Can a church add value to it’s community beyond care of poor and Biblical/moral teaching?

This continuing conversation will make more sense if you read my previous blog at: http://www.pastorjohnsthoughts.blogspot.com/2012/01/plan-to-meet-some-of-our-neighborhoods.html

Can a church add value to it’s community beyond care of poor and Biblical/moral teaching?

If you read the neighborhood plan put forward in the last blog, you’ll see that we want to do at Zion is more than feed the hungry and house the homeless, we want to be a positive and innovative witness within our community that helps the neighborhood become the best place to live this side of heaven.  We want to see the kingdom of God manifest in our neighborhood.  We not only want to address the issues of people not having enough, we want to better the lives of those who have plenty.  What we desire is nothing less then the redemption of our community as a whole.  We want to help people not only get established, but enhance the quality of life for those already here.  We don’t want just the refugee or underprivileged children to get career counseling, we want every child to have assistance discovering what they are good at and getting help developing a plan to “become” what they are good at in life.

The idea that the local congregation exists as an outpost of heaven for the benefit of all within the community is an old one.  I think it’s most common manifestation was in what was called “the Parish Model.”  My favorite example of this model comes from 17th and 18th century England where geographic areas were divided into “parishes.”  Each parish had a church which was responsible to call people to the worship of God and prayer on Sundays and other holy days and when necessary for special prayers on behalf of the king and nation.  It was responsible for baptisms, weddings, funerals, and all the rest, and also for the care of the poor.   The parish church might be a large edifice which was used for many kinds of community activities, including concerts and meetings.  It was a very public sort of “community room.”  Frequently, the “parish council,” the local government met at the church.  The council frequently included the “parish pastor” who was responsible for the spiritual needs of the community.  In such a way, the government, the church and others worked hand in hand for the benefit of the entire community.  

What w’ere talking about at Zion is to effectively put this model of ministry into use in our relationship with our community.  We imagine being able to convene various groups and organizations together to solve various problems in the neighborhood but to also work together to form a plan for the future.  Every group we’ve spoken to thus far has been very open to such meetings.  We believe that our local community has the opportunity to be one of the most vibrant, diverse and exciting neighborhoods in the city and that the church should be a part of that vitality, diversity and excitement.  We believe that by modeling the kingdom of God and showing how things could be, that we can help the entire community bring “could be” into reality.  

Another hallmark of the old parish model is that every resident of the geographic area of the parish was a de facto member of the church.  Now of course in England, where there is a state church and so you are a member of this state church simply by being born, this makes sense.  But what would it be like for our church to simply acknowledge that every person within our geographic area was also a de facto member of church, able to use the building and receive various services from the church?  In other words, what if we erased the lines between church and neighborhood and earnestly sought to integrate the church and the neighborhood, the neighborhood and the church?   No doubt such a church would be a place that would provide more to the community than help with the poor and Biblical/moral teaching.  No doubt such a church would be the center of activity within the community, the place to go to for everything, not just help.  

Here’s an example of how this thinking might play out:  A certain world famous artist lives in our area, he is a refugee from a certain country.  What if Zion provided our space for a showing of his art?  His entire ethnic community would attend the opening  and it would give us a chance to show hospitality to this group.  The whole community would be invited and for many, it would be the first time that they had ever been to our church, or even in a church.  Later, with the art still in view, we could invite the entire community to a round table discussion about the refugee experience in our own city.  In such a way we provide public space for art, for the education of the community, and for fellowship between the various ethnic groups, generations and economic groups within our neighborhood.  And it all happens in God’s house, under the cross.  Redemption, reconciliation and peace result within our community and our Lord Jesus is glorified.  And people who were far from the church come near to experience our common life together.  

Barna Group has done some research on this approach.  You can read about it at 

http://www.barna.org/congregations-articles/502-do-churches-contribute-to-their-communities

I think there is no doubt that the church can add value to the community beyond it's traditional role.  I think that some might ask, "But should it?"  I would answer with another question:  "Will so doing make our Master smile?"  I think it would.  I think he intended for his church to be the way forward for the world.  

Thanks for reading.  God bless.  PJ 

A Plan to Meet Some of Our Neighborhood's Needs

This blog might not make sense until you read my previous blog which tells the story of Zion Church.
http://pastorjohnsthoughts.blogspot.com/2012/01/our-story.html

Our desire all along has been to do something beautiful for Jesus.  To serve him.  When we serve others we are motivated by our great love for Jesus.  Mother Theresa but it this way,  “Many people mistake our work for our vocation. Our vocation is the love of God.”
  We do what we do because we love Jesus.

Here is a draft of things we've been doing/thinking about that involves a great deal of collaboration with various groups, institutions and individuals in our community.


Let’s Do Something Beautiful for Jesus

What follows is a very rough draft of where I think Zion could lead our neighborhood.  It is simply the result of prayer and watching where God has led us this far.

Vision:  That Zion lead the way in our community to God’s brighter future.  This is accomplished by getting to know our neighborhood, analyzing it’s needs, and finding innovative and faithful ways of meeting them.

Who is our community?:  Our community is roughly defined as the Lower Beaver, Beaver and Meredith Drive neighborhoods.  Our immediate activities focus primarily on the Lower Beaver neighborhood with the intention of expanding our ministry work from neighborhood to neighborhood throughout the city as God leads.

Goal:  That Zion Lutheran Church will fully engage with it’s community as a force for God’s redemption through Jesus Christ.

