A Dream Worth Fighting For

Written by Megan McDermott, Latino Children's Ministry Director 
and Iris Venegas, Teens Adelante participant

One of the best privileges that comes with serving and loving the kids of our community is hearing what they want to be when they grow up. Their dreams range from professional soccer player to special needs teacher to firefighter!  However, many of our kids reach a point where, because they are undocumented, the possibility of attending college becomes unrealistic.  If you have ever seen a child lose hope in his or her dreams, you  understand the heartbreak of what many of our neighborhood kids face.  It takes a strong person to continue to fight for his or her dreams, even when the odds are stacked against him or her.  I would like to share with you, in her own words, the story of one young woman that is paving the way for others in our community to pursue their dreams as she pursues hers.

My name is Iris Venegas and I’m a senior at Sumner Academy of Arts and Science. I’ve been attending Mission Adelante for about six years now, and currently I’m part of the Hispanic teens’ program at Mission Adelante. Being a senior, I’ve been working on college-related things like applying to colleges and working on scholarship applications.

The application process has been very difficult and new, since I’m the first in my family to graduate from high school and aspire to go to college. Through this process Megan McDermott (my friend and mentor) has been helping me with my personal statement, essay questions, and letters of reference.  So far, this process has been challenging and sometimes even disappointing, but it is nice to know that I’m taking advantage of an opportunity that not many have.

Some of the disappointments I have faced are being overwhelmed with the cost of medical school and not getting into the 6 year BA/MD program at UMKC, where I initially wanted to attend.  I have applied and gotten accepted for general admissions at KU, K-State, and UMKC.  I have chosen to attended KU and study medicine. My dream is to become a pediatrician and someday do medical missions. I am so thankful to all the people that have helped me with this process because I know that I would have not been able to do this on my own. 

The heartbeat of Mission Adelante is relationship and when the Lord provides a way for a young leader, such as Iris, to not only pursue college but to also have a desire to serve others in His name, we are blessed to walk alongside them!

In other news:

• God continues to bless our Latino church with musicians.  This week a teen, Jaime, stepped up to play the drums at our worship service for the first time!
• Bhutanese Teens Volunteers will be meeting together on Sunday for fellowship and to learn how to better engage our Hindu friends with the gospel. One of Mission Adelante’s Bhutanese House Church leaders will be sharing about his own journey from Hindu to Yeshu Bhakta ("Jesus Follower").

Prayer needs:

• Pray for the family of one of our Latino church members who is mourning the loss of their older father.  Pray also for us as we minister to them at the funeral this Friday.
• Please pray for a Bhutanese family, who lost a family member this past week.  Pray that Jesus would continue to reveal His character to them through our presence at the funeral last weekend.
• Please pray that The Lord will provide good jobs for several people in our church community who are seeking employment.

Current needs:

• We are searching for more drivers to join the Bhutanese Transportation Team for our Tuesday evening outreach. If you are available to drive our shuttle bus for one hour on Tuesday evenings (must be 25 years old, no CDL required), please contact Drew Hammond at drewh@missionadelante.org.
• Expo dry-erase markers for use in the Bhutanese Kids Programs. Please contact Kristen at kristenm@missionadelante.org.

Important dates:

• Bhutanese Teens Volunteer Dinner and Training: Saturday, February 9 Email Hannah Hume at hannahh@missionadelante.org for more information.
• Bhutanese ESL Volunteer Dinner: March 2 at Lauren Timberlake's house. Please contact Jenny Dunn for more details at jennyd@missionadelante.org
• Observation Days: Tuesdays, March 5 & 12 (Bhutanese)/Thursdays, March 7 & 14 (Latino) 6:30-8:30  Have you wondered what all goes on around here on a typical evening of programming?  Here's your opportunity to come and see for yourself!
• Bring-A-Friend Fund-Raiser for Bhutanese Teens Coordinator Hannah Hume: Saturday, March 9 Email Hannah Hume at hannahh@missionadelante.org for more information.

Breaking Bread Together

Written by Kristen Maxwell, Bhutanese Children's Ministry Director

Bhutanese & Latino LIT students on a field trip to Union Station

The Fall 2012 trimester brought another exciting enhancement to the Bhutanese Outreach with the launch of our Leaders in Training program.   It is hard to believe that we already have one trimester behind us and are a few weeks in to our second trimester.  It has been such a joy to add these 11 young leaders to the ranks of the already-existing Latino Leaders In Training program.  Both programs meet three afternoons a week, but have different formats because the two groups of kids have different sets of needs.  Wednesdays, though, have become quite the highlight of each week.  On Wednesdays we gather to eat.  

Each Wednesday afternoon in the

Mission Adelante

 Kids' Room, something beautiful takes place; a feast reflecting what heaven will look like.  The13 Latino LIT kids and the 11 Bhutanese LIT kids come together for a meal with their mentors.  Each group provides a main dish, fruit or vegetable, and dessert.  The menu is always a surprise, and we've come to expect anything from spaghetti or pizza to flautas or tacos to chow mien or curried potatoes.  The parents in our communities take turns providing the dishes, which is something that their kids usually love.  

It has been beautiful to watch the kids' relationships grow by way of sharing meals with one other.  Foods that may have once looked foreign and weird are now more familiar.  Common ground has been found in a fondness for sweet rice; who knew that Kheer and Arroz con Leche were that similar?  In a neighborhood where Latino people and Bhutanese people daily pass each other on the street without much interaction, the Lord has made a way for kids from these two cultures to come together every week to learn about His creative nature by learning about the distinct people and cultures He created.  

Won't you join us in praying for the trimester of LIT that is underway?  Pray that our kids would finish strong and continue to grow in relationship with each other and the Lord.

In other news:

• The Bhutanese Outreach was recently given a generous gift of Nepali Bibles and Nepali language Jesus Film DVDs to share with our Nepali speaking Bhutanese friends who want to know more about Jesus in their native language.
• Four teenage Bhutanese boys have taken on volunteer roles in setting up for Teens Club each week and helping with Transportation Team prep work. It’s exciting to see teens serving their own community and growing in leadership. Please pray that our Bhutanese friends would take increased ownership of the ministry and values of Mission Adelante as the trimester proceeds.

Prayer needs:

• Please pray for Jesus, the father of one of our Latino church members, who has been hospitalized with various health issues.
• Please pray for one of our kids that is going through a difficult separation from his family. Pray for peace, protection, and healing.
• Please pray for our Bhutanese friends who recently suffered a break-in and theft at their newly opened Asian convenience store.
• One of the families in our community lost an uncle this past week.  Pray for peace, and for moments for us to speak truth and love into their lives.

Current needs:

• We are looking for a volunteer who is skilled in welding and would be interested in helping serve on a Saturday afternoon.  Please contact David Stetler at davids@missionadelante.org.
• Three sofas have been requested through our Resource Center. We also need diapers sizes 2-5, wipes, and pull-ups in all sizes. Please contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org
• A dining table and chairs for a recently-arrived family from Nepal. If you have one available please contact Drew Hammond at drewh@missionadelante.org
• Expo dry-erase markers for use in the Bhutanese Kids Programs. Please contact Kristen at kristenm@missionadelante.org.

Important dates:

• Bhutanese ESL Volunteer Dinner: March 2 at Lauren Timberlake's house. Please contact Jenny Dunn for more details at jennyd@missionadelante.org
• Observation Days: Tuesdays, March 5 & 12 (Bhutanese)/Thursdays, March 7 & 14 (Latino) 6:30-8:30  Have you wondered what all goes on around here on a typical evening of programming?  Here's your opportunity to come and see for yourself!

The Power of Prayer

Written by Hannah Hume, Bhutanese Teens Coordinator

Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name I will do it.  John 14:13-14

Prayer is a big deal. Through it we have access to the most powerful being in existence, the sustainer of all life, and that being has made promises to his people regarding prayer; promises like the one above. Often times though, we struggle to take God at his word. He will do whatever we ask in His name? These types of scriptures may feel too good to be true or feel confusing to us. However, there they are in the Bible, promises Jesus made in His word.

In the time I’ve been with Mission Adelante I have learned a lot about prayer as I have spent more and more time with my Bhutanese friends, both “Yeshu bhakta’s” (Jesus followers) and Hindus. When I visit my friends at their home, they often take me to lay hands on their sick grandmother and pray for her in Jesus’ name.  Occasionally a teen girl will ask me to pray for the healing of her broken heart after a breakup with her boyfriend. Sometimes these requests are made by those who follow Jesus but more commonly, the request comes from a member of a Hindu family. They truly believe that Jesus has the power to heal, and He does!

