Building Interdependent Relationships

by Jarrett Meek

"What would make cross-cultural missionaries more effective at ministering the gospel of Christ?"  That's the question author and long-time missionary Duane Elmer asked believers from many different countries before writing his book,

Cross-Cultural Servanthood

.  The answer, which was repeated over and over again in different forms and sometimes in these exact words, might surprise you:

"Missionaries could more effectively minister the gospel of Christ if they did not think they were so superior to us."  

As I have processed through this book with the staff of Mission Adelante, obvious questions have arisen.

 "What is it that causes people from other cultures to perceive our efforts at serving in this way?"  "Do we indeed have an underlying or unconscious attitude of superiority that comes across when we relate with others?"  "How can we reflect the humility of Christ when we serve and share life?"  Elmer's book is one of the best I've read at addressing these questions.

At Mission Adelante we are becoming a new community, a multicultural community, a community where immigrants and others thrive and use our gifts together to transform our neighborhood.  In the process we are all learning a lot and God is causing us all to grow!

"Relationships" have always been a core value of our ministry.  We believe that ministry is a relational endeavor... not programs, not services, but relationships!  They are the context for making disciples, for loving our neighbor, for equipping leaders, for serving, for sharing Jesus.  Relationships rule!  But, it's not just any kind of relationship we're talking about.  When ministry is done in a relational way, many wrongs are made right, and we see much greater effectiveness.  But, it's also possible to form relationships in a way that's not helpful.  So the kind of relationships we're especially talking about are "interdependent relationships."  That's how it's written in our values document.

"We believe that ministry is relational at its core.  And when relationships are interdependent, learning is mutual, serving is reciprocal, and friendships are life-giving." 

Interdependence means both parties give and receive.  Interdependence means that I learn as much from the other person as he learns from me.  Interdependence means that we need each other.  The times when I've experienced relationships like this, God has moved powerfully in my life, in my friends' lives, and through our ministry together.

As the Mission Adelante community presses into what it looks like to build interdependent relationships and minister the gospel of Christ effectively in a multicultural context, we are aware that if the things that seem like strengths in our own respective cultures make it difficult to relate to others humbly, those very strengths can become our biggest weaknesses in ministry.  The Lord said to the apostle Paul, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness".

2 Corinthians 12:9a

Prayer needs

• Praise God for a recent opportunity Jason Schoff had to engage pastors and church leaders as part of a four person immigration panel at the Sentralized conference.  Pray for all our pastors who are stepping out to call for new immigration policy.

Current needs

• We need books!!! Do you have some at home that you might be willing to part with, or do you frequent yard sales or thrift stores? We are in need of easy to read, high interest books to add to our LIT library! Contact Kristen or Megan for more information: Kristenm@missionadelante.org or Meganm@missionadelante.org.
• We are in need of volunteers to join the Bhutanese Transportation Team! No CDL drivers license required! The greatest need is for drivers on Tuesday evenings. if you or someone you know is interested, please contact Drew Hammond at drew@missionadelante.org.

Building Community at Christian Community Development Association Conference

Written by Drew Hammond, Bhutanese Ministry Intern

Two weeks ago, a team of 12 from Mission Adelante traveled to New Orleans to attend the 2013 Christian Community Development Association (CCDA) National Conference. There were 5 staff members, 2 members from our Bhutanese community, 2 from our Latino community, and 3 volunteers. The trip was an incredible time for us to build friendships, worship together, and come together to collaborate on how we can transform  Kansas City, Kansas together.

Ram Rai is a friend of mine who traveled to the CCDA conference with us. Ram is a Bhutanese refugee who has resettled in Kansas City and now owns RG Asian Store, a neighborhood grocery store that caters to the needs of Asians.  The following is an interview with about his experience at the conference.

Question: What was your favorite New Orleans experience?

Answer: The city of New Orleans itself was very interesting to me, I had never been there before so experiencing that culture was really great. Also, the French Quarter reminded me of cities in Nepal, we even met some people from Nepal which made me feel very welcome in New Orleans.

Question: What is best thing you learned from CCDA Conference?

Answer: The best thing I learned from the CCDA Conference was being on mission together. Specifically to incarnate the love of Jesus so our neighbors can come to follow Him with us.

Question: What was the most meaningful part of the trip to CCDA?

Answer: Being a brother in a large community of Jesus followers. Also, learning how to encourage and train children and students in the ways of Jesus.

Question: Is there anything from the conference that you are excited to implement in Kansas City, KS?

Answer: I received a lot of knowledge and training on how to give a workshop about the negative effects of drugs, alcohol, and negative thinking. As a matter of fact, I am planning a workshop right now.

Question: Do you have any prayer requests for our readers?

Answer: My biggest prayer request after CCDA is that I will continue to be encouraged and blessed as I reach out to my neighbors.

In other news:

• The Latino Leaders in Training (LIT) program launched last Wednesday with 14 kids! We are excited to begin growing together as a family in our pursuit of Christ!
• All of the volunteers who will be serving in our programs this fall met together at Mission Adelante on Monday night for fellowship and to plan for the trimester. One of the highlights of the evening was the level of ownership our community took is sponsoring the night. There was a multicultural worship band, and desserts were provided by lots of our community members. It was great to welcome our volunteers together as a community.
• The Bhutanese Outreach had a great fall trimester launch on Tuesday. We're eager for the fall launch of the Latino Outreach tomorrow. We are excited for a new season with new friends at Mission Adelante.

Current needs:

• A refrigerator. Please contact Jason at jasons@missionadelante.org if you have one to give.

Loving People from All Places

by Jarrett Meek, Founder, Pastor/Executive Director

Anyone who's spent much time in a foreign country understands how challenging it can be to navigate the  language, culture, systems and relationships in a place that's not your home.  That was certainly our experience when we were in Costa Rica for language school in 2002 and 2003.  But, out of nowhere, we were surprised by the friendship of a Costa Rican family who took us under their wing and walked with us in the ups and downs of adjusting to a new culture and context.  This experience became foundational for us in understanding how God wants us to embrace and befriend people from other places.

Members of Mission Adelante celebrate together at the

National Christian Foundation's Passion Awards

For Israel, the experience of living as foreigners in Egypt marked their identity as a people.  The Egyptian experience was a mixture of blessings and sorrows for God's people. Joseph's slavery, imprisonment and rise to power as Pharaoh's right-hand man is one of the most amazing immigrant success stories in history.  The escape from famine and the subsequent slavery of the Israelites in Egypt gave God's chosen nation a unique lens through which to view God's call to love the foreigners who would one day live in their midst.

