Living Life-on-Life

Written by Jenny Dunn, Bhutanese ESL Coordinator

Hannah Hume with two Bhutanese teen girls

One of our core values at Mission Adelante is to make disciples and leaders that are capable of reproducing the work of Jesus. This past year, our staff read and discussed the book The Master Plan of Evangelism by Robert E. Coleman. This book does an incredible job of bringing to life the way that Jesus made disciples as we look through the Gospels.

One of His strategies was association.  Coleman says that Jesus made a habit of "being with them". Jesus taught these men his way by drawing them close to himself. It seems to be too simple as we consider the instruction in all the curriculum and books that tell us how to disciple.  Jesus was his own school and curriculum!   We at Mission Adelante are not opposed to such things as tools, but we find it very refreshing to see that anyone can make disciples simply by intentionally being with people and capturing teachable moments.

Our staff has grown so much in this area since we studied this book together.  For example, a couple months ago, my husband and I had a painting day at our house. We had been painting for a little while when Hannah Hume, the Bhutanese Teens Coordinator called.  She told me that she was coming over and bringing some Bhutanese teens along. I knew this was going to be interesting because most of the Bhutanese have never painted before.  When they arrived we assigned them to priming the basement stairway.  While they worked, I was painting the door to the basement, so I got to overhear their conversation.  I got to hear how Hannah teaches them about following Jesus in small and ordinary things, like how Jesus asks us to treat others with respect and that means not priming your sister’s hair.

This is just one example of how our friends learn about Jesus’ heart by spending time with Jesus-followers. The staff and volunteers at Mission Adelante pray that many will know Jesus and love Him through their association with us.

In other news:

• Cody Lorance and his family from Trinity International Baptist Mission in the Chicago area came to visit Mission Adelante to see the ministry and share some training and experiences.  It was a wonderful time of learning, friendship and fellowship with them.
• Marlen, Gissel, and Lorenzo have been Leaders In Training during the past few school years, and will be our first graduates of the tutoring program! As the three are completing eighth-grade this year, they've reached the upper limit of the LIT program. We are excited to celebrate their accomplishment at the party on Saturday!
• Welcome to the Mission Adelante Community, Elsa Louise Holland! Latino ESL Level 1 Coordinator Jacob Holland and wife Michelle welcomed Elsa early Tuesday morning. Mother and baby are very well and big sisters Adie and Keziah couldn't be more excited!

Prayer needs:

• Pray for the parties this weekend that conclude our spring trimester!  Pray for moments of sweet fun and fellowship for our community members and volunteers.
• Please continue to pray for a neighborhood family who is mourning the death of their 14 year old son, killed in a drive-by shooting nearly two weeks ago.
• Pray for God’s favor over two Latinos in our community who are applying for U.S. residency.

Current needs:

• Dance party lights that we could borrow for the Bhutanese Spring Party this Sunday. Contact Jenny Dunn for more information: jennyd@missionadelante.org.
• The Bhutanese Spring party on April 14th is a bowling party and we need new socks in kid, teen, and adult sizes by Saturday, April 13th. Contact Jenny Dunn for more information: jennyd@missionadelante.org.
• Our Resource Center is low on gently-used kitchen items. Please contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org to set up a time to drop-off your donation.  Please help us out by not leaving donations inside or outside our facility.  Thanks!

Important dates:

Please note: The dates of the Latino and Bhutanese Spring Parties are reversed on the "2013 Key Dates" magnets. The dates listed here are correct.

• Saturday, April 13, 5:00-8:00: Latino Spring Party, at Bethany Community Center.  Please come and help us celebrate the accomplishments of our ESL, Teens, Kids Adelante, and L.I.T. students this trimester and honor volunteers with sustained service. Bethany Community Center is located on Central Avenue in Kansas City, Kansas (66102) between 11th and 12th Streets, behind the fire station.
• Sunday, April 14, 5:00-8:00: Bhutanese Spring Party, at St. John's Catholic Club and Community Center, 720 N. 4th Street, Kansas City, KS 66101.  Please come and help us celebrate the accomplishments of our ESL, Teens Club, Kids Club, and L.I.T. students this trimester and honor volunteers with sustained service.
• Saturday, May 4, 2:00: Bhutanese ESL Volunteer Snacks and Training, at Lauren Timberlake’s house. Please consider joining us for fun, prayer and some cultural training as we keep learning how to love the Bhutanese well. Please contact Jenny Dunn at jennyd@missionadelante.org for more details.