The gospel provides a comprehensive perspective on all of life, including our view of cities. Here, we see God loving Nineveh. He cares for the lost people. He even cares for their animals. Because God loves cities, and most people today live in a city, City to City loves and serves the city in all its beauty and brokenness. It’s God’s idea. It’s God’s call. Will you join us in answering that call?

The world is changing faster than ever. Are our ministry strategies keeping up? In Season 2 of the City to City Podcast, we’re tracking 3 massive global shifts shaping our cities: Post-Secular & Pluralistic Cities: Cities aren’t becoming more secular, as predicted. Many are becoming more spiritual and ideologically diverse Unprecedented Migration: We’re living through the largest mass movement of people in human history The Digital City: More of our daily lives, identity, and community are moving online What does gospel movement look like in light of these realities? That’s what we’re exploring this season! Catch the full discussion on Episode 2 of the City to City Podcast! open.substack.com/pub/cityto…

Tim Keller’s words challenge us to think beyond the growth of any one church. A kingdom-minded approach to church planting asks a bigger question: are we only focused on strengthening our own institution, or are we invested in the flourishing of the wider Church and the city as a whole? Healthy gospel movements grow when churches are willing to collaborate, support new leaders, and make room for new communities of faith to take root.

Why do we plant churches? Because church planting is about more than starting something new. It’s about responding faithfully to Scripture, living out the Great Commission, strengthening the wider body of Christ, and thinking beyond any one church toward the growth of God’s kingdom. These four reasons help ground the work in something deeper: a shared commitment to seeing healthy churches take root, grow, and serve their communities faithfully. Read the full article at redeemercitytocity.com/artic…

These are Jesus' final words before he ascends to heaven. This “Great Commission” is at the core of City to City's work. It's why church planting is central to who we are. It's why cities are central to what we do. In order to make disciples of all nations, there must be churches everywhere there are people. And most people live in a city. The Great Commission is increasingly an urban—and urgent—call. Will you join us in answering that call? Click the link in the bio to find out how.

City to City exists to multiply churches and Christian leaders committed to a shared vision for gospel movements in the great cities of the world. We often summarize our core commitments under these five words: Gospel. Culture. City. Mission. Movement.

Cities are changing quickly, and the questions facing church planters and ministry leaders are changing with them. Season 2 of the City to City Podcast is about creating space for those conversations, bringing together voices from across our global network to reflect on what’s emerging in cities and what it means for church planting, evangelism, and mission. This season, expect new voices, new resources, and more conversations designed to help us think thoughtfully about the work ahead. Follow along on Substack or wherever you listen to podcasts citytocitymag.substack.com/p…

Understanding a city takes more than noticing what’s happening on the surface. For churches and church planters, cultural analysis means paying attention to the bigger picture, the long-term shifts, the local context, and the lived experiences of the people we’re called to serve. A thoughtful approach helps us listen more carefully, respond more wisely, and engage our communities with greater clarity.

Season 2 of the City to City Podcast is here! We’re kicking things off by looking back at some of the conversations that stayed with us from Season 1, including what it means to build movements that are not just active, but deeply rooted in their communities. Listen to the new season wherever you get your podcasts or subscribe to our Substack at citytocitymag.substack.com/p…

Contextualization isn’t about changing the message. It’s about understanding the people, questions, and culture around us well enough to communicate the gospel clearly. Tim Keller’s words are a helpful reminder that faithful ministry requires both conviction and attentiveness. We bring the Bible’s answers into the real questions people are asking, in ways they can actually understand and engage with. What does thoughtful contextualization look like in your city or community?

Not every cultural change is a change in climate. Some things are long-term shifts. Others are seasonal. Some are simply today’s weather. And even then, the way those conditions are experienced can look completely different from one neighborhood or person to the next. That distinction matters for churches seeking to understand and serve their cities well. In his latest Substack reflection, Brandon O’Brien offers a framework for looking at culture through five lenses: climate, season, weather, place, and population. It’s a helpful reminder that understanding a city requires more than noticing what’s happening. We also have to ask how long it’s been happening, where it’s happening, and who is experiencing it. Which of these five lenses do you think churches are most likely to overlook? Read the full piece: There’s No Such Thing as Bad Weather on the Redeemer City to City Substack. citytocitymag.substack.com/p…

The conditions around us matter. Culture shifts, cities change, people respond differently, and what faithful presence looks like in one place may not look exactly the same somewhere else. In our latest Substack, we explore a helpful way of thinking about culture through the lens of climate, season, weather, place, and population, and what that means for churches seeking to serve their communities well. Read the full piece on the Redeemer City to City Substack citytocitymag.substack.com/p…

Our cities aren’t just changing physically. People are moving into cities, across borders, and increasingly into digital spaces at the same time. Each of these shifts changes the way people form relationships, build community, find belonging, and make sense of the world around them. For the church, that raises an important question: What does faithful presence look like when the “city” is no longer only a physical place? In Toward a Missiology for the Digital World, we explore what these three migrations could mean for the future of ministry and gospel renewal. How is your church thinking about the digital spaces people now spend so much of their lives in?