"When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong.  You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God."  Leviticus 19:33-34

One phrase from these verses jumps off the page as familiar and powerful; "You shall love him as yourself".  This is one of the only places where this "Great Commandment", "love your neighbor as yourself", is applied so directly to a specific group of people.   And if you recall, when Jesus was asked, "who's my neighbor?", he told the story of the Good Samaritan, making the foreigner and outsider to the Jews the hero of the story, the neighbor, and the intended recipient of loving actions by God's people.  Jesus emphasizes that the commandment to love God and neighbor is at the very heart of all His commands.  This mandate finds a special expression in the way we show hospitality, compassion, and friendship to people from other places.

Whether you're from

Bhutan, 

Burma, 

Cuba,

Guatemala,

Honduras, 

Mexico, Nepal, the United States, or any other place, Mission Adelante takes seriously this Great Commandment to love our neighbor as ourselves.  This love for neighbor is practical.  It invites, 

befriends,

listens, learns,

embraces,

 shares, serves, celebrates, and grieves.  It creates a new community and redefines the "we".  It makes outsiders insiders and tells heroic stories about Samaritans.  Though we still have a long way to go, our heart's desire is that the phrase, "Loving people from all places" would be what most defines the Mission Adelante community.

In other news:

• Staff and immigrant leaders returned on Sunday energized by the Christian Community Development Association conference where our immigrant leaders had already begun dreaming of new ways to impact our community.
• We have two new additions to our Latino house church this week as we have welcomed two new babies! Please pray for good health and rest for the families.

Prayer needs:

• Please pray for a family in the Bhutanese community who just had their first child! Pray for sound sleep and community support for this new family.
• Pray for the registration tomorrow evening for our Latino ESL program where we hope to see a strong retention of past students and a healthy group of new students.
• School can be a struggle for many of our Bhutanese High School students who don’t have strong English, making learning difficult, and the temptation to drop out strong. Pray for our school district to have the resources and knowledge to teach ESL students well, and pray for our students to have endurance and a strong work ethic in their studies.

Other needs:

• Want to hang out with some fun kids and share Jesús in a meaningful way? We are looking for 3 or 4 volunteers for our Outreach Bible Study on Thursdays from 6:30-9:00.  Please contact Megan if you are interested at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Our Bhutanese Kids Outreach is looking for a few new friends!  We are in need of 5 mentors to walk with kids at part of our Outreach Bible Study on Tuesday nights from 6:30-9:00pm.  If you are interested in learning more please contact Kristen at kristenm@missionadelante.org.
• If you are out and about and notice swimsuits on clearance, would you think about picking some up for kids at Mission Adelante?  We go swimming many times a year, even in the winter, and sometimes we find out on the way to the pool that some of our friends don’t have swimsuits that fit.  We specifically need suits that fit Elementary and Middle School boys, and one-piece suits that fit later Elementary and Middle School girls.  If you have questions, or would like to help, contact Kristen Maxwell at Kristenm@missionadelante.org

Important dates:

• Volunteer Orientation & Training: Saturday, September 21, 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's ministry. 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 23, 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 programs launch: Week of September 23

A "Year of Breakthrough"

Written by Kristen Maxwell, Bhutanese Children's Ministry Director

A few weeks ago, I had a chance to go on a prayer and planning retreat.  It gave me a chance to slow down and take time to listen to the Lord.  During my time away I heard from the Lord that this year would be a "Year of Breakthrough" for our after school leadership and character development program, Leaders in Training.  As I returned from the retreat and began to dive deeper in to what the Lord was saying, I felt challenged by a verse in the book of Isaiah.  

“But forget all that—

    it is nothing compared to what I am going to do.

For I am about to do something new.

    See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?

I will make a pathway through the wilderness.

    I will create rivers in the dry wasteland."

Isaiah 43:18-19 (NLT)

Will you join me in praying this verse over our 30 Latino and Bhutanese Leaders in Training for the 2013-2014 school year?  Will you pray with us that the Lord would help them to see the new things He is doing, and point them in the right direction?  Pray that the Lord would give them growth and confidence in their academic life, and speak to them about their walk with Him.  

Will you pray for the volunteers and staff that have the joy of loving on these kids every day?  Would you pray that we would not stick to old ways, but would eagerly follow the new ways that the Lord is leading us?  Would you pray for renewal in the lives of the LIT staff, mentors and kids?

We are currently looking for some more mentors to lock arms with us and lead the leaders that the Lord is raising up in our community.  If you are interested in learning more about how to help, contact Megan McDermott (Latino LIT) at

meganm@missionadelante.org

or Kristen Maxwell (Bhutanese LIT) at 

Kristenm@missionadelante.

org

.

In other news:

• Congratulations to Jenny & Garett Dunn on the birth of their first child, Rowen Matthew, on Saturday, August 31!  He was healthy, weighing 8 pounds, 9 ounces and measuring 20 inches long.  Mom and baby are doing great!
• Four of our staff members, six immigrant leaders, and one volunteer will be in New Orleans until Sunday for the CCDA conference.  It’s a tremendous opportunity to learn about, and network with others immersed in, Christian community development.  Pray for this team to grow together and bring home new vision.

Prayer needs:

• Pray for our Congress as they return from legislative break to sort through important issues like Syria and immigration reform.
• Pray for our LIT program as we kick off over the next week and a half.

Current needs:

• Want to hang out with some fun kids and share Jesús in a meaningful way? We are looking for 3-4 volunteers for our Outreach Bible Study on Thursdays from 6:30-9.  Please contact Megan if you are interested atmeganm@missionadelante.org.
• Our Bhutanese Kids Outreach is looking for a few new friends!  We are in need of 6-7 mentors to walk with kids at part of our Outreach Bible Study on Tuesday nights from 6:30-9:00pm.  If you are interested in learning more please contact Kristen at kristenm@missionadelante.org.
• We need some Rubbermaid-type storage tubs to store clothing in our Resource Center. Please contact Molly at mollym@missionadelante.org if you’d like to help.

Important dates:

• Volunteer Orientation & Training: Saturday, September 21, 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's ministry. 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 23, 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 programs launch: Week of September 23

Remove the Glass Ceiling

Written by Jason Schoff, Latino Outreach Director

When I was younger, I dreamed of learning to fly jets and becoming an airline pilot.  Nothing stood in my way as far as I knew.  My family and friends told me it was all possible if I worked hard enough, and based on their encouragement, I felt like I could accomplish anything.  My future was limitless.  As a Christian, I fully understand why this is true.  In Genesis 1:26-28 we read that God created each of us in His own image, meaning that He put in humans an amazing ability to do great things, some beyond imagination.