Over and over again friends have reported nonchalantly that the prayers worked and God has healed their relative.  For them, this is just the natural outcome of prayer.  Many times I am the surprised one. I have so much to learn from my friends about believing in the power of prayer!  

Here at Mission Adelante prayer is one of our central values. Each thing we do to make Christ known in Kansas City, KS can only work if God moves. We are dependant on Him, and this drives us to our knees. Please join us in praying for God’s continued movement in our neighborhood, and especially that God’s power, demonstrated through His answers to prayer, would bring Bhutanese to put their trust in Jesus as their Lord.

In other news:

• The spring trimester of our Bhutanese and Latino outreaches launched last Thursday with a lot of momentum and we are excited to see immigrants and volunteers develop lasting friendships in the coming weeks.
• The staff from partner church Christ Church visited Mission Adelante yesterday to share a meal with our staff and serve together by preparing welcome food baskets for new refugee families.
• Bhutanese Children's Ministry Director Kristen Maxwell designed the Leaders In Training program for 8-12 year old Bhutanese students to include the preservation of their cultural heritage. For that reason, time is planned for older members of the Bhutanese community to teach the students how to write in Nepali, their native language.

Prayer needs:

• Please pray for the Bhutanese ESL students that have been designated as "class leaders" to take ownership of their tasks this trimester.
• Pray for spiritual hunger to grow among the Bhutanese teenagers.
• We are praising God for the amazing volunteers that lock arms with us to love our community that He has blessed us with for yet another trimester!
• Please pray for God to bring more volunteer drivers to help transport our Bhutanese friends to outreach programs on Tuesday nights.

• One of our Latina friends delivered a still birth last week. Please pray that she will experience God’s comfort.

Current needs:

• Volunteer drivers for Mission Adelante’s Bhutanese Transportation Team! We transport about 150 people to our outreach programs in our two shuttle buses each Tuesday evening, and we need more drivers to serve for two hours a week. Must be 25 years of age or older, NO CDL REQUIRED. For more information, please contact Drew Hammond at drewh@missionadelante.org
• A dining table and chairs for a recently-arrived family from Nepal. If you have one available please contact Drew Hammond at drewh@missionadelante.org.
• Two space heaters for a family without heat in their home. Please contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org if you can donate one.

Important dates:

• Observation Days: Tuesdays, March 5 & 12 (Bhutanese)/Thursdays, March 7 & 14 (Latino) 6:30-8:30  Have you wondered what all goes on around here on a typical evening of programming?  Here's your opportunity to come and see for yourself!

The Road to Life-On-Life Discipleship

Written by Drew Hammond, Bhutanese Logistics Coordinator

At Mission Adelante we believe that ministry is primarily a relational endeavor, that genuine compassion and reconciliation requires relationship, and that disciple-making must be life-on-life.

Nearly eight months ago I received a phone call that required an immediate response. A Bhutanese family, who had been in the USA for less than three months, was being forced to move out of their home into a motel at 78th Street and I-70. The house next door to theirs had burned down, the fire severely damaging their home, and they found themselves relocating to the motel located some distance from the majority of the Bhutanese community in Kansas City, KS. As a representative of Mission Adelante, I responded by taking the family food to last them a few weeks until they could relocate to a permanent residence.

When we arrived at the motel, we met the family and delivered the food. The family began to eat and invited me to join them, per the cultural norm.  I tried to refuse, saying, "we brought your family this food since you won't be able to prepare all the food you like while living here.  Keep it for yourselves." A young man about my age responded to my refusal by placing a full plate of food onto my lap.

At that moment, I didn't realize that not only was I beginning a relationship with this family, but that that family would later become my family, and the man that served me the plate of food would become my brother.  You see, now I have the honor of living with this family and sharing my life, and more importantly, the truth of the love of Jesus with them everyday.

In other news:

• We're so thankful for the Lord’s continued provision!  He has provided so many wonderful new volunteers with the Spring trimester launch!
• Martin, Iris, Jai and Janga were highlights at our recent volunteer training as they shared parts of their immigrant story with our new volunteers.
• The Bhutanese outreach programs launched for this trimester on Tuesday night! We are super excited to watch and see what the Lord will do this trimester in everyone’s hearts as we serve and learn together.
• We were so excited to see our LIT (Leaders in Training) kids back and in action this week!

Prayer needs:

• Pray for one of our Latino leaders to have wisdom in his decision as he considers moving out of Kansas City.
• Praise God for growing our immigrant leadership teams! Please pray that they continue to develop leadership skills and increase ownership of our outreach activities.

Current needs:

• Two women who would be excited about forming discipling/mentoring relationships with Bhutanese teenagers through Bhutanese Teens Club on Tuesday evenings. Please contact Hannah Hume at hannahh@missionadelante.org.
• Volunteers for Mission Adelante’s Bhutanese Transportation Team! Our transportation needs are great for our Tuesday night outreach, and we are looking for more volunteers to join the team as drivers. Must be 25 years of age or older, NO CDL REQUIRED. For more information, please contact Drew Hammond at drewh@missionadelante.org
• A dining table and chairs for a recently-arrived family from Nepal. If you have one available please contact Drew Hammond at drewh@missionadelante.org.
• Small toys and trinkets (valued at about $1 each--ie Target dollar bins, or dollar store) to be added to our Kids Club prize box, which contains reward for excellent behavior during our Tuesday night program for kids ages 5-12.  If you can help us out contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org.
• Bhutanese and Latino kids' programs are in search of a gently used lamination machine to keep our frequently used materials usable for longer. Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Expo dry-erase markers for use in the Bhutanese Kids Programs.  Please contact Kristen at Kristenm@missionadelante.org.

The Story After the Story

Written by Jason Schoff, Latino Outreach Director

In the days leading up to our Christmas Eve service, I visited several community families in their homes to talk with them about their Christmas plans and to make sure they knew the details for our service.  I found out that one young Latino couple and another single man didn't have any plans for Christmas Eve following our service.  This seemed tragic, especially given that Latinos stay up past midnight on Christmas Eve celebrating with family and friends. What could I do?  I was leaving early the next morning to join my family.  I love to be involved in God's plan but sometimes He reminds me that I am not the main solution, others are.  

Cynthia was the solution.  God used Cynthia and her love for people and hospitality to make the night complete.  When she found out these three friends would be going home without a party to attend, she extended an invitation.  Maybe there was no room in the inn for Jesus nor was there room at other parties for Martin, Sindi and Michael, but Cynthia allowed these fellow believers that opportunity to join her family for tamales, posole, and other traditional Mexican foods.  Cynthia is one of the bright spots in our ministry because she understands the importance of relationships to our discipleship efforts.  It will be exciting to see her take other steps to lead in the year ahead.  

Our Christmas Eve service was a wonderful end to our 2012 ministry season, but so much of what makes us excited happens outside of the big events when perhaps only God is watching.

In other news:

• The Mission Adelante staff enjoyed a restful and refreshing break spent with family and friends! Thank you for your prayers to that end.  Most of us returned to the office reinvigorated (there's some illness about), and we're looking forward to diving into a new trimester.

Prayer needs:

• Please pray for our new volunteers as they come for orientation this Saturday. Pray that they would feel welcomed and encouraged by the opportunity to serve with us!

• Please pray for the Bhutanese Leadership team meeting on Sunday.  Pray for ownership, direction, and vision for this team.

• We would love prayers for all of our outreach activities as they ramp back up over the next week, that the Lord would guide us to be His hands and feet to the community that we love and serve. Pray particularly on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday for smooth, stress free, and Spirit-filled days as our outreach programs launch for the spring trimester.

Other needs:

• Volunteers to serve once per week for the duration of the spring trimester, beginning next week (the week of January 14) and concluding the week of April 8:
• Two men and 1 woman who would be excited about forming discipling/mentoring relationships with Bhutanese teenagers through Bhutanese Teens Club on Tuesday evenings. Please contact Hannah Hume at hannahh@missionadelante.org.
• Volunteers who love kids and love Jesus to mentor Bhutanese kids ages 5-12 on Tuesday evenings. Specifically, two more men are needed. Please contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org.
• Volunteers to mentor Latino kids through either Leaders In Training on Monday or Tuesday afternoons, or Kids Adelante outreach Bible study on Thursday evenings. Please contact Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Volunteers to help organize our Resource Center on Wednesday afternoons between 1 and 3 pm. The Resource Center provides food, clothing, and household items to immigrants in need of these items. Please contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org if you're available at that time.

• A dining table and chairs. If you have one available please contact Drew Hammond at drewh@missionadelante.org.
• Two twin beds, 1 queen bed, a sofa, and a kitchen table and chairs to seat 6 or 7 have been requested through our Resource Center. The Resource Center also needs inventory including new and gently used kitchen items, bedding, towels, and medium stuffed animals. Please contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org to set up a time to drop-off your donation. Please help us out by not leaving donations inside or outside our facility.  Thanks.           

