The volunteers and staff at Mission Arlington have this incredible humility, graciousness, and passion for reaching their community for Christ. Their love for Christ and for those in their community is evident in everything they do. They have many different ways to reach people, but their primary focus is apartment churches - "taking church to the people." We had the chance to work along side them, as well as tour their mission facility and attend breakout sessions about different aspects of their ministry. I can't say I came away with a lot of notes or a list of things to do for a successful ministry, but that wasn't their goal in putting on this conference. They said several times, if you go home and try to duplicate our ministry, you'll probably not be successful. You have to do what God leads you to do for your community. What they conveyed through the conference was not a formula for a ministry, but a heart and passion for following God's lead to meet the physical needs of their community, in order to share the gospel with them.
Our church started an outreach ministry in our community about 18 months ago, that I have had the priviledge of working with. Each Sunday, four teams from our congregation go to different locations (one apartment complex and three mobile home communities) to lead Bible studies. This conference came at just the right time for us, giving us the encouragement and inspiration to see where God is leading us next.
Seven of us attended the conference and had a great time. Here's our group enjoying a lunch break on Saturday:
We spent some time Saturday morning volunteering in different aspects of the ministry (I got to ride in a truck and pick up and deliver donations). In the afternoon we went to one of the apartment complexes and helped sort snacks for their after school program.
We also got to meet and play with some of the kids from that complex:
On Sunday morning, I was blessed to attend a worship service at one of the apartment complexes. I can honestly say that this was the first time I've ever attended a worship service on a tennis court! It was such a great experience.
After worship, we helped out in their preschool Bible study class. Here's my dear friend, Lisa, with one of the precious children we met:
The weekend ended with a Sunday afternoon service. The Bible study leaders from all the apartment churches meet together for corporate worship and prayer every Sunday afternoon. What a blessing it was to be a part of that! I can't wait to see what God does next in our church and community!
1 comment:
What an awesome experience!! Tennis court church...I love it!!
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