What would your life be like if you couldn't dream about the future?  Many immigrant families journey to the United States, their travel fueled by their dreams.  However, some discover that there is a glass ceiling limiting what they can actually achieve.  This ceiling becomes an inhibitor to dreams and aspirations, and is most disturbing when we see immigrant children learn to doubt the potential of their dreams coming true.  As our ministry has grown, we have discovered the complexities of what undocumented families face, especially undocumented children brought to the U.S. illegally by parents in search of a better life.  These kids may dream in elementary school of being a doctor but by high school they learn that they cannot work legally or get a driver's license, and they surrender their hope of achieving their dreams.  We share in their disappointment.

Last summer our President signed an executive order granting these kids a chance to Dream, provided they graduate from high school.  Since then we have helped five youth complete the paperwork to gain temporary legal status.  What does this mean?  It means we can cheer kids on to dream again, and they can actually believe that it's worth it.  When you remove the glass ceiling looming above a person's life, he or she can again believe great things, and then achieve great things.  A transformation occurs in the lives of those who are granted this chance!  As advocates for immigrant families, we wonder what amazing things the parents, too, could achieve, were they given a similar opportunity.  How might our cities and churches benefit from our neighbors' dreams? This is why we stand with other Christians (Evangelical Immigration Table) who share the conviction that our laws must be reformed so as to honor the image of God in each of us.  Please join us in praying that national legislators who are tackling this issue will share this conviction.

In other news:

• One of our Bhutanese friends who is hearing impaired recently went missing for two days. His family was very worried until the police located him safe and sound at KU Med Center. Our friends from Deaf International were a huge help to his family during this time. What a beautiful thing to see His children gather around others in a time of need.
• A group of community leaders, volunteers, and staff are headed to the Christian Community Development Association National Conference in New Orleans next week. Please pray that they would hear from God during this time and come back with fresh ideas and renewed vision of what it looks like to work in partnership with our community.

Prayer needs:

• Please pray for the Bhutanese ESL Lead Team as we plan program components for the fall.
• The Adelante Thrift team continues to search for a retail location and will view two potential sites this weekend. Please pray as we continue the process of finding the right store location.

Other needs:

• We're looking for three copies of the Jesus Calling Bible Storybook to use with the younger kids in our Kids Adelante outreach Bible study. (Here is the listing on Amazon.) We're specifically requesting the books, not monetary donations. Please contact Molly at mollym@missionadelante.org if you would like to contribute one.
• Our LIT Library is coming closer to completion!  We are in need of some furnishings to make it feel like home, such as a colorful rug and bean bag chairs.  If you have an item to donate please contact Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org or Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org.
• Want to hang out with some fun kids and make a big impact? We are looking for volunteers for our Leadership development program and also for our Outreach Bible Study! Opportunities are available Monday-Thursday.  Please contact Megan if you are interested at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Our Bhutanese Leaders in Training Program is getting ready to start our second year! We are currently looking for 4 mentors to serve on Wednesday afternoons.  If you are interested in learning more, contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org.
• Kids Club, our Bhutanese Kids Outreach is in need of 7 mentors, 6:30-8:30 on Tuesday nights from September 24th-December 10th.  If you are interested, or know of someone who might be, contact Kristen Maxwell at Kristenm@missionadelante.org.

Important dates:

• Volunteer Orientation & Training: Saturday, September 21, 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's ministry. 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 23, 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 programs launch: Week of September 23

Celebrating Diversity

Written by David Stetler, Bhutanese Outreach Director

Kansas City is a amazing place filled with wonderful sights to see, fun things to do and a rich history that make it what it is today.  We believe one of its most increasingly attractive characteristics is its people.  Our city has a growing population of immigrants who come with so much to offer and so many dreams.  Our friends from other places come here with a desire to start a new life.  Many have faced a struggle or hardship--sometimes even oppression--in their homeland and have come here to escape those challenges.  

You don't have to look very far to see the beautiful diversity in our city, whether in Mission Adelante's English classes, our after-school Leaders in Training programs for the kids, or our house churches that meet weekly.  The main road of our neighborhood is lined with numerous ethnic markets and restaurants owned by entrepreneurial-minded immigrants and refugees.  Right around the corner is the New Roots for Refugees garden where you might see farmers from several different countries growing and watering their crops.  Last week, five teams, each representing a different nation, competed in the Nations Cup KC soccer tournament.  At the end of each summer Mission Adelante hosts parties at Wyandotte County Lake Park where we get to experience a combination of Latino culture, American culture and Bhutanese-Nepali culture.

If you have ever watched the Olympics, I'm sure you remember the various nations that come together to compete in the games.  It's a huge celebration, not just of the games, but also of the beauty of cultures coming together.  We CELEBRATE that at Mission Adelante, as well.  We enjoy the foreshadowing of what it might be like some day when "a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb."  What an amazing assembly that will be!

Prayer needs:

• Continue to pray for Representatives in Congress who are listening to evangelical interest in immigration reform.  Pray for them to pass legislation that will keep families together and provide ways to allow undocumented immigrants to come out of the shadows.

Current needs:

• We're in the process of setting up a brand new library for the Leaders in Training (LIT) students, and hoping to have it finished by the first week of September. Do you know of someone that would be interested in helping to paint some bookshelves or maybe even buy some bean bags or decorations to make it cozy?  Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Want to hang out with some fun kids and make a big impact? We are looking for volunteers for our Leadership development program and also for our Outreach Bible Study! Opportunities are available Monday-Thursday.  Please contact Megan if you are interested.  meganm@missionadelante.org.

Important dates:

• Volunteer Orientation & Training: Saturday, September 21, 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's ministry. 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 23, 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. 
• Summer trimester programs launch: Week of September 23

"All Nations Soccer Tournament" Celebrates Diversity and Creates Unity

Written by Hannah Hume, Bhutanese Teens Club Coordinator

Here in Kansas City we love sports! Men and boys will sit in freezing cold weather or under blistering hot sunshine to watch a game with religious dedication. Women will slave over Rotel dip and chili to serve to the huddled masses of friends gathered together to scream at the television set in their living rooms. Sports create a sense of community, purpose, and good old fashioned fun for fans.

Last Saturday, long time Mission Adelante church partner Shoal Creek hosted the first annual “All Nations Soccer Tournament” for local teams in Kansas City, and the event was great! Five teams participated in the tournament, representing the countries of Peru, Argentina, Italy, Mexico, and Bhutan, and they hope to have even more teams participate next year!

Several of our staff members and volunteers went to the tournament to cheer for Bhutanese team, "KC Best", as many of the players are part of Mission Adelante's weekly Teens Club. It was fun to see the cultural diversity of our city represented by the various teams, and yet to also see the unity and community that can be formed in the midst of such diversity around a common passion like soccer.

In a city that is becoming increasingly diverse it could be easy to feel like we may not have anything in common with our neighbors. However, at Mission Adelante we love to embrace the differences that other cultures offer, believing they can broaden our own perspectives and enrich our city. It’s also good to be reminded that, at the end of the day, even those who may seem different than us are probably a lot more like us than we may initially think. The Asian man fixing your car is a father and worries about being a good dad too. The international student on your campus is just as excited as you are about the Black Friday sale on that computer. Across cultures, everyone loves to gather together, laugh, compete, and cheer for sports.

