{ Intercultural Mosaics }
To evangelize Gen Y-Zers, Mosaics began its journey in 2013. The journey focused on intense social media and person-to-person outreach to Millennials living in the Sacramento Metropolitan Area. Mosaics has been providing space, both physical and spiritual, for Gen Y-Zers, and other generations to find authentic fellowship with God and others. Since its inception, we have been inviting Gen Y-Zers through word-of-mouth, Internet and social media networks—vital aspects of postmodern technology available in our era to unite and evangelize them effectively. Mosaics’ fellowship has been filling with love, grace and laughter as participants have begun to consider each other as siblings. Many newcomers speak of their sense of “belonging” to Mosaics fellowship from day 1 as they find that our community is not formed through traditional or systematic ways, but is being formed organically without any rules or forces—a main reason we grow and attract newcomers every week.
Though the original focus specifically targeted Gen Y-Zers, the age of those the Spirit was prompting began to get a bit wider. By the beginning of 2020, we were even needing to consider the needs of some children of Gen Y parents! Though we anticipated some ethnic diversity, perhaps 4 or 5 different ethnicities, it rapidly surpassed that number. The Spirit was doing something much more than what we had expected.
Our ministry dramatically changed during the COVID-19 pandemic. When we changed all of our gatherings in virtual space, mostly on Zoom, stretching from Friday afternoon through Sunday evening, many new participants joined from all over the world for our 12+ gatherings. Since the pandemic, we have been constantly receiving 6~9 newcomers each week, many who are continuing to be part of Mosaics. Three of them became teachers and many of them want to be leaders. Our local presence dramatically shifted to global presence in 1.5 years. Our in-person ministry dramatically shifted to virtual in a few weeks. The age span continued to expand. The ethnic diversity expanded dramatically as well. Mosaics’ original focus on building a local community of Gen Y-Zers has transformed into a global community for all generations, all cultures and languages, and needs to shift to offering online and in-person engagement. This transformation was unplanned and led by the Holy Spirit. Mosaics became Intercultural Mosaics—intercultural salad bowls by crossing boundaries of time, locations, cultures, languages, races, identities, ideologies, history, religions, and all/any barriers.
According to Dr. Klaus Schwab of World Economic Forum, we are living in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) era since 2015, where AI, nanotechnology, robot technology and internet networks are rapidly evolving and flourishing in the foundation of the digital revolution (1970s – 2000s). The most distinctive character of the 4IR is how ‘most effectively’ people can connect and communicate—creating an “infosphere” in a hyper-connected society.
Mosaics is preparing and shifting to reach out globally and to become a spiritual infosphere. While Millennials and Gen Zers, are constantly adopting 4IR in their lives and connecting to others globally through various social media hubs, churches have not yet fully incorporated the opportunities of the 4IR for the evangelism of precious souls of the next generations. Schwab predicts that local-based communities will disappear and many will lose the ability to empathize. Schwab sees that the main goal of the 4IR is empowering people to improve their quality of life. In 4IR, society will be more “human-centered,” so that the need of spirituality (the work of churches), will be greatly increased and more important than ever. Therefore, we, the church, need constant innovation of leadership to be equipped for this new reality. (*Further reading: “The Fourth Industrial Revolution” by Klaus Schwab, 2017).
This is a critical time and tipping point for Christians to energetically and innovatively claim our divine calling—to rise to the challenge, rejecting despair and fatalism—and to truly seek the wellbeing of the planet and human beings. To meet these challenges, Mosaics wants to pursue Ezekiel’s vision. Dr. Michael Beck, in his book, “Deep Roots, Wild Branches: Revitalizing the Church in the Blended Ecology” says that Ezekiel has vision of revitalizing and cultivating new communal ecosystems amidst declining congregations.
“All the trees of the forest will know that I the Lord bring down the tall tree and make the low tree grow tall. I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish.” – Ezekiel 17:24.
Beck’s “Blended Ecology” is summarized as “a manifestation of emergence”—synergistic relationships occurring between inherited and emerging modes of church that result in a new complex organism. Revitalization is not the goal. The ultimate goal of our inherited churches is creating a missional ecosystem and becoming missional hubs to pursue the Great Commission and the Great Commandment of Christ.