The way of Jesus often turns the world’s definition of success upside down. True richness is found in generosity, lasting joy in seeking the good of others, and meaningful influence in using what we have to serve. A challenging reminder to ask not just what we’re building, but who it’s for. #RedeemerCTC #TimKellerQuote

We praise God for the fruits of our Residency Program which provides church planters a practical and experiential context in which they can reflect on and apply Gospel principles within the life of a local church. Cliff is one of 27 church planting residents across Kampala, Uganda; Accra, Ghana; Gauteng, South Africa; and Nairobi, Kenya. We are grateful for our residents and for the coaches who walk alongside them, offering guidance and encouragement which are invaluable for planters who can often feel weighed-down and alone in their church planting journeys. Please join us in praying for our Francophone Team as they prepare to offer the Residency Program to French-speaking church planters. Pray for God to bless and guide their training of facilitators and coaches so that they may have the necessary tools to love and serve the planters well.

How can we capture our continent in a few words? Do we mention the youthfulness of our people? Our vibrant music? Or the beautiful colours seen in our clothes and food? We could share so much about all of these, but what is often left out of conversations about Africa is how religious our continent is. God has indeed put eternity into man’s heart and we see this in our traditions and daily practices. From African Traditional Religions to Islam and Christian cults, we serve in a context in which people are seeking for something or someone to help them make sense of who they are, what they see around them, and why they are on Earth. The Gospel is the only answer for those who are searching and longing for the truth. In order to share this good news in a place saturated with religion, we train leaders across 12 major African cities to share the Gospel by planting churches that foster a world-changing, city-renewing global church. We conduct programming in English, French and Portuguese in the following cities: Abidjan, Accra, Addis Ababa, Cape Town, Dar Es Salaam, Douala/Yaounde, Johannesburg (Gauteng), Kampala, Kinshasa, Lagos/Abuja, Luanda, Nairobi. In our next post, we’ll share about one planter who feels called to a very specific context.

City to City North America grew out of Redeemer City to City and now works across North America as a diverse, multi-denominational network of city networks spanning seven hubs: NYC, Miami, Chicago, Southern California, San Diego, Phoenix, and the Bay Area. While the hubs organize us by place, initiatives organize us by need. We currently run five that serve nationally. Compelling Preaching Initiative, led by Kristin Parke, aims to strengthen urban churches by helping active and aspiring preachers engage their diverse audiences more effectively. The African American Initiative, led by Dr. Efrem Smith, strengthens church planting and revitalization African American networks, denominations, and catalytic multiplication movements. The Latino Initiative, led by Robert Guerrero, catalyzes Latino planting networks and leadership training across cities in the US and the Caribbean. Nurturing Children, led by Amy O'Brien, empowers diverse congregations to welcome children and develop intergenerational and multi-sensory practices that nurture faith among children ages 0 to 12. Learn more about each initiative at citytocityna.com/initiatives

Ask a church planter or a city movement leader what keeps them going and you will rarely hear a program named. You will hear a person, a peer, a friend, a mentor. Real people providing real care. This is crucial to gospel movement, and a key part of the work of City to City North America. We cultivate spaces for co-creation, collaboration, and mutual encouragement among leaders, because the tools matter less than the people willing to hand them to you. This year, leaders from across North America gathered at our National Fellowship Gathering around the theme of solidarity. And much of the value was not just in the sessions, it was in the hallway conversations, the meals, and the relationships. Investment accelerates the work of gospel movements. Relationships help make it sustainable. If you're a church multiplication leader in an urban area of North America, we'd love to get to know you. Email [email protected]

North America is becoming more urban, more diverse, and more fragmented. And we are seeing God at work in the midst of it all. We champion church multiplication as the tip of the spear of gospel movement, and our hubs are where it happens. In seven cities, local networks are planting and multiplying churches that embody and extend the gospel, supported with the vision, resources, and relationships to keep going. Our part is to invest where it will catalyze the most and to stay responsive to the Spirit and to each city's particular needs. The next generation is looking for a Church that is gospel-centered, richly diverse, relationally unified, and rooted in the city. We are building toward that, network by network, city by city. Learn more about our work at citytocityna.com

Pray with us for Latin America. 🙏 Across our region, God is raising up leaders, strengthening churches, and forming communities shaped by the gospel. And as we look toward what is ahead, we are reminded that this work ultimately belongs to Him. Would you pray with us? Pray for pastors, church planters, coaches, ministry leaders, women, and emerging leaders to be deeply rooted in the grace of Jesus. Pray for churches that faithfully proclaim the gospel, love their neighbors, serve their communities, and seek the flourishing of their cities. Pray for a new generation of leaders willing to follow Christ, serve His church, and give their lives for the good of the places God has called them to. And pray that the message of Jesus would continue to spread throughout Latin America — renewing lives, strengthening churches, and bringing hope to our cities. “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” — Romans 12:12 The work is His. The hope is Christ. City to City América Latina #CityToCity #CTCLatinAmerica #RedeemerCityToCity #PrayForLatinAmerica #ChurchPlanting #GospelRenewal #GospelCentered #LatinAmerica