Praise God that He has made us all so wonderfully different and yet, in so many ways, to share the same needs, have similar likes, and most importantly, to be loved magnificently by our awesome God!  

In other news:

• A core group of our Teens will take a leadership development trip to Chicago during Labor Day weekend.  We are excited to see how the Lord unifies them and continues to equip these leaders from within our own community!
• Five immigrant leaders in the ministry of Mission Adelante have accepted an invitation to travel with four of our staff to the CCDA (Christian Community Development Association) National Conference in September. This will be a rich opportunity for their continued mobilization.

Prayer needs:

• Pray for vision and direction as we set out planning the Fall trimester programs, and LIT for the 2013-2014 school year.
• Pray for the Bhutanese ESL leadership team as we listen and plan what God has for the Fall trimester and following trimesters.  Pray for the conversations that we have with some of our students to bring direction and ownership of our classes among the Bhutanese community.
• The Adelante Thrift team has started working with a new agent to find a location for the store. Please pray that God would show us where He wants this effort in our community.
• Pray for members of our staff who will be meeting briefly with Congressman Yoder to share stories that illustrate why immigration reform is a necessary element for the transformation of our neighborhood.

Other needs:

• We're in the process of setting up a brand new library for the Leaders in Training (LIT) students, and hoping to have it finished by the first week of September. Do you know of someone that would be interested in helping to paint some bookshelves or maybe even buy some bean bags or decorations to make it cozy?  Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Volunteers are currently needed for both Bhutanese LIT which meets after-school, and Bhutanese Kids Club which meets on Tuesday nights.  If you are interested in learning more about partnering with us through volunteering contact Kristen Maxwell at Kristenm@missionadelante.org
• Want to hang out with some fun kids and make a big impact? We are looking for volunteers for our Leadership development program and also for our Outreach Bible Study! Opportunities are available Monday-Thursday.  Please contact Megan if you are interested.  meganm@missionadelante.org.

Generosity Rises to Meet our God-Sized Backpack Goal!

Written by Kristen Maxwell, Bhutanese Children's Ministry Director, and Megan McDermott, Latino Children's Ministry Director

One of the greatest blessings of doing what we do, is getting to watch the community of believers in Kansas City come together around a common cause.  This past week, we got to see that in a big way!  Around a month and a half ago, we set a God-sized goal of collecting 190 filled backpacks to outfit our kids and teens as they head back to school.  The Lord provided in a mighty way through twenty-five different individuals, families, and churches from all over the Kansas City area.  Thank you to those that contributed through prayers, giving, and spreading the word.  We hope you enjoy some pictures of the fun that we had last week.  

In other news:

• Last week we concluded our first summer internship for four emerging leaders from our own neighborhood!  It was a huge success as we saw them grow in exciting ways!
• Conversation partners from Bhutanese ESL class visited student homes during the last week of class. The students loved it, and volunteers got a better picture of what life is like for refugee families!
• Party, party, party!!  On Sunday afternoon we got a beautiful dose of sharing life at Wyandotte Lake as our Bhutanese and Latino ministries both held summer parties, complete with food, awards, songs and even some dancing!
• Frank and Yanelis, our partners from the RAICES ministry in Cuba, spent a good portion of the summer in Kansas City with Mission Adelante, learning and sharing from their experiences. They’re now back in Cuba ready to engage with their work there.  We’re missing them!
• Serving together!  The Lord is creating a new “we” in the neighborhood as new, community-driven leadership teams are forming for all of our Latino ministry programs.
• We are thankful for all of the community partners who are working with us to gather data for the medical clinic. This information is helping us form a clinic that remains true to the vision of a clinic that is culturally accessible and community owned.

Prayer needs:

• As we prepare for next trimester, please pray for guidance from the Holy Spirit as to what changes need to be made in our programs to better accommodate the needs of our community.
• Please pray for God to bring forth volunteers for our Leaders In Training ministry.
• Please pray for our Congressmen, on break from Washington, to hear our calls for compassionate immigration reform.
• Please pray for Adelante Thrift as we continue searching for the right location.

Current needs:

• We're in the process of setting up a brand new library for the Leaders in Training (LIT) students, and hoping to have it finished by the first week of September. Do you know of someone that would be interested in helping to paint some bookshelves or maybe even buy some bean bags or decorations to make it cozy? Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Volunteers for our Leaders In Training program, after school on Mondays, Wednesday and Thursdays beginning on September 11th, and our Tuesday night Kids Club program beginning September 24th.  If you are interested in more information please email Kristen at kristenm@missionadelante.org.

by Drew Hammond, Bhutanese Logistics Coordinator

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.” Deuteronomy 6:5-7

Children are one of the greatest gifts that God has given us. They bring us joy and hope for the future. It is our calling as followers of Christ, to raise them in the ways of the Lord in everything we do.

On a recent Saturday afternoon, the Bhutanese house church community had the joy of answering this call together. We gathered in the home of a family who had asked us to come and help them dedicate their baby to the Lord. There were 25 people there, most of whom were directly related to the family. Our indigenous leaders led the community in cultural worship songs, and in prayer for the baby and family.

The most powerful moment of the service was when the community and parents were asked if they were willing to accept the call to raise this baby girl in the ways of the Lord. Both the community and the family responded with great joy and accepted their challenge.

Pray with us that this baby would be blessed and kept in the care of the Lord to grow healthy and strong. 

Other News

• Several of the Mission Adelante staff and volunteers recently took a group of children and teens to swim at the Mission Municipal pool. It was lots of fun and a good chance to conquer fears and try new things together. Some of the teens swam for the first time ever, and a few kids even jumped off the high dive!

• LIT (Leaders In Training) was given tickets to see “Footloose” at the Starlight this Friday. We are excited to be taking the girls in both LIT outreaches to share a new experience together!

Prayer Needs

• As the end of a trimester nears and a program break approaches, pray that Mission Adelante Staff would rest well. Pray that we would be personally renewed. Pray also that the Lord would renew our vision and guide us as we dream and pray about the way He may desire to grow our ministries in coming trimesters!

• Please pray that we continue to develop a greater understanding of health needs and health care access in our community as our health needs survey progresses. Join us in praying for additional community leaders to work with us to help discern and represent the needs of their respective community.

Current Needs

• Leaders in Training (LIT) is trying to set up a brand new library for the kids. Do you know of someone that would be interested in helping to paint some bookshelves or maybe even buy some bean bags or other decorations to make it cozy? We are hoping to have it finished by the first week of September. Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.

