Young Adult Israel-Palestine Trip: "Holy Land Trip Day 1"

by Saianna Smith

So many people have asked why did I choose to go on this trip. My answer for the most part has always just been “because I want to walk where Jesus walked." However, over the past two weeks I believe my response has shifted. Yes, I still want to experience the place where Jesus did His ministry, but I also believe that I am on this trip because He wants me to be on this trip. I believe that God is sending me on this trip to have an encounter with Him like I’ve never had before. Almost everyone knows that I am a full-time student as well as work a very demanding job so when I requested time off from school to attend this trip all of my professors were on board except for one. The professor who was not on board with me attending the trip threatened to fail me for missing three days of his class to attend this trip and it was in this very circumstance where I realized God wants me on this trip. I almost did not come—I had my flight changed to accommodate the demands of my professor UNTIL I found favor in one of the advisors of my program who advocated for me to still be able to attend the trip and not fail. I believe that in this situation God was testing me. He has been preparing me for this trip for over a year, so He wanted to see how badly did I want to make coming on this trip happen, so it was on May 16th when I realized that I am on this trip because He wants me here. I was overcome with fear when I saw the news about the wars and bombings breaking out in Israel, however God gave me peace and told me that I am going to be fine because he is going to be there. So yes, I am still attending this trip to experience where Jesus did His ministry, but I am also here because I am supposed to be here. 

PSWR Young Adults get ready to board their flight to Tel Aviv.

Today I woke up at 4 am to be at LAX by 4:20 am for my 6 am flight (I live really close to the airport so did not see the need of being there 3 hours early!) During my ride from my house to the airport is when the excitement and the reality of this trip actually hit me. Until this morning, I was indifferent about the trip, but today I said "this is really happening." I flew into New Jersey by myself due to the fact that my flight had to be changed a few times because of the mix up that was happening at school. I spent 5 hours waiting for the rest of our team to arrive at the Newark airport (it felt soooooooo much longer!) While I was waiting for them to arrive, I was able to mentally prepare myself for what this trip has to hold. We will be departing from Newark and on our way to Tel Aviv at 10:50pm…I am not looking forward to a TEN hour plane ride, but I am super excited for this 10-day journey we are about to embark upon. I have never in my life been away from home for anytime longer than 6 days, so I am a little nervous about getting homesick, but even in those moments I am grateful to have some friends on this trip to comfort me in those moments. I believe this is all I have to say about day 1 of this trip! 

-SaiSai <3

Mile Marker #102: Acts 2 Project

By Revs. Don Dewey and Susan Gonzales-Dewey, Co-Regional Ministers

In November 2017, the Regional Board of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of the Pacific Southwest Region unanimously voted to support the launching of the ACTS 2 Project. The ACTS 2 Project’s purpose is to support, resource and empower new and transforming congregations and courageous leaders as they guide the Church into life-giving expressions of new ministry for this era of God’s mission.

The Acts 2 Project is based on this scripture:
“And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. 
They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person’s need was met. Every day their number grew as God added those who were saved.” ~ Acts 2:44-47

The Acts 2 Project seeks to address and support the Regions ministry goals and also to respond to our General Church’s priorities and 2020 vision.
 

GENERAL CHURCH PRIORITIES
• Formation of 1,000 new congregations by 2020
• Transformation of 1,000 current congregations by 2020
• Leadership development necessary to realize these new and renewed congregations
• Becoming a Pro-reconciling/Anti-racist Church

PSWR GOALS
• To be One Church
• To be a Missional Church
• To develop vital, healthy, growing congregations
• To be a well organized and administered Region
 

PROPOSAL:
The Acts 2 Project’s purpose is to support, resource and empower new and transforming congregations and courageous leaders as they guide the Church into life-giving expressions of new ministry for this era of God's mission.

The Acts 2 Project seeks to address and support the Regions ministry goals and also to respond to our General Church’s priorities and 2020 vision.

