and broken. The core values within family and community are sometimes so broken that the systems that are in place within our cities are unable to properly serve them. Teachers and educational systems are unable to deal with the demands being placed upon them. For Teachers who can no longer manage classrooms, their voices and authority become drowned out by those they are to be in authority over. Their days are often filled by battling through large numbers of disruptive children, as well as parents who will present themselves in threatening ways towards them. Some even suffer violence from the children; not to mention how Teachers must act to protect the same children from violence from outer sources. Cycles that begin from what is broken continue in the same. These challenges then escalate towards what upholds Law. Greater demands are then placed upon Law Enforcement, as well as other agencies that also serve these needs. I have heard from Ex-Police Officers who left the force because they had developed jaded hearts and were unable to help or fix themselves. Even with systems and programs in place, they felt that their greatest spiritual and emotional needs went unmet. I have also heard for the other “Ex’s” from the other fields of service. These three people groups form a circle that a pattern can be seen through. The patterns create cycles, which create…..well, we know the course of events that follow these cycles. Wisdom and Understanding When we understand how to implement the teaching and administrations of Kingdom ministry that will better serve the heart of our cities, we can then work towards what the heart beats for or after. Shortsightedness comes from a lack of understanding and discernment. Not too long ago, I saw an experiment published of what takes place between red ants and black ants that were contained within a jar of sand. Left alone, each species of ant moved freely in the jar without prejudice towards the other. When the jar of ants was shaken from an outside source, the two species began to fight each other within the jar. The pattern of behavior that is seen in the red ants vs the black ants further serve to mark any part of division that is present in any disorder. When we see the pattern, as well as the cycles that follows, we can heal the wound that brought the division in the first place. The ant experiment only showed the results without further comments. My own synopsis in this observation is that if the two species of ants had teamed up together during the shaking, they could have built a highway, or bridge from the sand that was placed in the jar with them. As it was, no ant could leave the confines of what they were all entrapped within together. Sometimes the real battle isn’t coming at us from outside sources, but rather from within. The Kingdom builds from within to expand us outwardly. In our advancing, we will face many battles of different kinds. We are wise not to engage what keeps us confined to what we need to come out of. Sometimes, what brought change to begin with was the very thing that was needed to heal us.