Important Dates

Summer Parties are

Sunday, August 11th at 4:00

at Wyandotte County Lake Park, 91st and Leavenworth Road, Kansas City, KS 66109.  After entering the park, you'll come to a fork in the road;

go left.

• The Latino party will be in the "Beach Shelter." Turn right after passing shelter #6.

• The Bhutanese party will be at Shelter #6.

Mommy & Me ESL classes teach pre-reading skills

by Lauren Timberlake, Bhutanese ESL Director

I get excited when kids read. Board books, picture books, chapter books, audio books-- they are doors to all kinds of possibilities in life. Refugee kids have some large obstacles to overcome when reading. English is not their first language, so learning to read is a challenge. Also, refugee parents have endured years of turmoil, had little access to education, and now work hard to provide for their families. This leaves little time or attention for recreational reading. Many times, there are very few books in a refugee home. Although they receive lots of love at home, refugee kids don’t spend a lot of time reading with their families. Often, these kids are behind when they start school and can feel frustrated.

This summer, we offered a Mommy & Me workshop to our Bhutanese ESL students. Several mothers and grandmothers of young children participated. Rachel Pierce, a preschool teacher and close friend to several refugee families, led the group in a typical preschool storytime. There was circle time, read alouds, finger-plays, and several stations with early literacy activities. Moms helped their children to sort by color, “fish” for picture cards, put together puzzles, and look at books together.

We rarely get to offer programming to  the smallest children in the Bhutanese community, and everyone really enjoyed it. A local organization donated board books to send home with each family, so they can begin reading or looking at books together at home.

Please pray for the educational needs of the Bhutanese community and other refugee groups in Kansas City. Pray that children have access to books, mentors who challenge them to read, and teachers who equip them with the skills they need to pursue further education or job training after high school.

In other news

• Two members of the Raices team along with two other Cubans led a seminar on Christianity in Cuba last Saturday. It was the first time to share publicly in English for two of them, and they did great! Around 40 people attended the event.

• God used friends, volunteers and partner churches to provide backpacks for all of the children and teens of Mission Adelante.  They will go back to school with the supplies to start this year right!

Prayer Requests

• Pray for our four interns and two Cuban guests who finish their summer with us this week and transition back to Cuba or to school and family.  Pray for their confidence as they return to normal life.

• Pray we finish our trimesters strong and that the Lord would give us guidance as we seek Him for direction for our fall trimesters

Important Dates

Summer Parties

at Wyandotte County Lake Park, 91st and Leavenworth Road, Kansas City, KS 66109.  After entering the park, you'll come to a fork in the road;

go left

.

• The Latino party begins at 5:00 with a potluck meal, awards and a cultural program.  It will be in the "Beach Shelter." Turn right after passing shelter #6.

• The Bhutanese party begins around 4:00 and will have a potluck meal, awards and a cultural program in shelter #6.

Business as Mission Workshop Launches Adelante Business Coaching

by Kristen Allen, Director of Community Development

On Saturday, July 20, 2013, Adelante Business Coaching launched with a Business as Mission workshop presented by Rudy Carrasco of Partners Worldwide. Thirty-five men and women came to listen, learn, and dialogue about partnering to foster business development to transform the community. We see God stirring the hearts of men and women to use their experience and skills in relationship with other entrepreneurs to expand job opportunities and His Kingdom.

If there is one word that could sum up Rudy’s Business as Mission presentation it is “partnership”. God created us for relationship with Him and each other. We can partner together to do great things for Him and this includes partnership in business.

Adelante Business Coaching promotes and supports the development of immigrant and refugee owned businesses in our community. One of our key strategies for this ministry is partnership with immigrant and refugee entrepreneurs in mentor relationships to share experience and help encourage enterprise development. Men and women on both sides of the mentor relationship will share wisdom, experience, encouragement, and accountability. In true partnership, we all have something to give and we all have something to gain.

We’ve shared the story of

R.G. Asian Store

 and know there are more success stories to be told in our community. As Adelante Business Coaching continues mentoring businesses and expands to offer training and further develop a network for collaboration and advocacy between community organizations, business owners, and potential entrepreneurs, we are excited to see individual transformation become community transformation.

Other News

• Jasmin and Cesar, Latino house church members, moved back to Kansas City last week after spending a year in Texas.  We were overjoyed to see them join us at house church. 
• Jason Schoff joined two of our local partner ministries for a meeting in Washington, D.C. with Evangelical Pastors and Leaders who are advocates on behalf of immigration reform as part of the Evangelical Immigration Table .

Prayer Requests

• Please pray for a refugee-owned business in the community who has been working with Adelante Business Coaching on a new business plan. They will soon submit information to the bank as they seek a loan to purchase a new location and expand their business.
• The Adelante Business Coaching team had a great strategic planning session with Rudy Carrasco. Please pray that this ministry continues to follow God’s calling for community development as they move forward with the plans for the rest of this year.
• Please pray for the Adelante Thrift team as they continue to work through the site selection process for the thrift store.

Current Needs

• We are looking for a volunteer or volunteers to trim a tree away from the blue house so we can move forward with roof construction. Please contact Sarah at sarahw@missionadelante.org if you can help.

• The Kids Adelante ministry needs an ipod with a long battery life.. We would use it multiple times each week and would be so grateful to receive one.  Please contact Meganmeganm@missionadelante.org if you are interested. 

• Looking for an intentional way to impact the future leaders of our community? Our LIT program (Leaders in Training, after-school tutoring program)  is currently seeking mentors for the fall. Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.orgif you would like more info.

Important Dates

Summer Parties are

August 11th

at Wyandotte County Lake Park, 91st and Leavenworth Road, Kansas City, KS 66109.  After entering the park, you'll come to a fork in the road;

go left.

• The Latino party begins at 3:00 with an informal time to socialize, followed by a pot-luck meal at 4:45 and program at 6:00.  It will be in the "Beach Shelter." Turn right after passing shelter #6.

• The Bhutanese party begins at 4:00 in shelter #6.

Sharing the love of Jesus one backpack at a time

All families know that back-to-school season is one of the most expensive times of the year. The fees, the supplies, the new shoes--it can be a little overwhelming. Imagine coming to a new country with only the clothes on your back and few other resources. For the first couple of years it is going to be quite a struggle. If you look at the back-to-school season through that lens, school supplies for your child are probably going to fall pretty low on your list of priorities, and your child will most likely go back to school with few, if any of their needed supplies. Is that a fun way to start a new school year?

The kids outreaches at Mission Adelante have the opportunity to disciple around 190 kids and teenagers on a weekly basis. Ranging in age from 9 months to 19 years old, they all have a unique and wonderful story to tell and it is a blessing to get to be a part of it. We get to plant seeds, water them, and see the fruit of Jesus changing lives and families. What a privilege! 