We believe that new and transformed congregations and empowered leaders are critical to leading the Pacific Southwest Region to do God’s mission in the world in this challenging and crucial time. In addition, we believe it is critical that these congregations and leaders reflect the wide diversity of this Region and our Disciples of Christ communities.

The Acts 2 Project seeks to work collaboratively with four key areas of our Regional ministry: New Church Development, Transformation, Leadership Development and the Hatchery, to offer leadership and ministry resources that help raise up these leaders and prepare congregations for reaching new generations with the Good News of Jesus Christ.
 

PLAN:
Calling together the leadership of the four ministry areas named for quarterly planning, visioning, collaborating and implementing a comprehensive strategic plan for moving the PSWR forward in it’s ministry efforts for our Disciple witness.

These leaders, working cooperatively together with our Regional Ministers and staff, will identify resources, church planters, specific congregations poised for transformation and pastors with passion and vision for leading congregations in new and innovative ways.

The Acts 2 Project Team will evaluate needs such as resources, coaches, trainings, and cohorts for support and synergy. They will also create the necessary benchmarks and metrics to evaluate the success and progress of the various areas of ministry. The Team will consult with our Associate Regional Ministers, specifically those working directly with our Racial-Ethnic communities to ensure input and involvement from the breadth of our diversity.

In addition, the Team will plan and host various trainings, seminars and leadership development opportunities to strengthen, support and empower the Acts 2 Project.

Though these trainings and seminars will primarily be geared toward those participating in the Acts 2 Project, they will be open to any and all pastors and congregations in the PSWR.

To date, the Acts 2 Team is working with 2 congregations (1 Korean and 1 Hispanic) and 5 Pastors (1 Anglo, 2 African American and 2 Hispanic). We are excited to see how these congregations and pastors will expand their witness and ministry as Disciples of Christ in their communities.

Together on the journey,
Don and Susan
Your Regional Ministers

Spiritual Philanthropy and the 21st Century

by Spencer Burke, Maria French and the Hatchery LA team

Hi Friends!

We have been keeping busy with the launch of our new Certificate in Spiritual Entrepreneurship and the overwhelming response we have had to our new curriculum! It has been an amazing 5 weeks so far, with over 30 students joining us from our region, around the country and globe as we look toward the future and ask the question, what is next and how are we going to build it together?

We are currently preparing to launch our Phase 2: Coaching and Training that will be offered to our graduates this coming fall!

We will also have more exciting news to share with you shortly as we are planning our first Spiritual Entrepreneurship Summit coming this fall! Watch for more information.

As an organization, we are investing in this new discipline of Spiritual Entrepreneurship. Hatchery LA defines this as:

Responding to the shifts within culture and the world, motivated by the goal of common good, Spiritual Entrepreneurship is an invitation to engage new questions of god and new ways of engaging god that promote community, sustainability and viability.

Spiritual Entrepreneurship innovates and iterates to anticipate and address the changing needs of spirituality in the 21st century.

As we have been working in this new field we have identified a counter-point to this work; an equally important partner and that is those with the gift of what we call Spiritual Philanthropy. As Spiritual Entrepreneurs are exploring new modes of innovation and iteration, we have identified a new group who are also developing new tools, new places and new practices in terms of giving, funding and resourcing.

Spiritual Philanthropy allows you to connect more directly through relationship with what and whom you are giving to, it is non-hierarchical and it creates new ways of resourcing and funding. There are new ways of giving to faith-based communities and projects outside of the main mechanism of traditional church methods such as tithes and offerings, capital campaigns, etc. New funding opportunities like crowd sourcing, micro financing (just to name a few) have revolutionized the way we give and how we give.

At Hatchery LA, we have an amazing opportunity to look at the new horizon, and the changing horizons(!), to meet the people, hear the stories of life and transformation and be able to assess where Spiritual Entrepreneurship is at work. We are bringing these projects and people to you so you can be a part of them and get connected personally. It used to be that you could simply give money and you knew things would be taken care of. However, there has been a change in this trust pattern. People are starting to fund social causes and Social Entrepreneurship ventures. Now there is a new opportunity to give within the faith realm of Spiritual Entrepreneurship.

