MORE ON CROSS-CULTURAL PARTNERSHIPS

Since 2002 we have had a sister church relationship with a Navajo congregation at Tsaile AZ. During this time we have sent three teams to conduct Vacation Bible School for them. Generally this has meant 85 to 125 children, teens, and adults. You can read about this in an earlier post.

This effort with Tsaile has created some interest and momentum in partnerships closer to home. As people have returned from the Navajo Reservation overflowing with stories of ministry and changed lives (including theirs), people who cannot make the commitment in time and money have sought ways to get out of the familiar territory of in-house programs. We were one of the original members of the Lancaster County Council of Churches. LCCC has made a high priority ministry to the poor and the homeless. Our people have embraced a Feeding Team ministry housed at an inner city Lutheran Church. The entire church is involved in providing food stuffs for the meal. A smaller team of 6-7 persons prepare the meal in our church kitchen on Wednesday night, and then an additional team of 12-15 persons go to the site and serve those persons in their care. But as they have fed the folks there, people in our team have started "paying attention" to the lives of their clients. More and more they have sought ways to begin dialoguing with the people, and providing ways to meet spiritual needs, as well. As my congregation is predominately white and middle class and their guests are generally poor-white, Hispanic, and African-American; this serve as a regular cross cultural ministry. We now have more than 25 persons from various parts of the church who have made this their ministry.

Meanwhile, our people are planning an additional VBS to Tsaile next summer. Scenes like those in this post will be repeated with new faces and new lives changed,

Next post: Why we believe cross cultural partnerships are essential to the outward-focused church.