Dear Family and Friends,
“Jesus understood what an awesome task was
before Him, so He said to His disciples, 'The
harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest to
send more workers into His harvest field.' “(Matthew 9:37. The Voice.)
Please
join us in prayer as we are asking God to provide 5 to 10 family units to serve
in the North Corridor of Chicago land with us.
The Chicago Tribune has used the term “church desert” to describe some places
in Chicago land. For instance, the
suburb of Glendale Heights has a population of 34,000 but only 8 churches of
any sort. Along North Avenue in
Glendale Heights one can drive 2 miles and see 1 mosque, 2 “Girls, Girls, Girls”
signs, and more ethnic restaurants and stores than we can count before you see
your first church building.
Yet the census
tracts in this corridor show 20 to 40% of the population is foreign-born. Some
of these countries are ones that American missionaries would not even be
allowed to enter. We are hoping that some of those who join us will be from
these very countries and will now be missionaries to America.
Pray
for us as we are laying the foundations for an International church: Nations'
Chapel Christian Church, a campus of Westbrook Christian Church in partnership
with Ignite Church Planting.
The type of colleagues that we are looking for are:
1.
Immigrants as missionary church
planters to America: Young immigrant families fit the church
planting profile better than almost any other demographic group in North
America. They pursue education, attend
church, stay married, have larger families, and are entrepreneurial.
2.
Missionary kids:
Most we know are skilled at blending cultures and dissatisfied with
American church experience. Those
dissatisfactions are frequently a call of God to begin something new.
3.
Missionary families who return to
the United States: There are few places available for them in
traditional Christian ministry silos of North America. Yet the church deserts are in desperate need
for their skills and relationship network.
As you are praying, we ask if anybody comes to your mind to contact us
and introduce us to them. “Getting the right people on the bus” as Jim
Collins says is the crucial stage we are in. We have some ongoing conversations
with a few. Pray that God makes His will known.
Thank you for journeying with us as we serve in the North Corridor,
Dave and
Jana
P.S. Our giving typically
declines in the summer months. If you
would like make a contribution you can send it to:
Ignite Church Planting
P.O. Box 189
Schererville, IN 46375
Or online contributions can be made at http://www.ignitechurchplanting.com/donate.html.
Please use the 'Purpose' field at the top of the form to designate your gift: Jenkins - Multi-cultural Church.
P.O. Box 189
Schererville, IN 46375
Or online contributions can be made at http://www.ignitechurchplanting.com/donate.html.
Please use the 'Purpose' field at the top of the form to designate your gift: Jenkins - Multi-cultural Church.