The most practical way that we can show our young friends the love of Jesus is by providing for physical needs like school supplies. When we do that, we are able to have conversations about why people care about them, and ultimately, why Jesus cares about them. The Gospel can be communicated through the giving of a backpack! Not only that, but the student can go back to school with the confidence and dignity of having what they need to be successful in the year ahead.

Would you be able to help us share the love of Jesus by putting together a backpack for one of our friends?

Please contact Kristen Maxwell

(

KristenM@missionadelante.org

) or Megan McDermott (

Meganm@missionadelante.org

) for more information.

Other News

• IGNITE 2013 is this Saturday! A Workshop on Developing Businesses for Kingdom Impact - July 20 at 8:30am. You are invited to join us as we learn how fostering entrepreneuership can tranform lives and communities in under-resourced areas.Check out the link below for more information and to register for the event!

IGNITE 2013 Information and Registration:

July 20, 8:30-11:00 a.m

• The medical clinic team continues to develop partnerships and learn from various community members as they seek to understand the complex medical needs in the neighborhood. We appreciate all of the feedback we are receiving this trimester and know it will help form a medical clinic that represents the diversity of culture and need among our neighbors. 

Prayer Needs

• Pray that program participants and volunteers would finish out the trimester strong!
• Please pray for the Adelante Business Coaching Team’s time with Rudy Carrasco this weekend as they continue to develop the ministry. Also pray that those in attendance at Ignite would be inspired to deepen their commitment to business as mission. 
• Pray for an immigrant family from one of our suburban churches who has a member in deportation hearings.  Please pray for God to open a way for this man to stay in the US with his wife and five children. 

Current Needs

• The Kids Adelante ministry needs an ipod with a long battery life.. We would use it multiple times each week and would be so grateful to receive one.  Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org if you are interested. 
• Looking for an intentional way to impact the future leaders of our community? Our LIT(Leaders in Training, after-school tutoring program)  is currently seeking mentors for the fall..  Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org if you would like more info.
• The hot weather is here, and the resource center is in need of two window AC units for a family. If you are about to help, please contact Molly at mollym@missionadelante.org.

Important dates

Observation nights: July 16, 18, 23, & 25.

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!  Come to 22 S. 18th Street, Kansas City, KS 66102 at 6:30.

Working Together: The First Bhutanese Store in KCK

by Kristen Allen, Director of Community Development

At Mission Adelante we began talking and praying seriously about how individual transformation could become community transformation in the fall of 2011. As we explored how Mission Adelante can help make a community impact through empowering our immigrant friends and working in partnership to address the needs of our community, others were dreaming too. Two Bhutanese refugees dreamed of opening a store to meet the cultural needs of their community and approached Mission Adelante to share their vision and ask for guidance.

We looked through our network and found volunteers willing to collaborate on this business venture.  A successful business owner saw the potential for individual and community transformation and came forward to provide technical assistance to the two entrepreneurs. Another Mission Adelante volunteer encouraged the entrepreneurs and assisted with various activities including using a box truck to go and pick-up store fixtures the entrepreneurs found through their own network. The Bhutanese community pooled money together to help make a down payment on the building. A long-time supporter of Mission Adelante used his business to finish furnishing fixtures in the store. And on December 9, 2012, R.G. Asian store opened at 101 S. 18th Street in Kansas City, Kansas. When God’s people work together it can be a powerful, transformative thing.

Click the image above to register now for Ignite 2013!

Thanks to R.G. Asian Store, our Bhutanese friends now have access to culturally appropriate and familiar food, clothing, and other products. Customer service is a high priority, and when Bhutanese refugees ask for a new item the owners work through their network in the US and Nepal until the item is on the shelves of their store.

The store owners’ contributions to the Bhutanese community go deeper than providing cultural items -- they also focus on the needs of the Bhutanese teens. R.G. Asian store supports the KC (BEST) Bhutanese Ekata Soccer Team and encourages the young men to be responsible and hard-working. Recognizing that the Bhutanese teens face the challenges of every teen (high school, fitting in, becoming independent, etc.) and the additional struggles faced by newcomers trying to integrate into a new culture, R.G. Asian created a space in the building behind the store where teens can hang out and play games like ping-pong so the teens have a positive outlet and are less likely to get mixed up in less desirable activities like gangs. Our friends at R.G. Asian Store remind us that business can make a community impact.

We hope to build on this experience and further develop a model of for equipping and coaching entrepreneurs through our emerging Adelante Business Coaching ministry. We envision those passionate about business sharing their skills with immigrant and refugee entrepreneurs and a coaching environment where individuals on both side of the mentoring relationship are contributing, learning, and growing. This is not an effort to “do for” - it is an effort of partnership to “do with” in a spirit of collaboration and dedication to the community.  

Do you want to dive deeper into how businesses can make a Kingdom impact? Learn more about Business as Mission at Ignite 2013: A Workshop for Developing Business for Kingdom Impact on July 20th. Read more about the workshop here:

/missionadelante/2013/06/ignite-2013-workshop-on-developing.html

and register for this event that coincides with the formation of Adelante Business Coaching.

Adelante Missions Institute: The Gospel in Cuba- July 27@9:00 a.m.

Ignite 2013: A Workshop on Developing Businesses for Kingdom Impact- July 20@8:30am

Adelante Missions Institute Presents...

REGISTER HERE FOR THE IGNITE 2013 WORKSHOP!

Join us for a workshop on how fostering entrepreneurship can transform lives and communities in under-resourced areas.  Rudy Carrasco of Partners Worldwide will lead us on the exploration of a philosophy for job creation that includes business as mission, collaboration, business training, business mentorship, and advocacy.  Learn working models for ending poverty through job creation in the United States and the potential for community transformation right here in Kansas City, Kansas.  This event coincides with formation of a team for our new “Adelante Business Coaching” ministry.

The event will be held at Mission Adelante, Inc.

22 South 18th Street

Kansas City, KS 66012

Please contact Kristen Allen for more information:

kristena@missionadelante.org

Our Very Own Farmer's Market

by Jenny Dunn, Bhutanese ESL Coordinator

Kul, Garett, Bhuban and Tom are ready for the market.

Many of our Bhutanese friends were farmers in Bhutan, but they often have difficulty expressing their knowledge in English.  So for the past three weeks, we have been teaching words and concepts that will help them express their love of produce and better communicate at the farmer’s market or at grocery stores. 

Such a timely topic has given us the opportunity to make deeper connections in the community. We had the privilege to partner with the

New Roots for Refugees

program at Catholic Charities, which helps refugees put down new roots by

helping them start their own small farm businesses growing and selling vegetables

.

Tara asks, "How much is the ginger?"

The Pitch wrote a

great article

this month featuring the story of our student and friend, Maku Gurung, who has been a part of the New Roots program for three years.