Imagine living in a community where the church led the way in truly knowing and loving our neighbor.  Imagine living in a neighborhood, for instance, where every child was intentionally offered pre-college career counseling; college admissions counseling and help finding a job while a student.  Imagine a neighborhood where there were people who wanted to coach you on how to handle your money, buy a house or a car,  or even learn how to cook economically and nutritionally.  Imagine a community where the major businesses and institutions regularly sat down to consider neighborhood issues and how to help solve local problems.  Imagine a community where every child was offered a chance to attend camp and where each child was individually known and valued and their future was the top priority of the whole neighborhood.  Imagine a community where there was help for those who couldn’t afford their medications and there was emergency help available to solve the kinds of problems that systematic programs cannot address.  Imagine a community that united around the concept of education and found ways to provide quality education for all it’s children and supported it’s teachers and made itself available to ensure the best present and future possible for it’s children.  Such a community would be a community that had been redeemed, a community where all things were possible, a community that could help other communities unite to bring redemption and hope in other parts of town.  This doesn’t have to be a dream.  We believe that such things are possible if the church leads the way.

Why is the church uniquely suited to accomplish this task?  Because of Jesus.  Jesus, the founder and Lord of the church showed us that all people are our neighbors.  He encouraged us to deny ourselves, pick up our cross and follow him into a life of sacrifice and service.  Jesus desires the daily death of the church to itself as it pours his life into the world around it.  The church, when it is truly the church, is the last altruistic establishment in our society.  The church is capable, when it is truly the church, of uniting disparate groups within our neighborhood to work for good.  Finally, the church is the only institution in the world that was founded to sacrifice itself for the good of others.    It’s founder set the mark very high.  To bring redemption, the church is willing to lay down it’s life and die.

One big value we have is to open as many opportunities as possible for other churches and organizations to partner with us.  We realize that we can’t do this alone.  We realize that this is a miraculous opportunity for the church in Des Moines to truly be One.

Those who have agreed to be in partnership with us in our community so far:  Freedom for Youth, Merle Hay Mall, VA hospital, Broadlawns, various local ethnic restaurants, Wunder Years Academy, Meredith Drive Reformed Church, Lutheran Services of Iowa, International House of Prayer - Iowa, Samuelson Elementary,

Change is coming to the Lower Beaver Neighborhood.  The neighborhood is composed of single family and multi-family dwellings built after the second world war.  The neighborhood is a great place for a starter or first time home.  Prices are reasonable and quality is good.  Local apartment complexes have also found recent immigrants to America who are being resettled here through federal partnerships, to be excellent renters.  As the immigrants establish themselves, they are purchasing homes in the neighborhood.  With the addition of the Thai Village Complex on MLK, which anchors the eastern part of the neighborhood, immigrants are likely to continue to move into the neighborhood.  Immigrants have different needs than other minority groups.  These needs are tantamount in our consideration as our plans continue.

Below are a series of projects that we believe would help in the redemption of our neighborhood.  Some are in progress and could expand,  Some are yet to be started.  A list of needed resources is also provided for each project.  The projects are divided by category: Children, Family and Community.  Projects which have already been started are listed first under each category.  The rest of the projects are listed in priority order. Sponsorship or availability of resources can and will affect the priority of projects.

Children:

School transportation for ELL students living 1.7 miles from the school.  Because of a very busy street and the distance from school (especially in the winter), Zion is currently providing transportation for 14 students each school day.  The current students have been selected by the school.  Different groups, living in the same apartment complexes as the students, are now petitioning the church through Lutheran Services of Iowa to increase our activity to include their children as well.  There is definitely an identified need here for expansion.   Needed resources:  Another van or larger bus.  Drivers. Gas.  Maintenance of vehicle. Vehicle insurance.

Whiz Kidz Tutoring Program (in affiliation with Freedom for Youth).  Currently, as many as 55 kids participate on Wednesday nights (Sept - May).  With 15 tutors, we are hard pressed to provide one-one tutoring but consider the fact that the kids keep coming (and bringing friends) to be justification to continue.  The environment is safe and the atmosphere fun.  Dinner is also provided.  Needed resources:  educational supplies, furniture, tutors, transportation, drivers.

Art Camp:  Creativity is an important aspect of human life and as we seek to provide opportunities for kids in our neighborhood we don’t want to forget to foster their creative and innovative spirit.  Beginning in July, 2011, Zion will host a week long summer art camp for kids 3rd - 6th grade.  The week long camp, which begins with a meal, will expose the kids to various artistic media and allow them to express themselves in a productive way.  Needs:  about $25 per child; supplies.

Vacation Bible School:  Looks like we’ll be having a lot more kids this year from the neighborhood.  Having successfully brought them to church for Wednesday nights, we’re confident they’ll come in the summer for things like VBS.

Partnership with Samuelson Elementary:  Samuelson probably already has a corporate partner and we don’t know who that is yet or what they do.  But our brothers and sisters at Meredith Drive have been doing such a good job at Moulton Elementary, having monthly birthday events for the kids, writing encouraging words to the teachers, and trying to supply needs in the classroom, that we thought we ought to at least try something like this for Samuelson.

After School program:  In the next 18 months, we hope to develop an after school program for the neighborhood that would provide education, food, Jesus, and a safe environment for all.

Comprehensive Neighborhood Education Strategy:   Everyone agrees that our local teachers are doing a wonderful job working with the ELL students.  There is a volume problem, however.  The school’s resources are overwhelmed and in a season of cutbacks, it’s probably naive to look for help from the district.  But perhaps we could work with other districts and even parochial schools to spread the joy and intentionally open enroll some of the children into other schools with more current capacity.

