Associate Pastor, New Community Covenant Church–Bronzeville, Chicago, IL
Michelle’s work is the ideal intersection of who she is and what she’s most passionate about. As a Christian she understands the condition of the world to be the result of spiritual brokenness. As a sociologist she studies the intricacies of that brokenness at a structural level. And as a pastor she has the privilege of preaching God’s word and helping people understand what it means to be ambassadors of Christ in that broken world.
“I love the Covenant because we are a group of people who love God’s word, desire to be in the center of God’s will, and are yielded to the Holy Spirit,” she says. “I also love that we disagree well. I have been so blessed at Covenant gatherings listening to people express radically different views on tough issues and then seeing them walk away, not agreeing, but maintaining the bonds of love. I cannot imagine being a part of any other denomination.”
Books on your nightstand/e-reader: The Politics of Exclusion: The Failure of Race-Neutral Policies in Urban America, Leland Saito; Enough: Why the World’s Poorest Starve in an Age of Plenty, Roger Thurow and Scott Kilman
Favorite way to waste time: I am a YouTube addict. Whenever I have down time (and sometimes when I don’t) I’m on YouTube.
Favorite TV show: I don’t have one favorite. I like to watch sitcoms like The New Girl and Blackish and light who-done-it shows like Bones and Elementary.
Choose a superpower—fly or be invisible: I would so choose to fly. I love the freedom that I imagine flying would bring. I would be able to go anywhere, and the views. Yeah, definitely flying.