Happy #FreedomFriday, readers!
We recognize that in this space we primarily exist behind the curtain (or our screens, as the case may be). We thought it might be fun to pull the curtain back so you can get to know this team of Freedom Fighters over the next few weeks. Each member of our LMDJ team will answer the same five questions this month so you can get to know us a bit.
First up meet the Reverend Paul Robinson, LMDJ’s Executive Minister!
A bit about Paul’s life outside of LMDJ:
I’m married to my amazing wife Kimbereley and together we have seven children. We’ve lived in Minnesota since 2001, but we we’re born and raised in Chicago. I’m a Southsider and she a Westsider proving once again that with God all things are possible! We love spending time with our children, grandbabies (Zenobia and Zõe), and Prince, our King Charles Cavalier Poodle. I love to golf, but I’m not that good! My wife is a school counselor, and she loves to bake. I enjoy reading and fishing when I can get out. I’m most comfortable at the intersection of ideas, difference, passion and effective action. God has been incredibly faithful to me, so every day I strive to practice faithfulness (my core value) to God, my family, friends, the Church and my community. I learned the value of faithfulness from my mother who took care of sick relatives when I was growing up. Because she was serving, my younger sister and I learned to serve alongside her. I am also called to be faithful to myself. I fight to make sure I am taking time for Sabbath, hobbies, recreation and rest. It is my hope that my legacy will reflect a life dedicated to, as Jim Shannon once said, “being a weight-bearing member of society.”
A bit about Paul’s job within LMDJ:
As Executive Minister of LMDJ, I love that we are called to “join God in making things right in a broken world.” I lead an incredible team of ministry professionals who are passionate about helping Covenanters understand what it means to practice compassion, mercy, and justice. The events of the last few months have underscored the importance of leveraging the Word of God to speak to the issues of our time. We are committed to helping Covenanters experience freedom from the chains of individual and systemic injustice. Freedom from these chains allows us to “love our neighbor” in tangible ways that showcase who our God is. This is a love not bound by race, ethnicity, gender, geography or life-stories. Loving relationships require knowledge, proximity and practice. We’re committed to curating experiences that strengthen discipleship pathways for the ECC to reflect and live out the power of our multi-ethnic mosaic.
One of Paul’s Freedom-Fighting she/heroes:
My Freedom-Fighting she-ro is Harriet Tubman! What she was able to do in freeing hundreds of slaves is nothing short of a miracle. Many slaves sought freedom in the North, but for Harriet to return time and time again to free others is remarkable. She was also a patriot who advised the Union army, helping win the Civil War.
One social media account Paul thinks everyone should follow:
I follow Sarah Cooper on Twitter. The President of the United States is the primary writer of her material. She is hilarious. Not everyone will find her amusing, but I find that having someone who is not the President repeat what the President says to be gut-busting funny.
One documentary Paul thinks everyone should watch:
The documentary I would recommend is I am Not Your Negro. The documentary is based on James Baldwin and his unfinished work on the assignations of Medgar Evers, Malcom X and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Baldwin was both a genius and eerily prophetic in his writings about America and its sordid relationship with race.
Left: Kimbereley with grandbabies Zenobia and Zõe
Right: Paul with granddaughter Zenobia