Soccer team:  The local apartment complexes are full of young kids with nothing to do.  In order to provide structure and discipline, we propose starting a soccer team.  The kids would help to raise some of their own support and the church would help with the rest.   Soccer is universally played by the kids and this would serve as a way of bringing them together in a positive activity.  We would either join a league or find a way to enter into competition with other clubs.  Needs: Uniforms, equipment, any fees associated with being part of a league; travel expenses?

Music Camp.  We propose sponsoring a music camp in the summer.  There are many musicians in the church happy to teach and these musicians have friends in the community who could help.  The camp could run for a week or be a weekly activity, depending upon the response from musicians.  We would seek to find instruments for the kids to play.  A small guitar, for instance, runs about $100.  We could borrow rhythm instruments from local schools.  A few more electronic keyboards and maybe another drum set would help as well.  The next challenge would be how to find instruments the kids could afford if they proved to have a desire to continue with their musical studies.  The music camp experience would conclude with community concert.

Camperships:  This year, our dream is to send about 28 kids to Riverside Camp.  We think the camping experience will be formative in the lives of our neighborhood kids.  We’d like to be able to offer scholarships to every child in the neighborhood and church.  We’ve found an amazing partner in Riverside Camp who will work with us to accommodate our children.  We believe it would be best for the children to earn some of the money themselves through fund raisers or through doing various jobs at church or in the neighborhood.  Needs:  money for scholarships.  A selection process.  Someone to oversee the project, especially helping the kids to raise their part of the expense.

Career and education counseling:   There are so many opportunities open to kids you wonder how come any of them would fail to take advantage.  But while there are many opportunities, there are very few people in the lives of the kids telling them what they’re good at.  Kids are attracted to the things that high salaries can buy, but may not have the right set of aptitudes to succeed in a particular field.  However, they may have amazing aptitudes in another field.  The idea for this project is to offer counseling by professionals to help the kids determine where they are gifted and in what kinds of things they are interested in or even good at.  When a field of interest is selected, it should be possible for the kids to shadow or observe that profession.  Finally, a course of study and direction can be lined out for the kids to follow as they seek to achieve their goals.  The desire of the program is to give intentionality to the process of deciding “what do I want to be when I grow up?”  Without a future to dream about, the present often seems bleak.  Perhaps the best way to describe this process is to say that the goal is to help the child choose a target, take aim, and hit the target.  Needs:  counselors and their fees; a way to market the program.



College/Vo-Tech Scholarship program:  We hope to find individuals and corporations that would consider contributing to a neighborhood scholarship fund.  This is one way we could celebrate as a neighborhood the graduation of our local children.  It would unite the community in showing our kids that they do matter and that they are known.


Toys/hobbies:  We hope to put in some little money into some “hobby” projects for the kids that they could build or work on at church.  For instance, building a model race track, a train layout, etc.  This helps in teaching the kids to work together, to be part of something larger than themselves, and helps to work on English.  Not to mention the fact it is an excellent way to bring hobby enthusiasts and the kids together.

Families:

Neighborhood Emergency Fund:  The idea is to establish a fund, replenished on a regular basis; that would be available to aid families in our neighborhood in an intentional but non-recurring way.  Examples would be, helping with a special, one time project or emergency need (car repair).  Special counselors would administer the fund and would meet with each applicant to determine how needs could best be addressed.  Needs:  money for fund

Prescription Assistance Fund:  A special fund would be established and made available to help people in the neighborhood who are having trouble filling their medications.  The fund could be accessed only at the request of a local pharmacist.   Needs:  money for fund

ESL classes for parents:  Much of the work so far has focused on children.  But it is very important that learning English doesn’t isolate parents from their children.  Parents need to learn English as well.  We proposed hosting ESL classes at the church taught by volunteers from inside and outside the church.  Classes would be held at times convenient for the parents work schedules, perhaps on weekends or Wednesday evenings.

Furniture and clothing for immigrant families.  New immigrants being resettled in Des Moines will number about 100 persons per year in 2011.  That’s down from over 300 per year three years previously.  The decrease in new immigrants comes about because sponsoring organizations no longer felt they could do a good job in light of budget cuts and many of the supporting systems, like education, were already overwhelmed.  Des Moines is now becoming a secondary settlement site, however, as families move here now after having been settled in other areas of the country, to be close to family and friends and also because Iowa has a good job market.  The Chin people and Iraqis are now coming to Des Moines in “second migrations.”  Zion is well connected in the local refugee community and we are consistently asked to help new families establish themselves in apartments with donations of furniture or clothing.

Establish a neighborhood employment network:  On the westside, Lutheran Church of Hope has Hope@work, a successful ministry dedicated to helping people find employment and pursue their goals.  While Hope@work is much more than an employment agency, we have no equivalent in our neighborhood for far less skilled positions.  What if we could partner with Hope@work to start a northside version of the ministry that would focus on jobs that were open to new immigrants or less educated people.  The goal would be to help new immigrants and others to find local employment with good wages so that they wouldn’t have to travel so far for work and be away from their families for so long (see previous).  Hope@work also helps people prepare resumes and determine the steps necessary to advance their careers.  Need:  cooperation from Hope@work and some people with a passion for this.