• Small toys and trinkets (valued at about $1 each--ie Target dollar bins, or dollar store) to be added to our Kids Club prize box, which contains reward for excellent behavior during our Tuesday night program for kids ages 5-12.  If you can help us out contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org.

• The Bhutanese and Latino LIT programs need a small group (or groups) to purchase pre-packaged, healthy, after-school snacks for the kids.  We would be blessed to receive a couple months (@ 3 days/week) worth of snacks.  Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.

• Fifteen to twenty 8 GB flash drives for the Latino LIT students to use, preferably with a ring or another way to attach them to lanyards. Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.

• Bhutanese and Latino kids' programs are in search of a gently used lamination machine to keep our frequently used materials usable for longer. Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.

Important dates:

• Volunteer Orientation & Training--Saturday, January 12 @ 9:00-12:30 All volunteers should attend this training once at the beginning of serving with Mission Adelante.  It's also a great way for someone to become familiar with Mission Adelante.  If you or someone you know is interested in finding out more about what we do, and about our volunteer opportunities, please plan to attend/encourage him or her to attend this informative training.
• All Volunteer Huddle & Dessert--Monday, January 14 @ 6:30 p.m.  We encourage everyone that will be volunteering with us during our spring trimester to attend so we can prepare for a great launch.
• Spring trimester programs launch--Week of January 14

A Yeshu Concert Celebration

Written by David Stetler, Bhutanese Outreach Director

A week ago Saturday the cross-cultural, western-eastern fusion rock band Aradhna led by the sitar-playing Chris Hale came to visit Kansas City and played a special concert at our end-of-year party to help us finish the year with a huge celebration.  

 The songs that Chris and the band performed for us were all sung in Nepali or Hindi which are both languages that our Bhutanese friends understand very well.  Nepali is their first language and Hindi is usually their second.  Aradhna has a four man band playing the sitar, the bass, the guitar and a really cool hand drum called the tabla.  They sing songs called Yeshu Bhajans which are Jesus worship songs and are all about Jesus, who he is, and what he has done for us.

We gave out awards to our program participants and our faithful volunteers during dinner and celebrated the year together.  We also had a wonderful time singing and dancing to the Yeshu Bhajans celebrating Prameshwar Yeshu, Jesus as Lord, and all that he brings us.  It's amazing how much the joy of music brings when we can sing about Jesus and the peace and joy that he brings us.  

During the Aradhna concert intermission my good friend Janga played a few songs in Nepali about Yeshu (Jesus) that he has recently written.  The first song was about why Jesus came to the earth and the other was a beautiful song to the tune of The Benediction. Janga has been leading worship for our Teens Club, Leaders in Training and our house church for several months.  We love watching him grow as a leader and as a musician and it was great to be present while he shared some of his new songs with the broader Bhutanese community.  

All in all, it was a great night of incredible music, wonderful food and amazing friends as we reflected on a remarkable year.  And at the same time, just down the street, our Latino friends were having a huge party celebrating too.  We are looking forward to celebrating together the birth of Jesus on Christmas Eve!

In other news:

• Jason Schoff taught an adult ESL class at a local public school this fall that included one Bhurmese student.  She was the only Bhurmese amidst Latinos.  We were excited to have this opportunity with a new immigrant group.

Prayer needs:

• Praise God with us! The first of the teens in our community brought to the States as a child that applied for the right to work through the federal Deferred Action program introduced last summer has received his documents, and the chance for a better future.
• Please pray for the continuing development of the leaders of our house churches--Bhutanese and Latino--as we continue to spend time intentionally discipling them.
• Please pray that the Mission Adelante staff would enjoy a restful break and return in January ready to jump back into ministry.
• Pray for our tri-cultural (Bhutanese, Latino, and North American) Christmas Eve service to minister to all present.

Current needs:

• Volunteers to join us in all our outreach programs for our next trimester, mid-January to mid-April.  Check out www.missionadelante.org/volunteerto see all our volunteer opportunities!

• GPS units for our Transportation Team. If you are able to provide one, please contact Drew Hammond at drewh@missionadelante.org
• Mattresses for newly arrived Bhutanese refugee families. If you are able to provide one please contact Drew Hammond at drewh@missionadelante.org.

• Volunteers to help sort clothes the resource center. If you are interested in helping, please contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org to arrange a time to come up.
• A Conference Table: 6’ long, dark brown, and in good condition. Please contact Morgan Ham at morganh@missionadelante.orgif you can point us towards one.
• The Bhutanese and Latino LIT programs need a small group (or groups) to purchase pre-packaged, healthy, after-school snacks for the kids.  We would be blessed to receive a couple months worth of snacks.  Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Fifteen to twenty 8 GB flash drives for the Latino LIT students to use, preferably with a ring or another way to attach them to lanyards. Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.

Important dates:

• Christmas Eve Service: Monday, December 24 @ 6:00 at Mission Adelante. This will be our first combined worship service with both our Latino and Bhutanese communities!  Multi-ethnic refreshments will follow.
• The Mission Adelante office will be closed for Christmas December 25-January 1.

Mission Adelante Year-End Giving Opportunities: A Record Year!

A Record Year and New Opportunities!

Three cultures, one community, a big celebration!

It's been a record year at Mission Adelante and the timing couldn't be any better!  As we bring 2012 to a close, we're both praising God for His beautiful work among us, as well as praying for the strongest year-end we've ever had financially.  Will you be a part of it with us?  

The fruit of seven years of serving in our neighborhood has translated into some exciting opportunities for 2013 that we're praying will impact our community in new ways for years to come.  We invite every one of you to partner with us in whatever way you can as we press into these new challenges and opportunities!  Give online and then share our 

online giving page

with your friends.  It's easy!

Coming soon in 2013...

• Adelante Thrift: A neighborhood-based Thrift store that will provide jobs and a produce sustainable income to help fund other Community Development initiatives.
• Summer Internship:  A ministry internship for emerging leaders among Latino Teens from our neighborhood.
• Foundations for a Medical Clinic: In 2013 we will be conducting focus groups in our community and forming a Board of Directors and a business plan for a Family Practice clinic in our neighborhood, which we hope to open in 2014.
• Multi-cultural Worship: On Christmas eve we will hold our first ever multi-cultural worship service in Spanish, English and Nepali.   In 2013 we plan to experiment with more ideas to foster multi-cultural interactions and worship.
• Disciple-Making: The core of our mission and purpose will always be reproducing disciples of Jesus who can also make disciples.

Year-End Giving

This is a very exciting time to invest in what God is doing through Mission Adelante.  As we prepare for these new opportunities and pray for our strongest financial year-end ever, we want to invite you to give, and give generously to be a part of changing individual lives and an entire community.  Our year-end giving goal is $65,000.  This goal includes $21,000 we need to raise to receive a "last in" grant to hire a Community Development Director!  Here are a two ideas to help us get there!

• Give online and pass it on (click here)!  We have a new online giving page that integrates our new video to share our story and makes online giving really easy.   Spread the word by sharing our giving page on facebook!

• Give Stock (click here to learn more):  When you give appreciated assets, your giving capacity goes further and your tax advantage could be greater.  Mission Adelante partners closely with the National Christian Foundation to help donors establish "donor advised funds", an effective and tax-efficient vehicle for giving.  With a donor advised fund you can give appreciated assets, such as stock, avoiding capital gains taxes.  While no one knows how congress will resolve the "fiscal cliff", there has been talk of placing new limits on itemized deductions, which would impact deductions for charitable giving in future years.  The president of the National Christian Foundation, Aimee Minnich, has given me permission to distribute her mobile phone number, (816) 853-4469,for anyone who would like to discuss giving stock or other assets through a donor advised fund.

An Insider's Perspective

Written by Sarah Winston, Operations Director

As I wandered through Mission Adelante’s neighborhood for the staff open houses a few weekends ago, I was struck by what a difference a year can make.  

I was a new addition to the staff at open house time last year, and it was the first event I attended in the neighborhood. Unlike most of the staff, who volunteered before coming on board, I came to Mission Adelante with very little cross-cultural experience and no friends within the community, save for the Meek family.  I was vaguely uneasy walking down unfamiliar streets, searching for the homes of people I saw at work but had no real relationships with and whose families I had not met.  As a lifelong suburbanite--who had always lived, worked and played with people very much like me--I didn’t know what to expect.  Is the neighborhood safe? (yes) What if I sit next to someone who doesn’t speak English?  I’m not skilled at small talk in my own language; What will someone from a different culture think of me for nodding and smiling awkwardly at them when I can’t understand them? The community is already so close-knit.  Do they even want me around? In short, last year I felt like an outsider.

