A Beautiful Desire

Written by David Coon

A few months ago, we had a new addition to our worship team. Anthony's story is like many young boys these days. His father is gone, so just he and his mom make up his family. I constantly see how he seeks approval and love from the men at Mission Adelante. He has boundless energy and often does things to get attention. However, more than anything, he loves to drum!

Since Anthony has started playing with our team, he has brought so much enthusiasm and joy to the group. He has been playing the djimbe (hand drum) with us and is by far the most talented 8 year old drummer I’ve ever met. I brought up a drum set a couple of weeks ago to let Anthony try out during rehearsal. I was amazed yet again! He played with such enthusiasm and skill! He is an absolute natural on the drum set. Since that day, he hasn't stopped asking when he's going to play drums in the Sunday service because he loved playing them so much. I have to remind myself to be patient with him as he overflows with excitement.

His mom, who sings with our group, often tells him that God is going to do great things with him. If I imagine Anthony in 10 years, I see him in front of a large congregation surrounded by drums and cymbals, playing his heart out. I am blessed to see the beauty of a young boy deeply yearning to use his gifts.

It’s apparent to me now that what Anthony desires is to be needed by the body and to serve in the way he's been made to serve. He needs to know that he matters and that he is a beautifully made child of God, his true Father. He is, in the eyes of Jesus, a precious little one in his great flock.

Current needs:

• Curtains for our classroom windows. As the windows aren't standard sizes, these would best be custom made by someone. If you could purchase the fabric and/or sew the curtains, please contact Marla at marlah@missionadelante.org or 913-281-6274.

Blessings of Children's Ministry

Written by Brooke Coon

On Sunday December 19, a group of Bhutanese and Latino kids, plus a handful of leaders, boarded a big yellow bus bound for Westside Family Church. The Mission Adelante kids were invited to join the Westside kids to sing a couple Christmas songs and bring to life the coming sermon about the joy and wonder of Christmas. Like proud mamas, the leaders had tears in their eyes as the kids began to sing. However, what really moved me was what continued as we sat through the service.

Our kids sat down and another children's choir performed. They vibrantly sang "I'm trading my sorrow for the joy of the Lord." One of the Mission Adelante girls sitting next to me leaned over and asked, "What does trading my sorrows mean?" My heart just melted as I have never heard such an important question from this pre-teen. I whispered back to her, "It means we are giving our sorrow to Jesus, letting him take our sadness from us, and receiving joy from our hope in Him." There are times when you think kids aren't paying attention at all and then there are times when they desire to understand every lyric of a worship song.

As the sermon went on, the congregation passed around a bowl for offerings and commitments for children's programs that Westside has in other countries. The same girl asked me what the bowl was for. After I explained it to her, she told me she had five dollars in her stuff upstairs. The simplicity of her response was beautiful. She didn't need to think about it and she didn't need to ask any more questions. She just knew that there was a need and she wanted to help.

I praise God for these precious moments where we get to witness Mission Adelante’s youth seeking to know Him more. They are the treasures that I store in my heart to keep me going through the daily tasks of children's ministry. There was a beauty that Sunday that spoke to the wonder of God...that He is so complex yet so simple. He is so approachable that even children can grasp the gospel of salvation and peace. He works through every creature, young and old. And oftentimes, the greatest blessing can be when the children reach out and minister to us!

In other news:

• There was a great turnout to the Latino worship community's Christmas Eve service. A highlight of the evening was the open mic time, when about 7 people gave testimony of God's faithfulness to them.
• The Mission Adelante office was closed between Christmas and New Year's Day, which allowed staff members to spend extra time with immigrant friends including Brooke and David Coon, who invited several families to their home on Christmas Eve.
• Lauren Timberlake has begun fundraising to join our staff as the Bhutanese ESL Director. She's already made a great contribution as a volunteer, so we're really eager to have her in the office more!

Prayer needs:

• Praise God with us! The family that we've been praying for during the past few months was finally reunited on New Year's Eve!
• Please pray for the time Jarrett is spending in Qba this week and next, specifically that God will guide the development of the ministry team there during a leader's retreat the rest of this week.
• Join us in asking God for his guidance of our final planning for the upcoming trimester, and for the provision of more volunteers.
• Pray for God's provision of funding for David Coon, Kristen Maxwell, and Lauren Timberlake to join the Mission Adelante staff.

Current needs:

• A drum set, and bass amplifier for our worship team. Please contact David Coon at 913-424-0213 if you can donate any of these items.

Upcoming dates:

• Volunteer Orientation & Training: Saturday, January 15 @ 9:00 - Noon. All volunteers are encouraged to attend this Saturday orientation once. Please contact Morgan at morganh@missionadelante.org for more details.
• Volunteer Team Meeting: Monday, January 17 @ 6:30. All volunteers serving during the upcoming trimester are encouraged to attend this meeting in preparation of the launch.
• L.I.T. resumes: Monday, January 17.
• Bhutanese Outreach Trimester Launch: Tuesday, January 18 @ 6:30
• Latino Outreach Trimester Launch: Thursady, January 20 @ 6:30