Parenting Seminars:  with translation...  In many refugee families both mother and father are working very long hours.  Since many are working in meat packing plants an hour or more away, they are gone from home much of the time.  This has led to some discipline problems as parents are too tired to raise their children.  Compounded by the fact that the children are learning English at school faster than their parents are at work, inequities and imbalances are developing in the traditional roles of parents and children.  Parenting skills are now in serious need of being taught given the new reality of families.    We understand that not many will want to attend these sessions but we also know that these sessions are critically important.  Needs:  presenters.  presenter fees?

Life skills training:  We live in a world of fractured families, and often times that means that information doesn’t get passed down from one generation to another.  Holes develop, and critical information doesn’t get passed along.  This project would seek to plug some of those holes, as well as train people who are new to our culture who may  never have developed the skills necessary to manipulate the systems we take for granted.  Topics include bill paying, budgeting, house and car purchasing, cooking/menu planning.  Needs:  There are plenty of realtors, car salesmen and financial planners in the church we can rely on.  Home economics people, maybe money for demonstrations.

Community:

Local Outreaches:  Our involvement in the community started with these outreaches and they seem the best way to get to know the kids and invite them to church.  We have four planned at Redeemer Lutheran Church and plans are underway for a joint event in our neighborhood with Wunder Years Academy.  We plan to return to Douglas Terrace as well.

Community Garden:  Using available land at Zion that is currently not in use, the idea is to create garden plots that would be available to immigrant families.  Some small percentage of plots would be made available to families in the church.  The plots would follow basic guidelines established by the City of Des Moines in their community gardening program.  Applications would be taken from immigrant families and then a lottery would be used to choose which would receive the plots.  Lutheran Services of Iowa would be our partner in this.  Needs:  fence, ultimately, a water line, monthly water charge.

Establish a neighborhood round table:  Basically to continue what we’re doing in terms of networking local businesses, institutions, schools, churches, apartment complexes, home owner associations, etc, together for future planning, co-operation and collective response to neighborhood needs.

Establish a Des Moines area refugee resettlement and assimilation round table:  Referencing the beginning paragraphs of this document, Des Moines was once proud to welcome over 300 new refugees a year.  Currently, many regard our resettlement efforts as being broken.  The schools and social services seem overwhelmed, as do the resettlement agencies themselves.  Perhaps during this “lull in the action,” we should strive to bring together city, county, school, resettlement agencies, employers, churches and others and establish a round table group to plan the way forward.  Perhaps by creating space for people and institutions to work together, we might establish a united approach to welcoming new refugees to our city.

Partnerships with Local Apartment management:   Keeping good relationships with the apartment managers and owners allows us to advocate on behalf of the tenants.  For instance, when bed bugs are a problem, some managers are reluctant to spray.  If the managers trusted the church as a positive force in their properties, perhaps the church could accomplish things on behalf of the tenants to keep the apartments healthy and habitable.  Helping the managers make small improvements to their properties while raising the quality of life for the tenants might be one way to build relationships and trust.  Such things as building and installing picnic tables, charcoal grills, outdoor seating areas, even helping with routine cleaning or maintenance are ideas.  Needs:  money for supplies.

Community education experiences about the refugee community:  Offer short seminars on what it’s like to be a refugee, the history and individual stories of the people in our neighborhood, maybe some role playing and some ideas on how individuals and organizations can help.


Thanks for reading.  God bless.  PJ



Suggested Resources:
At our denomination's National Gathering, speakers urged participants to get their churches involved in their communities.  Here is a sampling of those presentations:

Rev. Greg Ogden's two presentations at LCMC's National Gathering, October 2011

http://www.lcmc.net/annual-gathering-presentations/rev-greg-ogden/a191.html

http://www.lcmc.net/annual-gathering-presentations/rev-greg-ogdens-follow-up-presentation/a201.html

Rev. T.J. Anderson's presentation at LCMC's National Gathering, October 2011
http://www.lcmc.net/annual-gathering-presentations/rev-tj-anderson/a199.html

Rev. Elisa Ashley's presentation at LCMC's National Gathering, October 2011
http://www.lcmc.net/annual-gathering-presentations/rev-elisa-ashley/a189.html

Rev. Gemchis Buba
http://www.lcmc.net/annual-gathering-presentations/rev-dr-gemechis-d-buba/a190.html

Read the book Ethnic Blends by Mark DeYmaz:
http://markdeymaz.com/books/

I want to restate last week's suggested resources as well:

Suggested Reading:  The Next Christians by Gabe Lyons. http://nextchristians.com/book.aspx We're offering this amazing class to go along with this sermon series:  Mission Shift.  Read about it at:  http://www.stpaulsevlutheran.org/sum/missionshift/index.html

Our Story

This story began with a question: “If our church closed, would anyone miss us?” We asked our board to consider the question. The answer they all reached was, “no.” After all, our members would simply go to other churches. It seemed a shame that we were so unconnected with our neighborhood that no one would miss us if we weren’t here. It seemed that maybe Jesus Himself would want his church to have a better relationship with those around us.

So we embarked on a project. Our lead pastor would visit every neighbor who lived around the church. He would try to meet them, ask them how we could bless them, find out if we were being a good neighbor, and give them information about the church and a gift card to a new local restaurant. He visited 30 some houses. People were polite, impressed with the gift, but really didn’t have much to say about how the church could bless them.

We broadened the project to include local businesses and institutions. The pastor went to the local mall. “How can the church bless you?”, he asked the general manager. Short of being willing to work together, there wasn’t anything we could do. Then he went to the VA Hospital down the street. “How can the church bless you?,” he asked. They wanted volunteers. Of course, since they are a federal institution, the application process is a bit hard. We advertised the need but we are still waiting for our first volunteer from the church.

