“This is a beautiful song. Do you know it?”
“I’m learning it.”
This snippet of a conversation took place as the choirs from Paseo Baptist Church of Kansas City, Mo., and Community Covenant Church of Lenexa, Kan., sat down to sing together for the first time in either church’s history. Each choir had the chance to teach songs from their worship style and learn songs from a different worship tradition. They were practicing for an unprecedented service.
On May 31, 2026, both churches gathered at Community Covenant Church to commemorate Pentecost, a celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit as outlined in Acts 2. There was a shared meal, singing, a worship dance team, communion, and a panel discussion about the importance of two churches coming together from different backgrounds, races and histories, yet serving the same God of love and unity.
“We don’t have to wait until we get to heaven to experience unity. We can do so today with intentionality,” Pastor LaRon Thompson of Paseo Baptist Church said. “The love of God is designed to bring us together, not to separate us.”
At lunch, tables were filled with members from both churches sharing a meal together and getting to know one another. One person remarked on an impactful moment of hospitality.
“When I walked into the sanctuary, an elderly lady met me and welcomed me. ‘Here,’ she said, ‘Why don’t I move and you and your wife can sit here in my seat?’ I was really touched by that,” said Stan Walker, a member of Paseo Baptist Church.
“Would you call this service an act of racial reconciliation or a kingdom concept, or both?” moderator Natalie Moultrie asked.
As the founder of a multiethnic reconciliation ministry called The Way of Unity and a member of neither church, Moultrie graciously agreed to moderate a panel discussion between both pastors and their wives.
“I would classify it as both,” Pastor Thompson answered. “I think the world needs to see kingdom advancement and healing through racial reconciliation.”
Pastor David McCowan of Community Covenant Church agreed.
“I think there is Scriptural evidence of it being both when I look at Ephesians 2,” McCowan said. He went on to share how Paul describes the racial and religious differences between Jews and Gentiles and how the cross of Jesus Christ has broken down that division.
The pastors spoke of their experiences, their hearts for racial reconciliation, and the biblical call to be united in Christ. Pastor Thompson and Pastor McCowan met as Unite KC sought to bring churches together in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder.
“One of the things we can do is to make sure pastor partnerships take place,” Ray Jarrett, executive director of Unite KC, said. “Community Covenant Church, led by Pastor David McCowan, and Paseo Baptist Church, led by Pastor LaRon Thompson, are shining examples of covenant relationships among this city’s most long-lasting partnerships.”
Relationships take work, and they often cost something. They require sacrifice if Jesus’ relationship with us is the model.
Pastor Thompson said it this way: “If that means I’ve got to cross over into Lenexa from Kansas City, Missouri, then I’m going to do just that. If I’ve got to come from Lenexa down to the hood without fear of someone breaking into my car or stealing my purse, then I’m going to do it. And if someone does do those things, so be it. Because my mission means more to me than a car or a purse. My job is to express and spread the love of God, and a collaborative approach means something.”
Pastor McCowan reflected on sermons he preached after the murder of George Floyd, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. He preached a series on how the church is God’s answer to racism.
“I think what I had to say was hard for some of our people because I talked about how the reality is that we have a lot of advantages as white people in our society.”
He also offered practical steps for the church.
“We need to begin to see people as God sees them. We need to listen to people with respect and hear their story.”
As the service wound down, both congregations experienced the joy of worshiping together and a desire to continue their partnership. Something had been sparked.
“This is not the start. This is just one point in the journey,” Thompson said.
The church living out unity in Christ and emphasizing racial reconciliation through relationships is a beautiful song—one that two congregations decided was worth learning.
Our Postcards from the Midwest Conference are short and encouraging looks at what God is doing in churches across the Midwest Conference of the Evangelical Covenant Church – Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, western Missouri, Nebraska and Wyoming. We’re celebrating faithfulness, fresh vision, and the beauty of ministry in all shapes and sizes.