The Bhutanese community has two other farmers also participating in the program. In fact, all three farmers shared their expertise with our English classes last week. They answered questions for the class, and they even judged a contest to see which student had the best garden design.

To finish the unit, we set up a farmer’s market. Our students and volunteers brought vegetables, priced them, and then practiced selling and buying the produce.  It was a lot of fun!

To support New Roots for Refugees farmers check out one of 

these 12 markets

around Kansas City.

Other News

IGNITE 2013: a workshop on developing businesses for kingdom impact. July 20th at 8:20 a.m.

Mission Adelante is praying that individual transformation would explode into community transformation. So we ask, "How can business make a Kingdom impact in community revitalization?" You are invited to join us for a workshop on how fostering entrepreneurship can transform lives and communities in under-resourced areas. Rudy Carrasco of Partners Worldwide will lead us to explore a job creation philosophy that includes business as misison, collaboration, business training, business mentorship, and advocacy. Learn about working models for ending poverty through job creation in the United States and the potential for community transformation right here in Kansas City, Kansas. This event coincides with formation of a team of our new "Adelante Business Coaching" ministry.

Check out the link below for more information and to register for the event!

IGNITE 2013: A Workshop on Developing Businesses for Kingdom Impact- July 20, 8:30-11:00 a.m

Prayer Needs

• Praise God with us for three great weeks of kids camp and for the investment that our partner churches have made in our neighborhood kids! Pray that the seeds planted in kid’s hearts will grow.

Current Needs

• The Kids Adelante ministry needs an ipod with a long battery life.. We would use it multiple times each week and would be so grateful to receive one.  Please contact Megan meganm@missionadelante.org if you are interested.  
• We need a volunteer to trim three limbs from a tree that is impeding progress on construction on the blue house next door to our main building.  Once completed, the new building will provide additional meeting and office space for Mission Adelante.  Please contact Sarah at sarahw@missionadelante.org if you are able to help.
• Have a small group looking for a project that will make a big impact? We want to send each child in the ministry back to school with a stocked backpack in the fall.  Please contact meganm@missionadelante.org if you would like more info!

• Looking for an intentional way to impact the future leaders of our community? Our LIT(Leaders in Training, after-school tutoring program)  is currently seeking mentors for the fall..  Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org if you would like more info.

Important Dates

• Observation nights: July 16, 18, 23, & 25. 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!  Come to 22 S. 18th Street, Kansas City, KS 66102 at 6:30.

"Adelante Business Coaching" Prepares to Launch

by Kristen Allen, Director of Community Development

Exciting things continue to unfold in Mission Adelante’s Community Development Initiatives as our new "Adelante Business Coaching" ramps up for launch. Twenty years ago many were convinced that our community was dying, and studies predicted that by the year 2000 our neighborhood would be a ghost town.  Driving around Mission Adelante, it is evident that this prediction was false: the community is being revitalized by immigrant families and small businesses.

According to the 2007 U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Business Owners, Latino owned businesses brought in $1.3 billion in receipts in the state of Kansas. Mission Adelante is excited to add fuel to this fire as we ask God to use business to transform individual lives as well as our entire community.

Bhutanese refugees opened a grocery in KCK.

One of the core values for Adelante Business Coaching is the belief that work is a redemptive activity that God designed for man to enjoy from the beginning of creation. Work promotes dignity, contributes to the broader needs of our community, and improves an individual’s or a family’s financial situation. Our immigrant and refugee friends come with a diverse array of business ideas, skills, experiences, and a strong desire to succeed. Unfortunately, there are many obstacles for newcomers who want to open businesses, and instead, they are often stuck working unskilled, entry-level, low-paying positions that are far away and don’t provide a sense of dignity or purpose.

What if we prayed with our immigrant and refugee neighbors, helped break down cultural barriers, and instead of looking at their lack of US business experience, we equipped them to become business owners making an impact in the community and for the Kingdom? We believe we would start to see individual and community transformation.

We are excited for where we feel God is leading us. As we launch Adelante Business Coaching, we want to partner with others who feel God’s calling to use their business or their business expertise as an avenue for ministry. Next month we are bringing Rudy Carrasco from

Partners Worldwide

 to lead a workshop to help us and our partners further explore business as mission.

Save the date for Saturday, July 20

th

  from 8:30 a.m. -11:00 a.m. so you can j

oin us for a workshop on how fostering entrepreneurship can transform lives and communities in under-resourced areas.  Rudy Carrasco will lead us on the exploration of a philosophy for job creation that includes business as mission, collaboration, business training, business mentorship, and advocacy.  He will share working models for ending poverty through job creation in the United States and the potential for community transformation right here in Kansas City, Kansas.  

REGISTER HERE FOR THE IGNITE WORKSHOP!

"Ignite 2013" will be held at Mission Adelante, Inc.

22 South 18th Street

Kansas City, KS 66012

Please contact Kristen Allen for more information:

kristena@missionadelante.org

Other News

• Our Mommy & Me English class has been a success so far! There are six refugee mothers and their tots singing, clapping, reading, and playing games together--all while practicing English skills. We have one more class next week.
• We had the privilege to hear from some of the New Roots for Refugees farmers on Tuesday during our study of vegetables and the farmer’s market in the Bhutanese ESL classes.  It was a great listening exercise for our students and both students and conversation partners learned a lot!
• The Kansas City Bhutanese Ekata Sports Team is traveling to Texas for a nationwide Bhutanese Soccer tournament this weekend.
• Frank, a leader with Raices in Cuba, was given a visa to come visit Mission Adelante for two weeks in July.  He will learn more about business coaching strategies and will also share his own experiences with our staff.

Prayer Requests

• Please pray for the formation of the Adelante Business Coaching leadership team. We meet next week for the first time and are excited where God is leading us.  
• Pray for immigration reform that upholds our values of human dignity, family unity and respect for the rule of law and for our senators who will vote on this issue.

Current Needs

• The resource center is in need of kitchen items, dishes, and summer kids clothes. If you are able to help, please give Molly Merrick a call to set up a drop of time at mollym@missionadelante.org.

Important Dates

Observation nights: July 16, 18, 23, & 25.

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!  Come to 22 S. 18th Street, Kansas City, KS 66102 at 6:30 p.m.

Immigrants want to learn English!

by Hannah Hume, Bhutanese Teens Coordinator

“If they are going to live in America, they should at least learn English.”

Many of us have probably heard this statement spoken at some point or another. In fact, I can think of one at least one time that very statement left my own lips in high school. Now, several years later, I’m embarrassed to admit this because it reveals how quickly I can speak on topics of which I am quite naive. In this case, it was the topic of immigration.