While the event itself changed very little from last year to this, my place in the community had.  I confidently navigated the streets to the homes of friends.  I greeted their spouses and children by name, and nibbled on food that is becoming less foreign to my taste buds. Although I am still not good with small talk, the self consciousness of the previous year had been replaced with the ease of knowing that I belong.

If tiptoeing outside the comfort of my own context was enough to make me feel uncomfortable, how much more courage does it take for our immigrant friends and neighbors to take a giant leap out of their contexts to be here?  Have they found us welcoming? It is our prayer that God will use our community to make “outsiders” feel like “insiders”--not just cultural insiders, but Kingdom insiders that will  impact our neighborhood, our community, our world.

In other news:

• Drew Hammond, Bhutanese outreach intern, has recently moved in with a Bhutanese family in the neighborhood to live incarnationally among them.
• The overnight trip to Great Wolf Lodge for the LIT kids last weekend was a success, and the kids had a blast enjoying the fruit that comes from working hard!
• The band Aradhna is coming to perform for the Bhutanese Outreach Party this Saturday. www.aradhnamusic.com. "Aradhna" is a spiritually charged Hindi term that means, "adoration." The band makes music that is centered around spiritual enlightenment and transformation while keeping ethnic integrity intact.
• Janoy from our Latino Church preached to our congregation on Sunday for the first time and did a really great job.

Prayer needs:

• Pray for growth and commitment in the leaders of the Bhutanese House Church as they continue to learn how to follow Jesus and lead others to do the same.
• Please pray for the Bhutanese as they hear Aradhna’s songs this weekend at our Outreach Party.
• Each Tuesday night at Bhutanese Teens Club we have been learning different Bible stories beginning with Adam and Eve and working our way towards Christ. Please pray that over Christmas break these stories would work their way deep into the hearts and minds of the teens.
• Pray for the Lord to provide opportunity for growth in the relationships between mentors and kids during the trimester break from programming in the form of relational time spent together.
• Pray for Latino parents who are struggling to find work and are worried about providing gifts for their kids this Christmas.

Other needs:

• A Conference Table: 6’ long, dark brown, and in good condition. Please contact Morgan Ham at morganh@missionadelante.org if you can point us towards one.
• The Bhutanese and Latino LIT programs need a small group (or groups) to purchase pre-packaged, healthy, after-school snacks for the kids.  We would be blessed to receive a couple months worth of snacks.  Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Fifteen or twenty 8 GB flash drives for the Latino LIT students to use, preferably with a ring or another way to attach them to lanyards. Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.

Upcoming dates:

• Latino Christmas Party: Saturday, December 8 @ 5:00  Bethany Community Center, 1120 Central Avenue, Kansas City, KS 66102
• Bhutanese Christmas Party: Saturday, December 8 @ 5:00  First Baptist Church of Kansas City, 2900 Minnesota Avenue, Kansas City, KS 66102
• Christmas Eve Service: Monday, December 24 @ 6:00 at Mission Adelante. This will be our first combined worship service with both our Latino and Bhutanese communities!  Multi-ethnic refreshments will follow.
• The Mission Adelante office will be closed for Christmas December 25-January 1.

Enrichment Through Multi-generational Friendship

Written by Megan McDermott, Latino Children's Ministry Director

At Mission Adelante, one of the things that we are passionate about is investing in the next generation of leaders.  Throughout the Gospels, we read that Jesus was constantly attending to the widows, orphans, and aliens that he encountered. We desire to encourage the children we love and serve, to love and serve others in turn, the way that Jesus did.  One ongoing relational opportunity that we foster for our Leaders in Training is visiting Bickford Place, an assisted living home, each month.  For the school year, each child is paired with the same resident, or buddy, to learn from one another, do fun crafts, and ultimately become friends.   Both the children and residents are blessed by the friendships that develop.  Two of the LIT girls wrote about their recent experiences at Bickford. 

"I liked getting to know my buddy Roma.  I felt excited about going to Bickford because my buddy was really nice to me and she also told us about her childhood. When she told us her story, she let us look all around her room. She also let us look at all her pictures. We saw a picture when she was very very young. I enjoyed spending time with her because it was my very first time going to Bickford.  She also liked spending time with us because she told us. Roma said that I was really really sweet to her and that I asked a lot of questions. When it was time to go, I felt sad, but I will go back again.  I hope I get to spend time with Roma again." --Perla, age 9

"Bickford is a good place to be because the people there are super nice and friendly.  I feel very exicted when I go to Bickford because I get to be with my buddies.   I  learn new things about them and about how they grew up.  Both of my buddies lived during World War II. By the stories they've told me,  it was a rough time.  They've told me they were very very scared at that point.  They also lived during the Great Depression and they said it was a very sad time.  It makes me very thankful for what I have today. When you leave you will be wishing you'd spend more time with them and will be wanting to come back. --Nataly, age 11

In other news:

• On December 8th we'll wrap up our fall outreach programs with Bhutanese and Latino Christmas parties to celebrate the kids' and adults' accomplishments. The parties provide another great chance to share Jesus.  Pray for God to prepare our friends' hearts to hear and believe the great news of His incarnation!
• The Bhutanese and Latino Leaders In Training will spend the night at the Great Wolf Lodge this weekend to celebrate their hard work and effort during the semester.

Prayer needs:

• Several families we know through our outreach programs are in need of work.  Pray for God to provide for them.
• Please pray for a particular family to be geographically reunited before Christmas.
• Please pray that Bhutanese Teens club would be a place where student-to-student and student-to-leader relationships are characterized by deep mutual respect and trust.  

Current needs:

• The Bhutanese and Latino LIT programs need a small group (or groups) to purchase pre-packaged, healthy, after-school snacks for the kids.  We would be blessed to receive a couple months worth of snacks.  Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Teen Bibles and devotionals for Teens Adelante. Please contact Brooke at brookec@missionadelante.org for specifics.

Upcoming dates:

• Latino Christmas Party: Saturday, December 8 @ 5:00  Bethany Community Center, 1120 Central Avenue, Kansas City, KS 66102
• Bhutanese Christmas Party: Saturday, December 8 @ 5:00  First Baptist Church of Kansas City, 2900 Minnesota Avenue, Kansas City, KS 66102

A Grand, Heaven-like Celebration!

By Jarrett Meek, Founder, Executive Director

On Monday night the National Christian Foundation honored Mission Adelante with an award at their annual Passion Awards banquet.  Ninety people affiliated with our ministry, many of them Bhutanese and Hispanic participants who have become owners with us in our mission, celebrated together at the event what the Lord has done among us.  

As we led up to the event, I was drawn to 

1 Corinthians 12:26...

The body is ONE, 

"If one part suffers, every part suffers with it.  If one part is honored, every part rejoices with it"  

As we invited members of our community to join us receiving this honor at the event, one thought kept going through my mind: "This is OUR award. So often our community suffers together, and this week we will rejoice together!!"

Indeed we did rejoice, and as we passed around the trophy I was deeply moved by the way God was using this extravagant event to exalt humble people from many different places to the status of honored guests at the banqueting table.

I considered the cost to the ministry of having brought so many people to this event, and I remembered the story of the woman who broke her bottle of perfume and poured it over Jesus' head. When some questioned this seeming waste, Jesus said, "she has done a beautiful thing for me."

Mark 14:6

. and "Whatever you did for the least of these...you did for me."

Matthew 25:40

As we enjoyed this generous gesture of affirmation from the Christian community in Kansas City, I dreamed of what God might do in our neighborhood with this growing group of disciples and emerging leaders, and contemplated what is becoming a new motto for us: “doing with vs. doing for”.  It wasn’t hard to imagine God using this new group of “Kingdom insiders” to transform our urban community!

And then there was the coming together of our ENTIRE community; people from Bhutan, Nepal, Latino America, and North America, celebrating as ONE community and I couldn't help but think about the party we'll have in heaven together!! 

"

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language,

 standing before the throne

 and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes

 and were holding palm branches in their hands.

10 

And they cried out in a loud voice:  '

Salvation belongs to our God 

who sits on the throne, 

and to the Lamb.'”

Revelation 7:9-10

To top it off, I was blessed to have my parents and some of my very best friends there to enjoy it with me.

So, please forgive me if my joy continues to overflow for a while.  It's not really about receiving an award or a nice grant for the ministry.  It's about what God did through the whole event in the lives of people I love a lot!