We are inviting Spiritual Philanthropists to join us at the beginning of the innovation curve—to be our early adopters and early investors.

Every field that is actively moving forward in their discipline has an R&D (Research and Development) department. The auto industry is moving to electric and hydrogen, technology is moving smaller, lighter, faster. These things don’t happen without research and development. You wouldn’t want to go see a doctor that was still operating under medical knowledge of the 19th century? Or even the 1980’s? You wouldn’t want to get on a motorway in 2018 with a Model T? And yet all too often we expect people to do ministry with the same models of the last 500 years or even in the last 20-40 years.

Hatchery LA is the church’s R&D department. We are the place the research for church innovation and sustainability happens. But we are more than that. We are an incubator. We are a place where risk is expected and rewarded.

But we cannot fulfill our mission without your help. You are vital partners in our project to revitalize and rejuvenate the church. R&D needs funding; funding, training, accountability and measurements of success.

Please visit out website and see the different ways there are to give and what our Spiritual Philanthropy packages are.

We will shortly be sending out more information, which will give more details about our projects and the stories behind them and the spiritual entrepreneurs we are already working with. Click here if you would like to be added to our email list.

We are so excited to be launching this next innovative phase of our mission and talking more about what it means to support Spiritual Entrepreneurship by becoming a Spiritual Philanthropist.

Spencer Burke, Maria French and the Hatchery LA team

Mile Marker #101: Change

“But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!”
-Amos 5:10-25

How many of you like change? I like the change I initiate. But as we live into this season it is easy to see we are in a season of change. There always seems to be a season of change, the question is how do we initiate the change we hear called for from our God; especially when we do not all agree on what that change needs to be?

You might be familiar with the Rev. Dr. William Barber, he is a Disciples of Christ pastor from North Carolina and he has been heading up the New Poor Peoples campaign: A National Call for Moral revival.

Today, many issues in our country that have bible foundations as moral issues have been politicized. It is now difficult to read Isaiah or Amos without people saying that we are being political, when these prophets were simply calling for the rights of the poor.

So some of you might not appreciate this Mile Marker as I talk about the actions of the New Poor Peoples campaign.

Recently I went to their organizing meeting at McCarty Memorial CC, (The 1000 seat sanctuary was full) and I went to their training meeting last month for those who are interested in participating in one of the 6 rallies taking place in Sacramento this spring.

This is all new for me, organizing for action. Several pastors from our Region are a part of the leadership for the California activities, so I went to support them and learn.

As I came home my brother, who usually has very different opinions than I do, asked what this was about. I told him this was a movement to change the national narrative about poverty, racism, (peace) war economy and care for the ecology.

One of the most amazing parts of the training was to see the on-line check in of people in 46 trainings in 30 states across the nation all being trained at the same time for 40 days non-violent action.

What I learned was that organizing often assumes every one is informed and on board with the ideals of the movement but that is not always reality. There were people there from churches and unions and social action groups. People who care about the needs or women and children, our education system, our immigration concerns, needs of the poor, issues of racism, people seeking peace in a country that currently spends 53 cents of every federal discretionary dollar on military spending and only 15 cents on anti-poverty programs with 140 million people who are poor or low-income and people whose concern is care for the ecology.

What I learned was this movement seeks to encourage impacted people to step forward so this nation can see the poverty and pain in this nation; the movement is seeking to make this nation cry together about the suffering in our nation so people will seek change together.

One of the important items lifted up in the training for Non-Violent action, was to listen to person opposing, and try to understand what is at the core of their concern, listening from our hearts and listen to words spoken.

It takes courage to listen, courage to listen to the voices of those who do not agree with us/me/you.

* Courage to listen to the needs of the world
* Courage to listen to the people who are struggling
* Courage to listen to the protests of people
* Courage to listen to the brokenness
* Courage to listen to people who have different ideas about how the world should be
* Courage to listen to the voices of complaint, pain, need, brokenness, protest.