Back in high school, I had never actually known an immigrant, nor had I investigated what God’s word had to say about how His people should treat foreigners. I was merely reacting out of frustration and parroting a blanket statement. However, my perspective has shifted a lot since then. So, what changed it? Talking to people and reading the Bible.     

Two days ago, I sat at my kitchen table with some Bhutanese teenagers, and I asked them what the four biggest problems facing Bhutanese teens were. The first one on their list was English. They told me that English hindered them in school, stopped them from getting summer jobs, and often strained the relationships between them and their parents. Their inability to speak and read English well was of great concern to them.

In fact, the majority of immigrants and refugees I have met want to learn English and to become an insider within American society. I have sat down with refugee students from Bhutan and Somalia and listened to their frustration as they struggle over homework. I have listened to a Latina co-worker’s anger at being called a foreigner by a customer because she mispronounced a word. But learning English is difficult. The types of jobs that are often available to those with limited English don’t usually have schedules that allow them to easily attend language classes. Sometimes the student-teacher ratio in classes can make it difficult to learn quickly, and people who don’t speak or read English have a difficult time accessing a drivers license or navigating public transportation to class.

When I uttered those words years ago, “Why don’t they just learn English,” I had no idea of the obstacles people coming to America from other countries face because I had never actually talked with an immigrant. I didn’t know that the answer to my statement was, “They are trying”. I also didn’t feel any obligation to welcome or encourage newcomers because I had never read verses like Leviticus 19:34

“

You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.”

At Mission Adelante, loving foreigners is something we believe is both important and biblically mandated. If you have never investigated what the Bible says about foreigners, we invite you to join us in a

40 day verse challenge

--one that most of our staff has taken themselves. Or, if you can’t think of one immigrant whom you could call a friend, we challenge you to expand your social circles. It could be as simple as learning the name of the immigrant who cleans the office where you work, inviting your child's immigrant classmate over for a playdate, or getting to know your immigrant neighbor up the street. My world has changed for the better through the influence of my own Bhutanese friends, and I would love for you to experience that, too.

In other news

• We have had a great first week of kids camp with our friends from Christ Church Anglican! Kids from both the Latino and Bhutanese outreaches participate. Pray for us as we head into the next two weeks of kids camp with our friends from Shoal Creek and Emmanuel Baptist. 

Prayer requests

• Debate began this week on a Senate bill to reform immigration. Its passage would open many opportunities for most of our immigrant neighbors.  Please pray for a common sense, moral debate to guide this policy discussion, and remember to pray for our senators by name.  

Current Needs

• DVDs appropriate for K-3rd graders to watch while waiting for bus transportation home from Kids Club on Tuesday nights.  For more information, or if you can help contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadante.org

• We need several 4x8 foot ivory-colored cloth tablecloths to be used for events at the building. If you are able to provide these, please contact Jenny Dunn at jennyd@missionadelante.org.

Making Disciples "On the Run" With Our Summer Interns

by Jarrett Meek, Founder, Executive Pastor/Director

One of my favorite things about the summer internship at Mission Adelante is our exercise time in the

mornings.  Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays we all meet up at the Wyandotte High School track at 7:45 a.m. for 15 minutes of stretching and 30 minutes of running (or walking for those who prefer it).  Since making disciples is as much about transmitting life as it is about transmitting information, I have found that it's critical to find ways to include those I'm investing in in my everyday activities.  Jesus didn't call his disciples to come to his classes, he called them to follow him as he lived life on mission with His Father.  This following included participation in extraordinary spiritual events , but it also included the most mundane daily routines like eating and fishing together.

So far our four summer interns are enjoying our exercise time together.  Not only are we reaping the benefits of exercise, but were also modeling self-discipline and a healthy lifestyle; and we're spending relational time together which becomes the context for spiritual lessons.  Surprisingly, our exercise time has become contagious!  In the first week we've been joined by other staff members, kids, and adults from our community.  Is this the beginning of Adelante Running Club?!

Discipleship is a life-on-life endeavor.   As we walk with our interns this summer, this life-on-life discipleship is exactly what we have in mind as we include them in every aspect of our lives.  This kind of investing is simple, but it's not easy.  It requires letting others into our personal lives, our personal time, and our personal space in ways that we're not accustomed to in our private and independent culture.  Please pray for our interns and staff as we are stretched this summer to do life in community and grow together in Christ.

Responding to Student Needs

Bhutanese men talk together at the ESL Launch Party last Tuesday night.

There is always a break between each trimester at Mission Adelante.  During this break, staff and lead volunteers ask ourselves questions like: “Is what we are doing meeting the needs of the community?” and “How can we meet those needs better?”

This spring, the Bhutanese ESL Lead Team felt that it was time to give our students a little more of the “social” experience that many of our students long for –especially the women. We have done this in the past by changing our registration night from a formal process to being a time to hang out, talk, eat, and listen to some great music with a little business on the side. But we felt we should take it a step further this trimester, not exactly knowing what it will bring.  Instead of doing our usual four levels of English classes, we are doing only two classes: one men's class and one women’s class.  We want our students to learn English but also to build community and strong relationships with each other.  The dynamics of the classes are completely different-- lots of joking and talking during the entire women’s class and lots of nonsense and then getting down to business in the men’s class.

We hope to see Bhutanese and American relationships grow stronger, and we want the Bhutanese community to become even more unified this summer.  Please pray this with us as we experiment with this new program format. We want to be constantly listening to our community and meeting their needs.

In other news

• Our Leaders in Training programs celebrated a successful year by heading out on a camping trip (Latino LIT) and to Great Wolf Lodge (Bhutanese LIT). It was a blessing to reward the kids for all of their hard work this year.
• The level 1 Latino English class began with the largest turnout ever! We also have a vision to start a new house church through this group of people.
• The Bhutanese community of Kansas City celebrated a cultural festival last weekend that included music, poetry, awards and food.

Prayer needs

• Please pray Kansas Senator Moran and Congressman Yoder.  We have shared real-life stories of undocumented immigrants with them and asked them to vote for immigration reform that keeps families together.

Current Needs

• One of this year's high school graduates will be the first from our community to go on to college! As she heads to KU this fall, we would love to bless her with a new laptop or Chrome book to set her up for success.  We are looking for a person or small group to purchase the computer.  Please contact Megan McDermott (meganm@missionadelante.org) if you would like to help.  (Please no cash donations.)

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• We need several 4x8 foot ivory-colored cloth tablecloths to be used for events at the building. If you are able to provide these, please contact Jenny Dunn at jennyd@missionadelante.org.

• We still need a few more board books for our Mommy & Me ESL and early literacy class in June. Please contact laurent@missionadelante.org for book titles.

Hasta and Bibi play the piano together while they wait to register for English class.

A Deaf International volunteer comes each week to work with our deaf ESL students.