David M. Bailey

Arrabon Founder and Chief Vision Officer

Arrabon is a spiritual formation ministry that equips Christ followers to actively and creatively pursue healing and reconciliation in their communities. They believe that healing begins with their integrative presence – bringing whole selves, body, mind, and spirit to the work of reconciliation – bearing witness to the imago Dei that creates a pathway for truly belonging to each other.

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There is an African proverb that says,

“When I saw you from afar, I thought you were a monster.
When you got closer, I thought you were just an animal.
When you got even closer, I saw that you were a human,
But when we were face-to-face, I realized that you were my brother.”

Distance distorts. It has a way of demonizing those we do not know, do not understand, or fear.

We live in an age that promises connection, but breeds disconnection. Technology can drown us in an ocean of information about people we’ve never met. We form strong opinions about whole communities without ever being face-to-face. We call it “knowing,” but it’s often just projection.

Screens now mediate our encounters. Lifelong friends and family divide over posts and talking points. We scroll past one another’s pain and curate our own truths. Algorithms amplify outrage and shrink compassion. The result is not only political polarization, but an obstructive spiritual vision.

Polarization is not merely bad politics; it’s an impoverished imagination. When our minds are shaped by passive consumption, we become reactive consumers instead of reflective image-bearers. We lose sacred sight, the ability to see and perceive through the eyes of God.

When Jesus taught his disciples to pray, he invited them to pray with shared imagination:

“Our Father in heaven,

Holy be Your name,

Your kingdom come,

Your will be done,

On earth as it is in heaven.” ¹

This prayer calls us to envision a world where heaven and earth meet, and then to live as if that world is already unfolding. Revelation 21 and 22 give us a picture of that world: God dwelling among the people, wiping away every tear. No more death, no more mourning. The river of life flowing through the city, the tree of life healing the nations. ²

This is not an escape from the world’s pain, but an invitation into God’s imaginative act of renewal. New Jerusalem is the divine counter-narrative to despair. It forms us to see differently, to live differently. It invites us to believe that reconciliation is possible, that beauty is stronger than bitterness.

Our call as Jesus followers is not to be agents of division and polarization, but to offer an alternative imagination within it. We’re called to live as those who already belong to the world Revelation 21 and 22 envisions.

Each time we tell the truth in love, each time we create beauty, each time we carry light into a dark place, we participate in God’s new creation.

In an age of suffering and division, this prayer Jesus gave us is meant to captivate our imagination. It reminds us that we are not spectators of redemption, but participants in its unfolding.

Every act of beauty is a rehearsal for the Kingdom of God.
Every act of hope is a testimony that love will have the final word.

Follow David Bailey and Arrabon

arrabon.com | @davidmbailey | @wearearrabon
701 E Franklin St, Suite 105 1027 Richmond VA 23219