“So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then the Lord said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army. – Ezekiel 37:7-10
If we work together to implement a blended ecology in our inherited churches to transform them into missional hubs, our churches will flourish again to glorify God. The vision that Ezekiel saw at the valley of dry bones (Ezek. 37) is our harvest-mission field. We have valleys of dry bones in our time—people who are starving for spiritual nourishment. Those who come to life become the body of Christ. As we work together, the next generations will be disciples who make disciples. Ezekiel’s vision is what I bear witness to in our time. I envision the Intercultural Mosaics as the ultimate harvesting catalyst to fulfill God’s holy mission. This is God’s perfect will and our faithful act of worship.
God opens up Ezekiel’s perspective to show the fourth dimensional vision that transcends time and space, and transforms us in our very critical time. In Ezekiel 36:26-27, God says, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.”
Mosaics has been evolving and is at another tipping point to become the “Intercultural Mosaics”—a new missional expression in the Presbyterian Church (USA). Intercultural Mosaics will continually trailblaze new paths of unknown territories in the era of 4IR by not only extending its global evangelism but also implementing the blended ecology into inherited churches. Mosaics stands to carry out the new dream of God—creating a spiritual ecosystem and global missional hubs—together with inherited churches and the Presbytery so that there will be many fruits in a dynamic, life-giving exchange.
Mosaics will continue crossing boundaries and breaking down barriers of all kinds, not only to transform inherited churches, but also to expand the territories of intercultural ministries, mission and evangelism to ultimately reach out to unreached people (Luke 10:2).
Mosaics New Mission:
1. Growing a learning, caring, transforming, spiritual community with “koinonia” to disciple Millennials, Gen Zers and all generations for 21st century ministries. (Original mission, with expanded generations)
2. Creating missional ecosystems in inherited churches to become missional hubs for intercultural people (Ezekiel’s vision).
3. Breaking boundaries to expand territories of intercultural ministries for local and worldwide evangelism (Jabez’s prayer).
Timeline of Mosaics Development (2013 – 2028):
• Seeding Period: 2013 – 2016 : Mosaics House Gathering, Launching of Fellowship of Mosaics, NWC; Experimental Gathering at Parkview Presbyterian Church
• Developing Period: 2016 – 2019: Multiple House Gatherings; Gathering at Faith Presbyterian Church on Sundays, Launching of Davis Mosaics, NWC; Experimental Gathering at Davis Community Church on Saturdays
• Challenging Period: 2019 – 2022: Merging Fellowship of Mosaics into Davis Mosaics, NWC; Multiple Gatherings at Davis Mosaics on Thursdays and Saturdays; Launching Small Group Gatherings; Launching Zoom Gatherings on Fridays through Sundays
• Growing Period: 2022 – 2025: Formation of “Intercultural Mosaics” as a new NWC; Becoming A New Expression of Church; Expanding Global Gatherings; Launching Hybrid Ministries
• Thriving Period: 2025 – 2028: Multiplying Intercultural Mosaics; Becoming A Movement (Revolution) of the Church
Statistics of Mosaics as of July 7, 2021:
• Total Number of Meetup Registrants: 1842 registrants
• Total Number of FaceBook Group Active Members: 220 members
• Total Number of Webpage Subscribers (www.nextg.org): 24,688 subscribers
• Total Number of Gatherings: 3271 gatherings
• Average Number of Weekly Participants: 75 ~ 100 participants
• Number of Weekly Gatherings: 12 +
• Number of Core-Leaders: 15 +
• Number of Ethnicities: 30 +
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Request to Approve the New Worshiping Community, “Intercultural Mosaics”
We are hereby requesting the Congregational Support Ministry Team (CSMT) of the North Central California Presbytery (NCCP) to approve a re-formed New Worshiping Community, “Intercultural Mosaics, NWC” as of August 1, 2021.
Rev. Dr. Stephen Moon, NWC Pastor
Rev. Jerilyn Viera Dahlke, NWC liaison