In other news:

• Our Latino house churches met together for a celebration service last Sunday and person after person came forward to share testimony of how God had been working in their lives.  There’s nothing more encouraging than to see the hand of God at work in those around you!  
• Jarrett and Kristen Meek and their family are preparing for a sabbatical next year after seven years of service with Mission Adelante!  Please pray for them and for our staff as we make preparations for their absence and they make preparations for a time of learning, growth, and renewal.
• We want to give a big "thank you" to Maria Morris and her team for providing awesome shirts for all of our LIT kids!
• With the help of volunteers, two Latino teenagers are starting a purity Bible study this week for all the girls coming to Teens Adelante. They’re excited to get creative and minister to their peers.

Prayer needs

:

• The Bhutanese Teens Club volunteer team is currently studying the book “Master Plan of Evangelism” by Robert Coleman together. Please pray for us as we delve deep into discovering what discipleship is, and explore the next step for each of us as we try to obediently follow Jesus.
• Please pray for the Spirit’s leading through the two teen girls launching this new purity Bible study, as well as for all the girls that will come.
• Pray for our volunteers and students to experience meaningful relational interaction outside of class together. This is a busy time of year, but full of great opportunities to spend time together, and for our immigrant friends to learn about American culture.

Important dates:

• Saturday, November 17, 3-6:30 p.m.: Mission Adelante Staff House Parties
• Jarrett & Kristen Meek, Molly Merrick: 251 N. 15th Street
• Jason & Megan Schoff, Megan McDermott: 410 N. 15th Street
• David & Brooke Coon: 245 N. 17th Street
• David & Holly Stetler, Drew Hammond: 438 N. 17th Street
• Drew & Lauren Timberlake, Kristen Maxwell: 706 N. 17th Street
• Garett & Jenny Dunn, Hannah Hume: 335 N. 15th Street
All homes are in Kansas City, KS 66102.  RSVP is not necessary.

• Wednesday, November 21-Saturday, November 24: Fall Break Mission Adelante office closed.  No programs Tuesday, November 20-Saturday, November 24.
• Latino Christmas Party: Saturday, December 8 @ 5:00  Bethany Community Center, 1120 Central Avenue, Kansas City, KS 66102
• Bhutanese Christmas Party: Saturday, December 8 @ 5:00  First Baptist Church of Kansas City, 2900 Minnesota Avenue, Kansas City, KS 66102

2012 Passion Awards: A Special Affirmation of God's Work through Mission Adelante!

We invite you to join the Mission Adelante community in celebrating what God has done through several outstanding ministries in the city and the region!  As a worker in urban ministry it can sometimes seem like there are more disappointments than victories, and one of the most important lessons I've learned over the years is that success in ministry should be measured primarily by faithfulness.  Urban and cross-cultural ministry teaches this lesson the hard way sometimes. Yet there are special moments when beautiful fruit is revealed, a life is changed, or a word of affirmation is passed along.  These are special gifts from God that remind us of His grace and the pleasure He takes in calling us His children.  For the Mission Adelante community, God has recently passed along one of these special words of affirmation through the National Christian Foundation.  We have been selected from among many ministries to receive an award for ministry excellence at their annual Passion Awards ceremony on Monday, November 12!

If you've never attended the Passion Awards, I would highly recommend it!  It is an inspiring event that highlights God's work through several outstanding ministries in the city and the region.  If you would like to join the Mission Adelante community in celebrating what God has done in our ministry and others, we would love to invite you to attend this exciting event that will be held in the Kansas City Convention Center!  

Register now to reserve your spot at the 2012 Passion Awards!

                                                                     --Jarrett Meek, Executive Director

In other news:

• The Bhutanese Level 4 English class is doing a unit on government and the coming election.  Teacher Jenny Dunn was astounded when one of our students knew the names of the mayor, the governor, the president and the vice president!
• Our Latino LIT kids will soon begin a monthly service project at a local nursing home.  As we work to raise up the next generation of young leaders in our community, our goals are that our students would form friendships with the residents and that our kids would see that their servant hearts can make a big impact!

Prayer needs:

• Please pray for a family in our community in which the parents are separating as a result of marital strife.  Please pray for peace, discernment, and wisdom in the choices that are being made.

Other needs:

• Kids Club, our Bhutanese kids' outreach, is growing in number and growing up.  Many of our kids have outgrown the games in our game cabinet.  We are in need of board games suitable for 4th-6th graders!  Some ideas include Blokus, Battleship, Simon, Perfection, and Jenga.  Please contact Kristen at kristenm@missionadelante.org.
• The Bhutanese and Latino LIT program needs a small group (or groups) to purchase pre-packaged, healthy, after-school snacks for the kids.  We would be blessed to receive a couple months worth of snacks.  Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Colder weather is coming and we need help keeping families in our community warm. The Resource Center is in need of hats, gloves, and scarves. Please contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org to set up a time to drop-off your donation.  Please help us out by not leaving donations inside or outside our facility.  Thanks!

Important dates:

• Saturday, November 17, 3-6:30 p.m.: Mission Adelante Staff House Parties
• Jarrett & Kristen Meek, Molly Merrick: 251 N. 15th Street
• Jason & Megan Schoff, Megan McDermott: 410 N. 15th Street
• David & Brooke Coon: 245 N. 17th Street
• David & Holly Stetler, Drew Hammond: 438 N. 17th Street
• Drew & Lauren Timberlake, Kristen Maxwell: 706 N. 17th Street
• Garett & Jenny Dunn, Hannah Hume: 335 N. 15th Street
All homes are in Kansas City, KS 66102.  RSVP is not necessary.

• Wednesday, November 21-Saturday, November 24: Fall Break Mission Adelante office closed.  No programs Tuesday, November 20-Saturday, November 24.

A Soccer Ball and an Emerging Leader

Written by Michael Pollock, Teens Adelante volunteer

At the end of September, the Mission Adelante staff, a few volunteers including me, and five neighborhood teens traveled to Minneapolis for the annual CCDA (Christian Community Development Association) National Conference.  There was a lot of great teaching and training in the plenary sessions, workshops, and luncheons.  However, it began to feel like an information overload, so we enjoyed the scheduled (and a few unscheduled) breaks from time to time.  

During a break, Johnny (one of the teens) and I went out to explore downtown Minneapolis.  

Johnny was in search of some postcards featuring Minneapolis to show his family and friends where he had been. I was bent of buying a soccer ball, because,

in an unprecedented lapse of judgement, none of the teens had brought one on the trip!

After we found the items we were looking for, we were faced with a challenge: where, in a dense downtown urban area, do you find a large enough space

to kick around a soccer ball?  The nearest field that I saw on Google maps was a good 25 minute walk away, but just then Johnny suggested playing in an alley less than a block from our hotel.  So there in the middle of a big city, on a beautiful day, during an intense conference, Johnny and I kicked the ball off the walls of the buildings lining a dirty alley.  Normally scuffing up a brand new ball on brick walls and splashing it in dirty puddles isn’t ideal, but in this case it was perfect.

The time we spent together not only helped me improve my ball handling skills, but Johnny and I deepened our friendship.  In one of the workshops that I attended at CCDA, I learned that this type of relationship is the kind that can lead to the emergence of leaders from our neighborhood (one of Mission Adelante's core values.)  Another stage in the development of leaders, according to the workshop, is “turning spiritual corners” (see, I did learn something!)  Johnny had shown interest since he started coming to Teens Adelante, and we've detected ongoing spiritual growth in him, but since CCDA I have noticed a heightened desire in him to deepen his relationship with Christ particularly through the Word.  Just last week at Teens Adelante, he expressed a desire for a devotional that would help him get into the Word more!

I feel so blessed to know Johnny and the rest of the 

Teens Adelante

teens, and God has been showing me more and more what it means to share my life with them.  One of the first speakers at the CCDA conference emphasized how our stories are the method by which we enlarge the kingdom of God, and by God’s providence the first day I was back from the conference I read a verse that confirmed that:

“And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by

the word of their testimony

, for they loved not their lives even unto death.” Rev. 12:11 [ESV] (emphasis added).

In other news:

• Girls from Teens Adelante have started a Bible study on Thursdays and prayed last week that teens will come “because they want to know Jesus, not because someone is making them.”
• The Bhutanese and Latino Leaders in Training took an enrichment trip to Deanna Rose yesterday. As they're getting to know one another and learning more about one another's cultures their friendships are growing. The Bhutanese kids were especially excited to see the goats, an animal that is commonplace in Nepal, but that they haven't seen since moving to the U.S.

Prayer needs:

• Halloween night falls on Wednesday next week--Teens Adelante night. Please pray for wisdom, discernment, faith, and that the Lord’s will be done that night at the home of the Coons!