A prayer changed everything. One evening, sitting in the backyard and reading the Bible, our pastor cried out to the Lord in frustration. “What kind of a church do you want us to be?” “Banquet.” Came the reply, clear as a bell. “What kind of banquet?” “Like Luke 14,” he heard. And then his mind was filled with images of a local apartment complex.

Turning to Luke 14 we find the parable of the great banquet. There are three things that leap out at you immediately when you read this chapter.
1.) Jesus says, “When you give a banquet, don’t invite those who can invite you back. Invite those who can never repay you.” So we determined that Jesus wanted us to focus first on the very least, those who couldn’t repay us in any way for serving them. 2.) The guests who were invited, the intended recipients of God’s favor, didn’t come and sent their excuses. We believe that many in the church today don’t realize that they are saved for a purpose. That purpose is to serve the Lord who saved us by serving others. 3.) God instructs his servants to go to the alleyways and the country roads and compel the poor and the lame and the lost to come to the banquet. We understand this to mean that the church is to go out and seek, not stay home and wait for people to come to us.

So we packed up a luncheon feast for 150 people, some games and crafts for the kids and went to the Douglas Terrace Apartments. We met a lot of kids and found out that most of the people living in this complex were recent refugees. Mostly from Burma. We came back monthly for four months, bringing food, games, bounce houses, whatever we could think of, and we began learning names and building relationships.

By the fall it began to occur to us that perhaps we could invite these kids to our Wednesday night tutoring program. That program had 4 kids in it. Overnight it multiplied to 40. Then we needed to find more innovative ways to transport kids, feed kids, and provide the tutoring they needed in a fun atmosphere.

Next stop for us was the local elementary school. “How can the church bless you?” Naturally, we expected a polite “no thank you.” But we were surprised. The school was having trouble getting new immigrants to come to school in the cold weather. The kids lived at the very edge of the busing zone and didn’t qualify to ride the bus. Could the church help? We asked the congregation and ten people volunteered to drive vans borrowed from local churches and ministries. Each school day we began transporting 14 children to school and back. The congregation stepped forward and we bought our first van. The local school asked the local church for help and, praise God, we worked together to meet the need and the get the kids to school. Turns out that the kids who needed rides lived in the apartment complexes we were doing outreaches.

Next, we went to some local restaurants. “How can the church bless you?” The Muslim owner of restaurant was well connected with his Iraqi refugee community. “We need furniture,” he replied. The call went out to the church and furniture started to fill the lobby. Just as quickly it went out to families from Iraq, Burma, and other places. Friendships were made. Jesus was honored. The church became the go to place for help with everything from job applications to utilities to translation and even resolving disputes. Furniture now comes from all over the city as word about the need gets out.

The interest in Jesus by some of our neighborhood friends has caused us to start an Arabic language Alpha Course on Sundays.

Our visits took us to the local mosque. Now our pastor and the imam regularly meet for coffee and conversation and we are committed to working together. The imam and some of his congregation joined us this year at church for Christmas Eve dinner.

As Christmas approached, people in the church wanted to bless our new friends in the community with Christmas presents and food and scarves and gloves. So current ministries like Angel Tree and Christmas food baskets were expanded to meet the growing needs.

There was a growing need for clothes among the children and parents and that were coming to the church for help. So a clothes closet was started.



In the midst of all this activity, the church was approached by the Mizo, an ethnic group from Burma who wanted a church and a pastor to help them. Zion obliged and today the 1:00 Mizo service is vibrant and growing and our Mizo brothers and sisters work side by side with us cleaning the church, exchanging preachers and choirs, sharing meals and going through life together as one church.

Sunday School is now an integrated experience, with Mizo kids and kids from the neighborhood joining us weekly to learn about Jesus. A whole team of people joined together to provide transportation and to receive the kids when they arrive and depart.

Our congregation caught the spirit of what God was doing and things like our Street Outreach, which delivers meals to the city’s homeless, began to grown. Invited Inn, a ministry that turns the church building into a shelter for homeless families four times a year came into existence.

We had a long tradition of Wednesday night meals at our church. Now those meals feed four times the people and have provided an avenue for people from our community to come and eat for free and stay for worship afterwards.

We’ve learned so much over the last 18 months. We’ve learned that the church can become essential to the neighborhood simply by going out into the community and finding a way to serve people who can’t ever pay you back. Simply put, Jesus told us to “go.” When we are obedient and go, the way the world looks at the church changes.

We’ve also learned that we are a part of something bigger than ourselves. Some of the things we’ve been led to do would never have happened without the help of other churches and ministries and even secular organizations. What we learned was that when we work with others, Jesus gets the glory and miraculous things are done in his name.

We’ve learned that we don’t have to be afraid to simply ask, “How can the church bless you?” Sure, some will send us away, but others are dying for our help. They are looking for Christ but how will he come to them if, his body, don’t bring him? We never thought the local school would consider partnering with us. After all, there is a lot of talk these days about separation between church and government. But there are wonderful partnerships to be made out there if we are willing to humble ourselves and serve on terms other than our own.

We also want everyone to understand a few things.
We believe that Jesus has called us to minister everywhere, wherever we are, not just in this neighborhood. But you have to start somewhere. And we encourage all our members to be open to the ministry that Jesus is calling you to right where you are.
We believe that our ministry is to everyone, not just immigrants, but that’s how it started for us and that’s what Jesus has put in front of us today. A few years from now, as our immigrant friends become part of our neighborhood, our ministry focus will undoubtedly change as Jesus calls us forward into new adventures.
We believe that our ministry is not just local. In other words, we still care about the rest of the world. We still seek to support the people and things that God is doing globally.


