THE BRIDGE TO SOMEONE!

This weekend, Dallas will celebrate the grand opening of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge.  Some critics have called it “the bridge to nowhere.” Supporters disagree and claim it is a “bridge to somewhere” that promises to fuel a turnaround for North Oak Cliff and West Dallas.  However, I call it The Bridge to Someone.

Entrepreneurial business leaders see potential places for development and how this bridge to somewhere can bring potential customers.  I applaud their efforts, but my focus is not on the places but on the people.

A few years ago, Pastor Joe Miller retired from the North Oak Cliff Baptist Church after 28 years of faithful ministry.  The membership was now small, but they had a big heart for the North Oak Cliff neighborhood.  Before the church disbanded and Joe moved to Waco, he led the congregation to work with Dallas Baptist Association in making sure that a church continued in that location to reach the neighborhood. 

Today, Pastor Chuck Padilla, and the good people of Iglesia Bautista Christian Fellowship are reaching out to the people of the North Oak Cliff neighborhood which is in sight of the new Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge.  While there are many plans for places that will be developed as a result of the new bridge, I am happy to say that there is a thriving church that is ministering to the people in that neighborhood and sharing the message of Jesus Christ.

Have you ever thought about how a church is like this newest icon of Dallas?  A New Testament church is also a bridge to someone. We need churches in every neighborhood reaching out to every people group with the message of Jesus Christ.  

As we celebrate the opening of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge, may it be a symbol and reminder to us of the need for churches all over our mission field reaching all the various people groups who live in the greater Dallas area.