Current needs:

• We are in need of cold-weather clothing for the whole family to stock our resource center.  The resource center is also low on household items such as pots and pans, dishes and cups, small and large appliances, etcetera.  Please contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org  to set up a time to drop-off your donation.  Please help us out by not leaving donations inside or outside our facility.  Thanks!
• Bibles for Teens Adelante youth. Please contact Brooke at brookec@missionadelante.org for more details if you would like to contribute.
• Kids Club, our Bhutanese kids' outreach, is growing in number and growing up.  Many of our kids have outgrown the games in our game cabinet.  We are in need of board games suitable for 4th-6th graders!  Some ideas include Blokus, Battleship, Simon, Perfection, and Jenga. Please contact Kristen at kristenm@missionadelante.org.

Important dates:

• Saturday, November 17, 3-6:30 p.m.: Mission Adelante Staff House Parties
• Jarrett & Kristen Meek, Molly Merrick: 251 N. 15th Street
• Jason & Megan Schoff, Megan McDermott: 410 N. 15th Street
• David & Brooke Coon: 245 N. 17th Street
• David & Holly Stetler, Drew Hammond: 438 N. 17th Street
• Drew & Lauren Timberlake, Kristen Maxwell: 706 N. 17th Street
• Garett & Jenny Dunn, Hannah Hume: 335 N. 15th Street
All homes are in Kansas City, KS 66102.  RSVP is not necessary.

• Wednesday, November 21-Saturday, November 24: Fall Break Mission Adelante office closed.  No programs Tuesday, November 20-Saturday, November 24.

One God, Many Cultures

Written by Hannah Hume, Bhutanese Outreach Intern

I was visiting one of my Bhutanese friends last week when she asked me to teach her how to pray to Jesus. So we talked a little bit about what prayer is, and then I encouraged her to try it for herself. She was nervous to try praying in English, so I urged her to pray in Nepali. Shocked, she looked at me and asked “Jesus knows Nepali?”  

It’s fun to imagine heaven and the multitude of cultures from all around the Earth that will partake in extravagantly worshiping our Lord.  Revelation 5:9 declares of Jesus, “

You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation.”  Will we be seated in pews, or on rugs on the floor?  Will we understand the speech in each language we hear?  Will there be electric guitars and drums, or violins, or an organ? Maybe all of the above!

To see the way that other cultures worship can sometimes seem odd or even make us uncomfortable. A few weeks ago, most of the Mission Adelante staff and a number of volunteers attended the Christian Community Development Association Annual Conference. While there, we were blessed to worship Jesus with some Native American brothers and sisters who have a worship style that's very different than we've ever experienced. They wore brightly colored traditional clothing, danced, beat drums and chanted. After the dancing was done, one of the dancers explained that with every step of the dance prayers were being offered to God for the Native American people to come to know Jesus. This seemed odd to me. However, 

this is the most natural way

for the Native American people to pray to and connect with God.

Mission Adelante loves to see people worship the one true God within their own culture, in a way that makes sense to them. We constantly consider how to share the Gospel and and how to show what it means to follow Jesus within the context of their lives and norms--becoming a Christian doesn't require one to become an American first. We're learning as we go--it's for this reason that we continue to made changes to our programs. For example, the Bhutanese Teens used to sing English worship songs while seated in chairs arranged in rows. However, now when we congregate each Tuesday evening, we gather around in a circle, seated on Nepali rugs, and sing “Yeshu Bhajans” or "Jesus songs" in the Nepali language. It's an atmosphere that's just more naturally conducive for Bhutanese people to worship.

Won’t it be a beautiful sight to behold when every tribe, nation and tongue worships Jesus together in heaven? Imagine all the colors, the motion, and the noise! It's going to be beyond our imaginations, and its going to represent the vast creativity and beauty of God. Until then, we want to paint a picture of that heavenly kingdom on Earth each time we tell Bhutanese, Latino, and American girls and boys that “God created you just the way you are, and he wants you to worship Him just the way you are”.

In other news:

• Two Bhutanese ESL classes are taking field trips to local pharmacies. These field trips strengthen the relationships between students and their American conversation partners, and can really help students take better care of their families health needs.

Prayer needs:

• Many of our new volunteers are visiting the homes of the students that they work with for the first time. Pray for God’s presence, wisdom, and love to be poured out during these friendly visits.

Current needs:

• The weather has changed! We are in need of cold-weather clothing for the whole family to stock our resource center.  The resource center is also low on household items such as pots and pans, dishes and cups, small and large appliances, etcetera.  Please contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org to set up a time to drop-off your donation.  Please help us out by not leaving donations inside or outside our facility.  Thanks!
• The kids in our Kids Club are growing up and we need some board games to entertain older kids on Tuesday nights.  Contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org for more information, or if you have some games to donate.

Important dates:

• Tuesday, October 23/Thursdays, October 18 & 25:Ever wondered what goes on here on a typical evening of programming?  Come on up on a observation night and find out!  Tuesday evenings are Bhutanese outreach, Thursday evenings are Latino outreach.  Come to 22 S. 18th Street, Kansas City, KS 66102 between 6:30 and 8:30.

• Saturday, November 17, 3-6:30 p.m.: Mission Adelante Staff House Parties
• Jarrett & Kristen Meek, Molly Merrick: 251 N. 15th Street
• Jason & Megan Schoff, Megan McDermott: 410 N. 15th Street
• David & Brooke Coon: 245 N. 17th Street
• David & Holly Stetler, Drew Hammond: 438 N. 17th Street
• Drew & Lauren Timberlake, Kristen Maxwell: 706 N. 17th Street
• Garett & Jenny Dunn, Hannah Hume: 335 N. 15th Street
All homes are in Kansas City, KS 66102.  RSVP is not necessary.

Future Leaders

The Leaders In Training Boys

At Leaders in Training (LIT) every child has different skills to develop, abilities to grow and dreams to awaken.  Each day is filled with a combination of creative enrichment, academic learning and the development of social skills, preparing them for a future of hope and towards dreams bigger than what they thought they could become.

"The community is very excited about this new program and the potential that it brings the young people. We hope to see more kids learning the right things through the LIT program."  says Ran Poudel (LIT father and community leader).

Kumar Pokrel (LIT father and community leader) says, "I'm very excited about this program and my child is learning a lot.   He is becoming more cooperative and responsible and he is growing in character and learning to respect others more and more."

We believe that LIT is an incredibly significant investment and that the lives of these kids have so much capacity for positive influence with their peers.  We are so excited to see these kids grow, excel and realize their full potential to impact their community, neighborhood and someday the world!

I cannot wait to watch this happen!

Future Leaders!    "I am waiting for that day" - mother of LIT student

Bhutanese and Latino LIT students at Union Station

In other news:

• The Bhutanese and Latino LIT (Leaders in Training) programs took their first joint field trip yesterday to Science City and Zonkers! Having earned the field trip as a reward for their hard work and demonstration of leadership, the students really enjoyed themselves!
• Bhutanese Teens Club is going very well after changing its format at the beginning of this trimester. Our time together now includes a contextualized worship time in Nepali, thanks to our new music volunteer Janga Chhetri, that the students love!
• We celebrated our ministry to Cuba as a congregation this past Sunday at our Latino church service.  Yanelis, the leader of the Raices discipling ministry in Cuba, is in Kansas City for a few weeks. She shared testimony of how God is at work there. It gave us a wonderful opportunity to praise him together, and for our community to see their prayers at work.
• Teens Adelante has formed a Teen Leadership Team of 5 Latino teenagers committed to growing in their leadership and their love for their peers. We’re excited to see the teens begin to shape the direction of youth ministry in KCK.

Prayer needs:

• Please pray for the new Teens Adelante Leadership Team and their spiritual growth and vision for their peers.
• Please pray for a pre-adolescent boy in our community who is falling into destructive behaviors and patterns.  Ask the Lord to supply wisdom and patience to his family.
• Pray daily for meetings, meals, and celebrations taking place among our Latino community that represent discipleship.  Ask God to give teachable moment this very day to us and our disciples.  

Current needs:

• We know you have them!!  Used I-Pods and Cell phones by October 18 for the RAICES ministry in Cuba!  Please contact Jarrett Meek at jarrettm@missionadelante.org
• The weather has changed! We are in need of cold-weather clothing for the whole family to stock our resource center. The resource center is also low on household items such as pots and pans, dishes and cups, small and large appliances, etcetera. Please contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org to set up a time to drop-off your donation. Please help us out by not leaving donations inside or outside our facility. Thanks!

