In the Bible, at the end of Matthew and Mark, there is a description of the Great Commission when Jesus sends His disciples out to spread the Good News. At the end of Luke, the writer seems to talk about the Great Commission in a different light. The events are the same: Jesus is with the disciples, he commissions them, and then he is taken up. But in Luke, the writer says Jesus “lifted up his hands and blessed them. And while he was blessing them, he left them and was carried up to Heaven.” Perhaps the Great Commission – this charge to all of us to spread the Good News of Jesus – is a blessing.
We are blessed to be participating in what God is doing in class-C apartment communities in Dallas. The Good News of Jesus is being shared with words and shown with actions to thousands of people, and as we reflect on 2010 we are thankful to have been part of it.
I think of Keon and Choo, two boys who live at Willow Pond. In July, Choo decided that he wanted to “change in to being a Christian.” I love the picture of taking off the old ‘clothes’ and putting on new ones. Once he made the decision, Rickey Fanning, our Community Center Supervisor at Willow Pond, began to read the Bible with Choo. About a month later during our Vacation Bible School, Rickey told the story of Peter. Keon approached us after the story and said that he wanted to follow Jesus! After we prayed with Keon, Choo told Keon that they were brothers now. Our God has a tender heart.
We were able to reward the kids in our Kids Club for completing homework and improving their attitudes with trips to Maverick’s basketball games and Cowboy’s football games. We are excited to say that grades are going up!
At Village Oaks, we planted flowers and installed a brand new basketball court. The court was once empty with weeds growing up through the broken asphalt. It is now a gathering place for kids to play – and they play a lot!
We have invited residents to cooking classes and parenting discussion groups. Kids are beginning to eat healthier foods and parents are beginning to parent their children. Our parenting discussion group at Willow Pond became a place for confession and life change. Parents who continued cycles of darkness were bringing things in to the light. Quickly, kids began to act more respectfully.
Residents are beginning to serve their community, instead of being served.
At Willow Pond, a mother who at first opposed what we were doing had a change of heart. Not only did her daughters begin attending the Kids Club, but when this mother saw what God was doing in her daughters’ lives she approached us with an idea. She wanted to host a Community Garage Sale to raise money for the kids. She organized the event and the community came together to support their Kids Club.
At Village Oaks, a resident named Frank spent an entire Saturday helping us cook food for the other residents. For four hours he served his community!
Many of the kids involved in the Kids Club have attended a monthly cookout to serve the homeless. They have determined to serve as often as they can, and what a joy it is to hear them speak about their experiences.
In many ways I feel like the writer of John – there are many more stories to include, but not enough space! We have seen God do good things in 2010 and we are excited to see what He will do in the lives of people in 2011.
So, what’s in the works for 2011?
We are hosting March Madness (a basketball tournament) at Village Oaks in March. We have plans for a quarterly job orientation lunch and devotion as part of a partnership with H.I.S. Bridgebuilders. We have plans for the summer that include reading club, math camp, basketball camps, vacation Bible school, and art camp. Throughout the year, with the help of partners and volunteers, we are planning cooking classes, service projects, sporting events, holiday parties and cookouts, parenting discussion groups, and other classes. Whatever we can do to introduce people to Jesus we want to do, and we are trusting that God will transform communities as we go.
-- Will Dowell