Eighteen months after beginning our project, the results, to us, are nothing short of miraculous. We believe that we have found the ministry Jesus wants for us in this place at this time. And, amazingly, new opportunities keep on presenting themselves.

The local middle school and high school are now asking for help in transporting students. The local elementary has asked us to double our student transportation. We were able to provide over 500 books to the elementary school, one for every student, just before Christmas. The parents of the children, regardless of their ability to pay for books themselves, have expressed gratitude that the local church cares about their children. The school has also asked us to provide weekend meals for students that the school is concerned have no food when they are not at school. We are currently providing 22 students with food each weekend.

This spring, we’re turning extra land on our campus into community gardens, especially for immigrants who miss being on the land and working the soil. The idea came about at a neighborhood meeting and will involve a partnership between the city, the church and Lutheran Services, a social service organization.

Life skills classes will begin shortly for the 1:00 service. This is a pilot program for us and if it is successful, we hope to open it to the community at large. The classes include things like “how to manage money,” “how to go to the pharmacy and what medicines to buy when your children are sick.” These classes will again be an opportunity for partnership between the church and other members of our community.

We are beginning training now on an Iowa Career Access Point computer. This means that the church will host a computer with available jobs. We’ll provide volunteers from the congregation to help people use it.

What’s next? Only God knows. We continue to pray we will be faithful in responding to his call. What’s next for you? Will you find your story in our story? We invite you to come along and be part of the adventure.

Suggested Reading:  The Next Christians by Gabe Lyons.
http://nextchristians.com/book.aspx

We're offering this amazing class to go along with this sermon series:  Mission Shift.  Read about it at:  http://www.stpaulsevlutheran.org/sum/missionshift/index.html

Faith

The following is a letter from an Iranian Christian pastor who has been sentenced to death. Why? Because he refused to deny Christ on three separate occasions before the Iranian supreme court. I suppose it's trite, but I think times like this necessitate the asking of the question, "And what about you?" If they were going to hang you or cut off your head or kill your family or burn down your house, would you keep the faith? Jesus is all the more real when we live precariously in this world. By that I mean, when we realize that for the sake of Him we could lose everything, I think we are more likely to trust him and therefore gain everything.

This sad news from Iran corresponds with our Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ (LCMC) National Gathering (our denomination) in Des Moines this week. We prayed as an assembly for this pastor. I hope we all pray individually for him and for his poor family, too. But later, in the church planting workshops which were held after the Gathering at our church, I heard first hand that suffering is very real in America, too. Not to death, perhaps, (although broken health is a death sentence merely postponed for a later date), but for the sake of the gospel and for the sake of Christ's church, the loss of pensions, savings, houses, cars, churches, friends and even family is quite common among those doing mission in our society today. It reminds all of us that Jesus' call was to deny ourselves, pick up our cross, and follow him.

Here are his words. May the Lord grant him grace to stand. Amen. Thanks for reading. God bless you. PJ


(This message has been translated from Farsi to English.)

Dear brothers and sisters, Salam

In the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, I am continuously seeking grace and mercy to you, that you remember me and those who are bearing efforts for his name in your prayers. Your loyalty to God is the cause of my strength and encouragement.

For I know well that you will be rewarded; as it’s stated: blessed is the one who has faith, for what has been said to him by God, will be carried out. As we believe, heaven and earth will fade but his word will still remain.

Dear beloved ones, I would like to take this opportunity to remind you of a few verses, although you might know them, So that in everything, you give more effort than the past, both to prove your election, and for the sake of Gospel that is to be preached to the entire world as well.

I know that not all of us are granted to keep this word, but to those who are granted this power and this revelation, I announce the same as Jude, earnestly contend for the faith that was once delivered to the saints.

We are passing by special and sensitive days.They are days that for an alert and awake believer can be days of spiritual growth and progress. Because for him, more than any other time there is the possibility to compare his faith with the word of God, have God’s promises in mind, and survey his faith.

Therefore he (the true believer) does not need to wonder for the fiery trial that has been set on for him as though it were something unusual, but it pleases him to participate in Christ’s suffering. Because the believer knows he will rejoice in his glory.

Dears, the “ judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?”

Therefore those who are enduring burdens by the will of God, commit their souls to the faithful Creator. Promises that he has given us, are unique and precious. As we’ve heard he has said: “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you”

How can it be possible for a believer to understand these words?

Not only when he is focusing on Jesus Christ with adapting his life according to the life Jesus lived when he was on earth? As it is said ” O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.”

Have we not read and heard: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Many attempt to flee from their spiritual tests, and they have to face those same tests in a more difficult manner, because no one will be victorious by escaping from them, but with patience and humility he will be able to overcome all the tests, and gain victory.

Therefore in the place of Christ’s followers, we must not feel desperate, but we have to pray to God in supplication with more passion to help us with any assistance we may need.

According to what Paul has said: In every temptation, God himself will make a way for us to tolerate it.

O beloved ones, difficulties do not weaken mankind, but they reveal the true human nature.

It will be good for us to occasionally face persecutions and abnormalities, since these abnormalities will persuade us to search our hearts, and to survey ourselves. So as a result, we conclude that troubles are difficult, but usually good and useful to build us.