Important dates:

• Tuesdays, October 16 & 23/Thursdays, October 18 & 25:Ever wondered what goes on here on a typical evening of programming?  Come on up on a observation night and find out!  Tuesday evenings are Bhutanese outreach, Thursday evenings are Latino outreach.  Come to 22 S. 18th Street, Kansas City, KS 66102 between 6:30 and 8:30.

• Saturday, November 17, 3-6:30 p.m.: Mission Adelante Staff House Parties
• Jarrett & Kristen Meek, Molly Merrick: 251 N. 15th Street
• Jason & Megan Schoff, Megan McDermott: 410 N. 15th Street
• David & Brooke Coon: 245 N. 17th Street
• David & Holly Stetler, Drew Hammond: 438 N. 17th Street
• Drew & Lauren Timberlake, Kristen Maxwell: 706 N. 17th Street
• Garett & Jenny Dunn, Hannah Hume: 335 N. 15th Street
All homes are in Kansas City, KS 66102.  RSVP is not necessary.

Oversized Postcards by Vistaprint

Upside Down Kingdom

Written by Lauren Timberlake, Bhutanese ESL Director

Mon Maya Rai prayed a lot for my healing

 this summer and has blessed me so much.

God’s kingdom is truly upside down. Last year, our family spent lots of time, energy and money to move to the Mission Adelante neighborhood and serve Bhutanese refugees. We finally settled down in March, and I was looking forward to diving into relationships with our neighbors. As I prayed about where to start and how best to serve, a mentor encouraged me to wait at God’s doorstep (Proverbs 8:34-35). Positioning myself near to His heart would ultimately be the best way to serve others.

So I did. And I was led to take small steps. 

A few neighbor kids started spending time with us after school, and we made plans for summer fun with them. I was excited to take them swimming and to the park, and to go on walks with some of my ESL students. Summer was going to be a season of diving deeper into life here, and I was ready.

The first weekend after school got out, I broke my foot (just walking barefoot in my house!). I knew it would slow me down, but I prayed God would heal me quickly, so I could still take the kids swimming and such. A few days later at a routine eye exam, my doctor discovered that my retina was detached. I would need emergency surgery--the kind that comes with a significant recovery period.

I was down for the count. And really frustrated. How was I going to take care of my three kids--let alone serve others--if I couldn’t walk, drive or even see straight? But God still had plans for my summer. I was surprised by all the ways I saw His concern for me through those I thought I was supposed to be taking care of.

My missional family (those of us living in the neighborhood to serve the Bhutanese), co-workers, volunteers and even my ESL students blessed me again and again. They brought meals, prayed for me and with me, walked my baby girl, and sat with me while I was homebound. Our Bhutanese house-church members and several ESL students prayed for my healing. Even now, they commonly ask me how my eye is doing. Their concern was real, and God listened to their prayers. It's been about a month since my foot finished healing, and my eye is doing better than anyone expected--I am so grateful.

How humbling. And how beautiful. We come to God ready to give what we think we have, and then he turns it around and lets us receive His love and grace afresh. His kingdom doesn’t work the way we think it should--it’s so much better than that. The relationships that form from serving at Mission Adelante really do result in sharing life with each other and growing His kingdom--

His way

, not ours. And positioning ourselves at His doorstep is always a good way to begin.

In other news:

• The majority of Mission Adelante staff and a number of staff spouses, members of the missional family, and neighborhood teens attended the Christian Community Development Association's Annual Conference in Minneapolis last week. It was four days jam-packed with encouragement and equipping to do justice and love mercy, along with exhortation to never forget that walking humbly with our God is that which enables us to do the work that we do.
• We're so very pleased that Yanelis, the leader of the Raices discipling ministry in Cuba, has arrived in Kansas City for about three weeks of getting to know the "family" and training. It is a long-awaited visit, involving mountains of paperwork, and we're enormously thankful that the Lord brought her in His timing.

Prayer needs:

• Please pray for each member of our staff to persist in the habit of quieting ourselves before God on a regular basis to receive life from Him.
• Pray for the Lord's hand to be over Yanelis during her visit, that she would learn and be encouraged and equipped in every way that He has for her.

Important dates:

• Tuesday, October 9 & Thursday, October 11: Bring-A-Friend Nights Volunteers, who do you know that might be interested in getting a first-hand look at what it's like to volunteer at Mission Adelante?  Next Tuesday and Thursday evenings are the perfect opportunity for you to invite someone to come along, meet your immigrant friends and Mission Adelante staff, and get the flavor of the way we serve to demonstrate the love of Christ.
• Saturday, November 17, 3-6:30 p.m.: Mission Adelante Staff House Parties

Oversized Postcards

by

Vistaprint

• Jarrett & Kristen Meek, Molly Merrick: 251 N. 15th Street
• Jason & Megan Schoff, Megan McDermott: 410 N. 15th Street
• David & Brooke Coon: 245 N. 17th Street
• David & Holly Stetler, Drew Hammond: 438 N. 17th Street
• Drew & Lauren Timberlake, Kristen Maxwell: 706 N. 17th Street
• Garett & Jenny Dunn, Hannah Hume: 335 N. 15th Street

All homes are in Kansas City, KS 66102.  RSVP not necessary.

Get a Taste of Adelante on Saturday, November 17th!!

The Difference a Dude Can Make

Written by Kristen Maxwell, Bhutanese Children's Ministry Director

I was recently visiting some of our neighborhood KCK elementary schools, meeting teachers in preparation for the launch of the Bhutanese Leader in Training program.  As I talked with one of the teachers, we got on the topic of an LIT kid who had been in her class a few years earlier.  She talked about what an amazing transformation she had seen in the life of this boy since then. 

For the purpose of this story we will call this young man John.  John was new to the country.  His family was in crisis mode, trying to figure out which way was up.  His father was working all the time, leaving his mother to take care of him and his four siblings.  John started to make friends in the apartment complex where he lived.  These friends were considerably older than him and had visible ties to gang activity.  We were worried about John.

John’s attitude at school, home and Kids Club became increasingly negative.  He wanted to be like his older friends, his friends that were in the gang.  Around this time Drew Hammond and Tyler McCommons became the mentors for John’s Kids Club group which included 4th to 6th grade boys.  Drew and Tyler started investing in John.  They started spending time with him outside of Kids Club, hanging out at his house, and taking him places; becoming like big brothers to John and a few of his other Bhutanese friends.

John began to walk with new confidence, a confidence found in the knowledge that Tyler and Drew believed in him and expected great things from him.  Hanging out with his old “friends” didn’t seem so cool anymore.  I am certain that the Lord used Tyler and Drew to change the direction of John’s life.  John is now a bright spot in our Tuesday night program, focused on becoming a leader in our LIT program, and helping the younger Kids Club kids.  

There are countless young men in our community that could benefit from a relationship like the one Drew and Tyler have with John.  If you are a male, would you consider being a mentor to some of our boys?  Would you consider doing life with them, showing them how to walk in the way of Jesus, and how to be a man of God?  A couple of hours a week could make a world of difference in the life of a young man.  If you would like more information about getting involved please contact Megan McDermott (meganm@missionadelante.org) or Kristen Maxwell (kristenm@missionadelante.org).

In other news:

• A few Latino teens from our community that are interested in pursuing college attended their first "Latinos of Tomorrow" meeting. The mission of Latinos of Tomorrow is to provide leadership learning opportunities in education advancement, career development and civic involvement.  We look forward to encouraging our teens to learn the skills they need to apply for college admission.
• A big "Thank You" to Cathy Claudell, Bhutanese Nursery volunteer, for outfitting our nursery with fun and engaging toys!  The nursery is used on Tuesday nights by the children and grandchildren of many of our English class participants who would not be able to attend if it were not available.

Prayer needs:

• Our Bhutanese Leaders in Training will finish their first full week today!  Praise God with us for a full, successful, and fun first week!
• Thank God with us for our faithful transportation volunteers. They serve our community in such an important way. The Bhutanese ESL, kids and teens programs wouldn’t happen without them!

Other needs:

• Team Kid Character Challenge: Lifeway: Leader Guide and Enhanced CD for grades 1-6: http://www.lifeway.com/Product/teamkid-character-challenge-leader-guide-enhanced-cd-P005124727  Please contact Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org or 816-210-2187 if you can provide this curriculum.
  • Team Kid Character Challenge: Activity Book for 4-6 grade: 15 copies
  http://www.lifeway.com/Product/teamkid-character-challenge-activity-book-for-grades-4-6-P005124729  Please contact Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org or 816-210-2187 if you can provide some of these activity books.
• Small groups to sponsor a reward activity/enrichment fields trips for 15 kids and adults ($9 per kid for Zonkers and $6 per kid for Science City.) Please contact Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org or 816-210-2187 if you're interested.
• Two male mentors for the Bhutanese Leaders in Training Program on Wednesday Afternoons.  Contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org for more information.
• A card table and 4 folding chairs to be used by our Bhutanese Leaders in Training Program.  Please contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org if you can provide this.

