{"id":23658,"date":"2019-10-23T07:35:45","date_gmt":"2019-10-23T11:35:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/?p=23658"},"modified":"2019-10-26T14:16:46","modified_gmt":"2019-10-26T18:16:46","slug":"worship-wednesday-spirit-pour-out-andy-and-rachel-graham","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/?p=23658","title":{"rendered":"Worship Wednesday – Spirit Pour Out – Andy and Rachel Graham"},"content":{"rendered":"

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And when he [Jesus] drew near and saw the city, he wept over it.<\/em> – Luke 19:41<\/a>
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Jesus continued going around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/sup>When he saw the crowds, he felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. – <\/span><\/em>Matthew 9:35-36<\/a>
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Unless the Lord<\/span> builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord<\/span> watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.<\/strong> <\/em>– Psalm 127:1<\/a><\/p>\n

Thus says the Lord<\/span> of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon:<\/span> “Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce…<\/span>But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord<\/span> on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. – <\/span><\/em>Jeremiah 29:4-5, 7<\/a><\/span>
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The shining city we call home is Richmond, Virginia. It is a beautiful, gleaming mix of old and new.\u00a0 A river<\/a> runs east-west through it, and interstate highways divide it north-south. The divide goes much deeper than the highways cut through neighborhoods decades ago, but these transportation portals speak to that divide.<\/p>\n

After the Civil War (during which Richmond was the capital of the Confederate States of America<\/a>), the African-American community began to thrive here. In fact, Jackson Ward<\/a>, a Richmond neighborhood still today, was once known as “Black Wall Street”<\/a> and “the Harlem of the South”<\/a>. Beautiful homes, large churches, successful businesses, and popular entertainment venues were all part of this thriving neighborhood.<\/p>\n

Then “progress” happened. City and state officials determined the design of what is now our vast interstate system. This all-white group of officials made the decision of what would best serve the city and beyond. The highways would be laid down right through Jackson Ward. 1000 homes were lost through the city’s powers of eminent domain<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Roads to Nowhere: How Infrastructure Built Built on American Inequality<\/em> – Johnny Miller<\/a><\/p>\n

Recently I saw a TV show, All Rise<\/a>, that featured an anquished young man, wrongly accused of a felony. While awaiting the jury’s verdict, his public defender sat with him. She asked about why he was studying urban planning. This was the powerful scene<\/a> that speaks to what happened in our city and others:<\/p>\n