Dear brothers and sisters, we must be more careful than any other time. Because in these days, the hearts and thoughts of many are revealed, so that the faith is tested. May your treasure be where there is no moth and rust.

I would like to remind you of some verses that we nearly discuss everyday, (Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.) but as long as our human will has priority over God’s will, his will will not be done.

As we have learned from him in Gethsemane, he surrendered his will to the father, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

What we are bearing today, is a difficult but not unbearable situation, because neither he has tested us more than our faith and our endurance, nor does he do as such. And as we have known from before, we must beware not to fail, but to advance in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, And consider these bumps and prisons as opportunities to testify to his name. He said: If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

As a small servant, necessarily in prison to carry out what I must do, I say with faith in the word of God that he will come soon.”However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

Discipline yourself with faith in the word of God. Retain your souls with patience. For there is no man that doeth anything in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly.

May you are granted grace and blessings increasingly in the name of Lord Jesus Christ.

Yusef Nadarkhani
Lakan Prison in Rasht
2/June/2010

What We Expect from People Who Go to Church at Zion

What are we asking of you, when you join Zion?

We know that we are saved through faith in Jesus Christ and not by anything we do. But we don’t believe that Jesus intended his people to sit around and navel gaze. He told his followers: “Go! Make followers of me!” In order to make followers, you also have to be a follower, and that means devoting time every day to get to know our Master, Jesus, better.

The biggest commitment we ask you to make when you join Zion is the commitment to grow in your faith. We believe that your intention to join a church, specifically this church, means that you believe Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and that you want to experience here and now the abundant life he offers in this life and the life to come in heaven. We aren’t a church of pew warmers - we are a church of Jesus followers. So we’re asking you to commit to “go” with us on the adventure of a lifetime. Having taken the new member class, and understanding that we are serious about what we believe, we ask you to give yourself to Jesus and his body, the church, in the following ways:

1. Commit to worship together weekly: We understand that “life happens,” and you’ll miss church sometimes. But we ask that you make it a priority, and part of your normal life routine. We don’t track your attendance, and you won’t get an angry note if you’re not in worship, but we believe that worshipping with other Christians is essential to the Christian life. We have 3 Sunday morning services and a Wednesday evening service, so there are plenty of chances to be involved.  Our belief is that part of being church together is worshipping together.  We believe that in worship, God is glorified and we are each edified, built up, refreshed, and equipped to be sent out into the world to serve Christ together and as individuals.  Weekly worship is the fuel that keeps us going day after day.  We also encourage our members to consider setting aside time every day for family and personal worship. See Exodus 20:8-9, Psalm 29:1-2, Psalm 95:1-7, Hebrews 10:24-25, Revelation 11:15-17. See Jesus do it: Luke 4:16-21.


2. Commit to reading the Bible every day: Sure there will be days when you don’t get to it, but we ask you to make it your daily habit. A great way to get started is to read 3 chapters of the book of John every day for a month. Every week you’ll finish the entire book (seven days x three chapters = 21 chapters in the book). You can also easily find daily reading Bibles or Bible apps that will guide you through the Bible in a year. Or maybe you’d rather set your own course and read as you feel led. We’re happy as long as you’re engaged with the Scriptures. We’re ready to answer your questions in person or by e-mail and we’re happy to take the time to help you get started. See 2 Timothy 3:14-17. See Jesus do it: Luke 24:25-27.

3. Commit to pray every day: Simply find a few quiet moments and open up your heart and mind to the Lord. Prayer is first and foremost a conversation between you and God. It involves both talking and listening. Through daily prayer, we learn to turn over control of our lives to God and we believe that you will begin to experience his presence more and more as a result. We recommend that if you're new to this discipline, you start with about 15 minutes a day and then try to add more time as you become comfortable with the practice. There are as many different styles and ways of praying as there are people. We offer classes on praying and also have a helpful guide on our website called, “Easy Steps to Homemade Prayer,” if you’re looking for help getting started. See 2 Chronicles 7:14, Matthew 6:5-13, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, James 5:13-16. See Jesus do it: Mark 1:35.

4. Commit to giving: This includes time, talents and treasure. We ask that you make a commitment to give of yourself to the church, to other people, and to God. This isn’t always easy, and you need to make tough decisions some times. We believe it’s ok to say “no,” so that when you say “yes,” you mean it. In other words, not every mission or program is the right one for you. But seek God’s call and live it out. We want you to give from a cheerful heart as God leads you to Zion and other holy causes- with your time, talents and treasure. We believe that we are called to be generous, as God himself is magnanimous with his grace, so we should be generous and magnanimous with our giving.  So we ask our members to give and give generously.  We encourage our members to give electronically, so that their offerings come in on a regular basis, even when they are away.  This also helps us with our budgeting and stewardship of offerings. See Mark 12:41-44, Luke 6:30, Luke 6:38, 2 Corinthians 9:6-8. See Jesus do it: Mt 14:13-21.