Don and I will be in Sacramento along with other pastors from the Region on May 14th for the first of 6 weekly actions, this one on the needs of the women and children in our country and the issues of education. Please pray for this movement so together we have the courage to listen and to change the national narrative about poverty, racism, (peace) war economy and care for the ecology.

Together on the journey,
Don and Susan Your Regional Ministers

From Graduation to Incorporation: Doing Youth Ministry Better Together!

This year I celebrate 20 years of youth ministry leadership. I taught my first youth bible study group at Oak Forest Baptist Church in Chesterfield, VA when I was 18 years old. I can remember how special an experience it was at that age to share leadership among my peers and older adult mentors. Although I was no longer officially a part of the youth group (having just graduated high school), I appreciated the opportunity to transition out of what our church called “youth group” into full blown adulthood. Without the inclusive culture at OFBC, I may not have ended up in ministry today.

Having an opportunity to keep engaged in a peer group as a growing leader has an impact on how well a young person can transition from one stage of life to the next. Young people are much more likely to stay connected to the mission of the church when they can keep attending the community in a way that makes the most sense to them. Unfortunately, too many 18 year old youth feel abandoned by the church when they graduate high school because of the limited options they have in the church. Many are encouraged to simply graduate into the adult Sunday school class with their parents and grandparents without any intentional transition. As the Fuller Youth Institute puts it, “Giving seniors a ‘graduation Bible’ and hoping for the best just isn't cutting it.” Whether or not we like it, this oversight of transitional education has a direct correlation to the 50% of young people who leave the church after graduating high school.

Although I have personally benefitted from a transitional multi-generational ministry, there is plenty of researched reasoning and application behind implementing in our churches. Some schools call it “split classes”, “multi-grade classes”, “combination classes”, or “transitional education”. The goal is to provide intentional co-mentorship connections between younger youth, older youth, and adult supporters. Research shows that each young person is greatly benefited when surrounded by a team of five adults (Sticky Faith, 2016). If we can safely and effectively build community cross-generationally, it will make for a stronger faith and ministry together in our local churches throughout the PSWR.

Just a few years ago Disciples Home Mission began a campaign to raise awareness of the cross-generational nature of ministry for youth. One cannot simply provide pastoral care for a high school youth without considering effective communication with parents, siblings, and grandparents. Youth ministry incorporates ministry with children & teens & young adults & adults & seniors. The Rev. Dr. Oliva Updegrove, former Associate Minister at FCC Orange and current Minister of Family & Children’s Ministry for DHM, has adopted the “&” to symbolize the necessary connections to the generations that influence ministry for young people. Dr. Updegrove provides a bi-monthly newsletter with resources and events from around our General Church that promote “Ministries Across Generations.” In fact, DOCFamilyandChildren.org proudly proclaims the importance of “Connecting the Whole Body to the Whole Mission.” We cannot achieve this vision without being intentional about the connections between generations.

Transitional Ministry may be new to many of our churches, but it has been a part of our regional culture for quite some time. Having visited a majority of the active youth ministries in the PSWR, I can tell you that the dominant model we use in most of our churches is based on grade levels. However, some of our churches (and our largest regional church) have a transitional structure that defines “youth” quite differently. Almost all our African American, Hispanic, and Asian congregations operate in a transitional ministry structure. Youth and Young Adults do ministry together. Young Adults graduate from youth group when they can demonstrate a maturity that warrants the shift. Likewise, in many of our communities of color there is an intentional training program for young people to step into leadership in the church, whereas many Anglo congregations require very little leadership training in order to participate as an adult. It is in these diverse approaches that we are tasked to provide an effective and inclusive Youth and Young Adult Regional Ministry. It is quite a task, but we are making significant progress in finding an effective median.