Important dates:

• Staff Open Houses--Saturday, November 17, 3:00 to 6:30 p.m. Come to our neighborhood and spend the afternoon with us!

Partnership for the Benefit of our Kids

Written by Megan McDermott, Latino Children's Ministry Director

Do you remember being asked as a child what you wanted to be when you grew up?  I remember that for me, that question had any number of answers, depending on the day.  Many of us had been told, "You can be anything you want to be!"

We can't assume the same for the kids we serve here in urban Kansas City, Kansas.  They may not approach the question of what they want to be and do with the same invincible sense of possibility that we did.  Many are exposed at a very young age to gangs, peer pressure, abuse, temptation to compromise their purity, and simply trying to fit in among the variety of cultures represented here.  Having become acquainted with many harsh realities of life at such a young age can rob them of their innocent enthusiasm to dream big, or to dream at all.

As we purpose to pour into the young leaders in our community by coming alongside them as they grow in their academic and character strengths, we recognize the absolute importance of the role the local public schools play. We have been working very hard these past four years to establish strong connections with the faculty at our neighborhood schools. We currently have active partnerships with ten different schools.  Kristen Maxwell (Bhutanese Children's Ministry Director) and I 

have been warmly accepted into many of these schools to share about Mission Adelante, the cultural concerns our kids face, and how we can better come alongside the teachers and administrators that fight so hard for the kids we love.

 Two weeks ago,

 Kristen and I

were given a few minutes to share with the Central Middle School faculty the beautiful things that the Lord is doing in some of their students' lives through LIT. 

As we look toward the future, I am excited to see our relationships with public school administrators and faculty grow stronger and deeper. We truly believe that the kids that we serve are the future leaders of our community.  Investing deeply in them now will produce the fruit of future Christian leaders that not only love the Lord but desire to see others come to love Him as well.

In other news:

• We had a great turnout and a great time at our Volunteer Orientation on Saturday morning.  We're so grateful for the Lord's provision of volunteers trimester after trimester.
• The leaders of the Kansas City Bhutanese community gathered together over the weekend to dream about what it would look like to work together on future projects.
• The Latino LIT (Leaders in Training) program launched this school year's program last week, and today is the very first day of Bhutanese LIT! Both groups are excited to begin growing together as a family, as they will by spending three afternoons a week together!
• A BIG thank you to Jarion Srack and her small group from Mill Creek Community Church for providing three months of snacks for Leaders in Training kids!
• If you'll be worshiping at Redeemer Fellowship this Sunday morning, stop by Mission Adelante's table at the LoveKC Fair and say hi!  LoveKC is a website launched by Redeemer Fellowship earlier this year to connect people and organizations to improve our city.

Prayer needs:

• We are engaging with ESL students to help them take on more leadership roles this trimester. Please pray for clear communication and good participation from our immigrant friends!
• Bhutanese Kids Club is taking on a whole new format and a new curriculum!  Please pray for a smooth transition for our mentors and kids.
• Pray for the Lord's guidance as all of our outreach programs get up and running this week for our Fall Trimester. Pray that He receives the glory in everything that we do!

Current needs:

• A folding card table and 4 folding chairs for use by the Bhutanese Leaders in Training.  Contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.orgif you can provide one.
• Inexpensive floor lamps and extension cords to for Bhutanese Teens Club.  Contact Hannah Hume at hannahh@missionadelante.org for additional information.
• Three volunteers to serve at Kids Adelante each Thursday evening through December 6.  Please contact Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org for more information.
• Volunteers for Tuesday or Wednesday afternoons/early evening to mentor our Latino Leaders in Training kids.  Please contact Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org for more information.
• Thirty custom-printed t-shirts for our Leaders in Training to wear on field trips.  With an increased focus on enrichment this year we will be spending many afternoons out in the community!  Matching t-shirts will encourage a sense of unity, and will help us easily identify our kids in public places. Please contact Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org or Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org if you or someone you know would like to provide these shirts!

Important dates:

• Fall trimester launch: Latino Programs--Tonight! September 13, 6:30 p.m.

Check Out Our New Video!!

Mission Adelante Video 2012

from

Mission Adelante

on

Vimeo

.

Eleven Bhutanese Students Join the Ranks of Leaders In Training!

Written by Kristen Maxwell, Bhutanese Children's Ministry Director

About a year ago I had the privilege of walking two of our Nepali sixth grade girls--refugees whose families had resettled in Kansas City--through the application process for an afternoon scholarship program.  Part of the application involved a placement test which had three portions to it:  reading, math and writing.  When I picked the girls up from the placement test,  I asked them how it went.  With a panicked expression they asked me, “Kristen, what is a spaceship?”  The writing assessment prompt that they were asked to respond to involved a spaceship, and they didn’t know what that was.  Two of our brightest girls who spoke very good English had no clue what a spaceship was.  

This fall, we are setting out with the goal of teaching everyone what a spaceship is.  Well, not really, but we are hoping that through partnership with students, families, community members and volunteers we will be able to expose a select group of students to enrichment activities and experiences that will set them up for success!  Who are these kids?  They are the 11 new Bhutanese Leaders in Training students!  

We are thrilled to be launching this new branch of Mission Adelante’s Leaders in Training program to our Bhutanese students.  This fall marks the fifth year of the Latino Leaders in Training and the first for the Bhutanese.  We are excited about dreaming of the future the Lord holds for these kids, and what it will hold as they become leaders, changing their lives, families and communities!

If you are interested in investing in our Leaders in Training we are currently in need of volunteer tutors for both the Latino and Bhutanese ministries, which take place Monday through Thursday afternoons in the 3:00 to 7:00 time frame.  We also have a list of current material needs.   For information on the Latino LIT Program, contact Megan McDermott at Meganm@missionadelante.org.  For more information on the Bhutanese LIT Program, contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org.

In other news:

• The Latino Leaders in Training Program had a Volunteer Training and Ice Cream Social on Tuesday evening to gear up for this school-year.  All 13 of the children invited were present with their parents! We are excited to kick off the program next week. 

Prayer needs:

• Please pray for our volunteers and students as they make commitments for the fall trimester. We are thankful that the Lord is so faithful, leading some to serve and others to rest. May his purposes be accomplished by the teams he puts together this fall!

Current needs:

• Six volunteers to serve in Bhutanese Kids Club on Tuesday evenings from September 11 through December 4. Please contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org.
• A folding card table and 4 folding chairs for use by the Bhutanese Leaders in Training.  Contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org if you can provide one.
• Sixteen-ounce packages of pasta, pinto beans, and bottles of oil, which we include in food staple bags that are distributed through our Resource Center. Please contact Molly at mollym@missonadelante.org if you can provide any.
• Christ-following men and women to volunteer as mentors in Leaders In Training, our after-school tutoring program. Four females and seven males are still needed. Contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org or Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org to find out more!
• Materials for this year's Leaders In Training programs:
• 4 wireless capable laptops (Used is great as long as they are wiped clean)
• Snacks for a month at a time (purchased in bulk for 25 kids, three days a week)
• Matching tee shirts to wear on field trips/service projects for 35 adults and kids
• Team Kid Character Challenge: Lifeway: Leader Guide and Enhanced CD for grades 1-6:

http://www.lifeway.com/Product/teamkid-character-challenge-leader-guide-enhanced-cd-P005124727

• 13 Team Kid Character Challenge: Activity Book for 4-6 grade: 15 copies

http://www.lifeway.com/Product/teamkid-character-challenge-activity-book-for-grades-4-6-P005124729

http://www.officemax.com/office-supplies/labels-labelmakers/name-badges-accessories/name-badge-accessories/product-prod3800466

• Stickers/construction paper for cards/activities/thank you notes
• Walmart gift cards for science experiment supplies
• Small groups to sponsor small reward activities/enrichment fields trips for 25 kids ($7 -$10 per kid)

Important dates:

• Volunteer Orientation & Training--Saturday, September 8 @ 9:00 a.m.  All volunteers should attend this training once at the beginning of serving with Mission Adelante.  It's also a great way for someone to become familiar with Mission Adelante.  If you or someone you know is interested in finding out more about what we do, and about our volunteer opportunities, please plan to attend/encourage him or her to attend this informative training.
• All Volunteer Huddle & Dessert--Monday, September 10 @ 6:30 p.m.  We encourage everyone that will be volunteering with us during our fall trimester to attend so we can prepare for a great launch.
• Fall trimester program launches--Week of September 10