Breaking Barriers: Reaching Your Neighbors in a Diverse Community

by Stefan Johnsson

“For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility.”
-Ephesians 2:14 (NIV)

You were created with a purpose. You exist to be a light in your community, a reflection of Christ to those around you.

As globalization makes the world feel smaller and brings cultures closer together, it might be easy to feel overwhelmed or uncomfortable.

Our reflex might be to place barriers between ourselves and diversity, but the gospel compels us to break down these barriers and illuminate the world with the light of Christ. The truth is that this mixing of cultures creates an opportunity for the advancement of the gospel like never before.

This is a call to action and a challenge for you—not to blame you or shame you for inaction, but to empower you with the gospel truth so that you can seize the mission field on your very own doorstep.

Breaking Barriers is a personal and practical guide to help you understand and interact with cultures different than your own. Stefan brings a fresh, personal perspective to remind you what the Bible is already telling you to do.

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Included at the end of each chapter are questions for personal reflection or small group discussion.

244 pages, Paperback

First published July 15, 2020

About the author

Instagram profile: @stefanj_author

Reviews

[Cameron Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book that encourages us to look beyond our comfort zone and beyond our immediate context in order to reach others for the gospel. It's all too easy for us have a tunnel vision to our own context and completely ignore connecting with others. Even when we try to connect, we usually go about it in all the wrong ways without first taking steps to break down the cultural, ethnic, or any other barriers that might stand in the way. When we go out of our way to have intentional relationships with others simply because we love others the way Jesus loves them, we can open the door to incredible spiritual conversations that would otherwise be closed.

[Preston Norman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great read! Stefan has done an awesome job approaching what is a sensitive, but very important topic, with the utmost care and thoroughness it has needed for so long. If you're a believer, particularly in the western world, who struggles with reaching out to other cultures, this book is for you! So often we want to do something, we want to develop relationships with those in our community who are different than us, but we're crippled by the fear of what we don't know about them, or worse, some preconceived (often wrong) idea about who they are or what they believe. Stefan takes great care to break down this mentality and illustrates through personal anecdotes how simple it can be if we just take the first step.
You need this book!

[Emmitt III · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book and highly recommended to those who seek to understand the purpose of Christianity more, or Christians who seek to understand how to move past barriers and their own inhibitions to living out the Gospel. People can overcomplicate the issue, but it's not complicated at all. I really appreciate Stefan's insight and breakdown. Geat read all around.