Recently the PSWR Youth and Young Adult Ministry has responded to the research behind transitional education by providing opportunities for multi-generational discipleship. At UNITE2018 in Redondo Beach this past February, nearly 135 high school youth, young adults, and adult supporters joined together to build leadership and faith skills. At this conference, there was a deep sense that we were all learning and growing together in a balanced and respectful way. The end result was powerful: high school youth were performing as leaders at a level much higher than we have experienced at other regional events while our young adults/adults felt inspired by the energy of their excitement. UNITE2018 demonstrated that multi-generational ministry (with an emphasis on high school youth) nurtures healthy community and mutual learning.

There are some risks associated with multi-generational ministries that certainly need our undivided attention. We are tuned in to the influence of peer pressure and the access young adults have to things experienced in adulthood that high school youth do not. We also understand how important it is to provide education specific to the developmental stages of each participant. For these and other reasons, we strongly encourage and support church communities to provide chaperones at our regional conferences. Likewise, anyone over the age of 25 who is active participant in a Disciples Congregation is welcome to be trained as a camp counselor. Furthermore, it is the policy and practice for all regional youth and young adult events to have supervision of prepared and responsible adults who have undergone a criminal background check. The PSWR Youth and Young Adult Ministry holds the safety of our young people a high priority (evidenced by decades of well-organized and successful programming) and are committed to provide such adult leadership each time we gather together.

Regional youth and young adult ministry functions best when it provides generalized learning experiences that nurture connection among all our 110 congregations, life application for all participants, and faith formation of our young people. We provide these experiences in a diversity of ways: 1) Conferences, 2) Camps, 3) Retreats, 4) Leadership Training (i.e. YLT,

YIM, YALL), 5) Service Projects/Global Missions. PSWR Camps are intentionally age specific. Our Leadership Training ministries (YLT, YIM, and YALL) are also age specific. However, we are also working to address what Barna Research Group calls “vocational discipleship.” This is when we teach “young people about the integration of faith and occupation, helping them to better understand the concept of calling and emphasizing the meaning and theological significance of work (not just their potential for professional or financial success).” (Gen Z, 2018) In order to do this, it is essential that we begin to consider the traditional models of youth ministry (focusing on cognitive spiritual development) insufficient for preparing young people for the “real world” of adulthood. In other words, knowing about God is good, but we also need to help young people apply their faith to their calling in authentic and meaningful ways. The good news is, local congregations and regional ministries can work together to do this really well!

Where local youth ministries are able to provide in-depth biblical formation, Regional Youth and Young Adult Ministries have a broad capacity to provide spiritual support from all over the PSWR. As Disciples, this strikes a beautiful balance consistent to how we operate as an organized Church. Regional staff works to promote and empower local ministries by engaging faith with the resources and opportunities that impact communities in the PSWR and beyond. BUT, we are only able to provide these resources when local youth ministries trust that what we provide is safe and effective for their faith community.

The PSWR Youth and Young Adults Ministry promises to always provide the most effective, appropriate, and meaningful content possible within a safe environment of qualified adult supporters. We are committed to the vision of our General Church while honoring the diversity of faith and practice present in our local churches. With this promise, we are asking for your support. Regional Youth and Young Adult Ministries must start with a devoted and trusting partnership with local churches. None of us are our best without one another. The more we all work together to make it happen, the better our chances are for a stronger future in youth and young adult ministries. We must be willing to think outside the box to provide ministries that are welcoming to all young people in the PSWR. I would love the opportunity to continue the conversation with interested leaders so that we can strengthen our partnership in providing the best ministry possible for our young people. Why should we do this? Well, because the faith of our young people depends on it.

On the Journey Together in Christ,

Rev. Benjamin J. Barlow
Associate Regional Minister

For more information on ministries, organizations, and resources that support the concept of transitional education, please visit the following websites: www.youthbuild.org, www.stickyfaith.org, https://www.barna.com/product/gen-z/, http://www2.oaklandnet.com/government/o/DHS/s/YouthYoungAdults/OAK022075, https://naaee.org/eepro/blog/intergenerational-education