It is risky business to pursue the kingdom of God. I wish I could tell you that everybody you meet in your "Samaria" will be happy to see you. I wish I could tell you that they're going to kiss you and smile and be so glad that you came. I wish I could say that nobody is going to curse you out when you go to Samaria. But the truth is, sometimes we will be called everything but a child of God.
I can't promise that it will be safe and comfortable when we try to cross racial, cultural, gender, religious, political or generational divides. Those of us who want to be a credible witness must be willing to take risks. In fact, I have found that individuals, groups or leaders in organizations who are highly risk-aversive will paralyze the reconciliation process and inadvertently lead others to doubt if a kingdom vision is actually possible. Churches and Christian groups then become unable to trust God for innovative and new ways to do cutting-edge ministry that will really engage the culture around them. The consequence of this is the loss of life and vitality that results when we choose to play it safe. This seems to be implied in what Jesus said to his followers in Matthew 10:39: we must be willing to lose our lives to find them. When we follow Jesus and seek to demonstrate the truth and power of the gospel, we are taking a risk. It is a risk to go where others dare not go. It's a risk to do more than talk about Jesus. Talking about Jesus is one thing; really following him in our choices about relationships, where we purchase property, how we vote and spend our money - that's another! Our attempts to follow might cause us to lose relationships with those that we love, to lose donors who had given us financial support, or to lose our prestige or reputation in certain social circles. This may be the risk we have to take in order to be a credible witness.
--an excerpt from Brenda Salter McNeil's, A Credible Witness: Reflections on Power, Evangelism and Race
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