5. Commit to serving: Simply put, it is not enough that we should learn about Jesus. If we are to follow him we must also do the things that he does. One cannot be a disciple only in the classroom. To be a follower of Jesus Christ we must follow him from the classroom to the boardroom and the market place, into the life of our neighbor and to the ends of the earth. In a very real way the Church of Jesus Christ throughout the world has been given the task of carrying on the ministry of Jesus. Guided and united by the Holy Spirit we are the body of Christ and each individually members of it. (1 Cor 12). All of us have a role to play in ministering in Jesus’ name to the world. We believe that acts of selfless service are done for Jesus himself, even if they benefit others.  So we ask our members to be part of our mission together.  We ask that you join a ministry and volunteer.  Perhaps serving in the church when we get together on a Wednesday or Sunday or maybe serving in an outreach ministry to the neighborhood or the world.  Check out the Zion Missions Magazine at the info desk or look online for opportunities at Zion to get involved. If you don't feel that you can make that kind of on-going commitment, we invite you to drop by the "Just Do One Thing" board in the Fellowship Hall where special needs or projects are posted.  Just grab one of the items off the board for a quick and easy way to serve. We’re also very open to new opportunities into which the Lord might be leading you. See Ephesians 4:11-13. See Jesus do it: John 13:1-16

6. Commit to take a class: Following Jesus is a growing experience. We can't outgrow Christian faith. As modern day disciples of Jesus Christ, we are called to move from spiritual infancy to spiritual maturity (Philippians 3:13-14, Ephesians 4:12-14). For this reason we strive to bring people into an ever-growing relationship with Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:19). This growth best happens in small groups (Acts 2:42-47) and so we offer a number of classes to help you know Jesus and his teachings. As we grow in faith, we turn our hearts to God, giving of ourselves and our resources -- freely and cheerfully (2 Corinthians 9:7). We invite you to commit to being a life long student of Jesus. See 1 Timothy 4:13. See Jesus do it: Luke 2:41-50.

7. Commit to struggle against sin in your life: Jesus forgave our sin on the cross and because of his blood, we are reconciled with the Father. But we still sin. A part of following Jesus is to seek to eradicate sin from our lives so that Jesus might be wholly and completely Lord of our life. As John the Baptist once said, “He (Jesus) must increase, I must decrease.” You are not a vacuum, you will be filled with something. As sin decreases, Jesus increases (and vice versa). We strive to die everyday to our old, sinful selves, and to rather live to the new, reborn self through Jesus Christ. See 1 Cor. 10:13, Ephesians 4:22-5:12, 1 John 1:8-9. See Jesus do it: Mt 4:1-11; Mark 14:35-36.

We are Battlestar Galactica

One of my colleagues got the combination “eye roll” and “tsk, tsk” today from someone who attends our church and was visiting our offices. Why, you might very well ask, would anyone give a colleague of mine, who has offered his/her life as a living sacrifice to God, and who, by the way, along with most of our staff, is at least $10,000 underpaid annually according to a survey of other churches in our region and of our size and budget, get the combination “eye roll” and “tsk, tsk”?

Because our offices were messy and full of donations. Donations of school supplies requested by our local public elementary. Donations of food requested by the same school for students who have no food on the weekend. And donations of clothing for the clothes closet we have that I didn’t have time to take to the room where it is housed.

Why do I bring this up? Because such incidents serve as a reminder that we can’t forget who we are or, more likely, subscribe to the great lie about who we are. What is the great lie? That we, the church, are like a cruise ship. The great lie says that our job is to serve our passengers: to give them the music they like, the food they like, the entertainment they like, the activities they like. If they, the passenger/members aren’t happy, we need to fix what is broken immediately.

But we aren’t a cruise ship.

Incidentally, isn’t it interesting that most church people will pay more for a cruise than they give the church in offerings during the same year?

But that isn’t the reason we’re not a cruise ship. The reason that we are not a cruise ship is because we are, in fact, a warship. We are under the flag of our Lord Jesus Christ who has given us a mission and he is at war with the powers and principalities and spiritual powers of this world. And because our Lord is at war, we are also at war. The church does not exist to make our attenders comfortable or to serve them: we exist to serve our Lord Christ himself, to be his ambassadors, his representatives, his soldiers, and his servants. Scripture is clear on this point, there can simply be no argument.

The church is not the Love Boat. We are, instead, more like the Battlestar Galactica. We have the holy remnant of a fallen humanity on board and we must all make sacrifices for the common good. We are a “rag tag fleet” of survivors who have been saved for a purpose. We need to have quantities of clothes to clothe the naked, quantities of food to feed the hungry, quantities of whatever is needed to meet whatever need we encounter. Because that is the mission.

Mission is messy. Our Lord has sent us on a mission. We are his partners in redeeming a fallen race. If our mission is messy there are times when we, or our offices, will be messy too.

Let’s remember who we are called to be. Thanks for reading. God bless you. PJ

I’m Going Back to the Phone

OK, it’s hard for a guy who likes technology like I do to admit it, but I’ve noticed a trend lately. For things that need a response about a week away, e-mail or FB works great. But when I need things NOW!, it has to be the phone.

I’d abandoned the phone in favor of e-mail, FaceBook and Twitter. And for a couple of years, that seemed to work. But now I’ve noticed a trend: people are way to busy to answer e-mail or check e-mail, but they’ll answer their phone.

I know, I know, people respond to text messages. Texting is cool. Hey, I did it all the time in Europe before it was cool here. I get it. But the fact is that a text still isn’t as urgent for the people I need to talk to as a phone. And, remarkably, I find the people I need to talk to actually answer their phone....

Now I realize that at 44 years old I’m a fuddy duddy. And my primary contacts are with people 28 years old and above. But who knew? They answer the phone and they actually return voicemail when they don’t. Go figure. As more and more things come into my life and I become more and more last minute because of the volume, the phone really works.

So thank you, everyone, who answers your phone. Thank you for bailing me out, time and time again. Oh, I’ll still use FaceBook and Twitter and texting and e-mail, but, by golly, I just upped my minutes for real voice to voice communication, too.

God bless. Thanks for reading. PJ