The Land of Oaks

In 1840, William Eichenbaum owned a large farm in a suburb of downtown Pittsburg (they spelled it w/out an "h" then), that was blessed with a plentiful abundance of oak trees. Unfortunately, with the growth of the ore industry, the resulting ore dust killed much of the vegetation of the land, including many of the beautiful trees. Although the majestic trees may have lost their prominence in the land, the area still retained its name . . . Oakland.

The part of our city today is viewed by many to be a scientific, cultural, and academic hub housing many of our universities, hospitals, and museums. And, in just a few weeks, it will also be the center of North Way's first campus, North Way Oakland. This will be the first step in a multi-site adventure for my church, and it's clearly one that I know God has ordained and orchestrated to come to pass. (If you're confused about the philosophy behind a "multi-site" church, here's a great explanation. Thanks, Pastor Jeff!)

I've spent a lot of time this past week researching nursery furniture, toys, and classroom dividers to make the KiDZ area something truly special. I stopped by the building yesterday to see how the renovations are coming (it was formally a Chinese restaurant on McKee St., right off of Forbes and Fifth) and I have to confess that I walked in and was struck with all the differences of our new area from our current campus in Wexford. I started thinking about all the obstacles that will be in place to making the area look as good as I have it looking in my head. I left thinking, "I don't know how we're going to do this."

This morning, I was really convicted of my attitude. I realize that my thinking was completely wrong. I have been planning on how to do KiDZ Ministry like I've always known, understood, and executed in Wexford, PA. "It's worked well in Wexford. Why not just do the same thing in Oakland?" But Oakland is not the same. Oakland is a completely different area, with a different demographic and history that houses a new set of people inside of whom God wants to birth something new. While the heart of our KiDZ ministry should stay the same, other parts of it have to change to meet the needs of the Oakland community.

Pittsburgh is a city of bridges. The Carnegie Library states that there are over 2100 bridges in Allegheny County alone, one of the highest of any city in the world. In a "3 River" city with so many waterways around, clearly bridges needed to be constructed to bring groups of people together. One that I find to be particularly interesting is St. Pierre's Ravine, a bridge that is no longer a bridge, but it is. (It confused me, too.) Originally built in the heart of Oakland in 1898, it served to bring neighborhoods together across a deep ravine. It's still there. You just can't see it anymore because it was buried in the early part of the 20th century.

St. Pierre's Ravine is an ironic picture of unfortunately all too many bridges in Pittsburgh. What was once intended to bring people together now serves as markers of division. Those who live north of the city's bridges rarely cross over to go to the obscure land of the South Hills and vice versa. (Said like a true North Hills girl.) :-) That is one of the major motivations of our venture into Oakland. If people won't come north, we've got to go to them. We want to "free people to follow Jesus" throughout the city of Pittsburgh, not just the North Hills.

I pray that the launch of North Way Oakland is a catalyst to start unearthing the buried bridges of Pittsburgh, utilizing them again for their original purpose . . . to bring people together in the greater neighborhood of God's Kingdom. May the ashes of the ore dust that choked the life out of the trees be replaced with a crown of beauty, as the land once again is filled with "OAKS of Righteousness, a planting for the LORD for the display of His splendor" (Is. 61:3).

March 18, 2007. North Way Oakland.