J17 Ministries
in collaboration with various
ministries in Tucson and beyond
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IN THIS ISSUE
New
News about J17 Ministries
Connecting the Body
Harmony Hub
Collaboration Corner
Upcoming Events
John 17 Weekends
Church of the Week
J17 Ministries Open House
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Greetings!
Opportunities aren't just knocking, they're pounding down the door... and walls... and...
Last week the Center of Opportunity held its dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday. The pictures here are from that celebration. This is such a huge story that in attendance were the media, the governor, the mayor, representatives from the city council and county board of supervisors... even a Presbyterian pastor donned the stage (Andy Ross, from our own board of directors).
Christians aren't the only ones who care for the homeless, of course. But how amazing is it that the Gospel Rescue Mission was invited to take the lead in this game-changing Center of Opportunity?!
We were invited to move our international headquarters (haha) to the Center of Opportunity because our part is unity and collaboration, starting with the Christian community, but extending as far as God provides... opportunity.
Oh, what a great day to be alive! What a great day to call Tucson home!
Dave Drum, Founder
J17 Ministries
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New
News about
J17 MINISTRIES
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Welcome
new subscribers from the Center of Opportunity Open House, Voyager Chapel, and others!
You're invited!
We have finished moving in to J17 Ministries' first-ever office space, located at the
HSL Center of Opportunity, and you're invited to check it out!
We'll be there today from 4 - 6 pm. The address is: 4550 S. Palo Verde Rd (
map). Thank you to everyone who has donated to make this space a reality!
Funding update
As you'll recall, we undertook a 50-day fundraising campaign in March and April, but only reached approximately 60% of our funding needs. We fully trust that the Lord is faithful and will provide for J17 Ministries and its staff, we just don't know how. If you haven't already partnered financially with us, will you consider doing so today? Click
here to get started.
Unity series
Did you have a chance to watch the first video yet? We sure hope so because the second one is already live! Feel free to share this unity series from Pastor Dave Drum, either in its video or written forms, by checking out our
Facebook page,
YouTube channel, or
Website.
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Pima Medical Institute recently moved into its new office building and is donating furniture from its previous space. Items are available
FREE to any ministry or agency with need for office and/or classroom furniture. Check out the
photo album of what is available
here. Bring your truck(s) to 3350 E. Grant Rd. (
map) on
Thursday, May 23, from 12 - 4:30 pm. Everyone is welcome; all items are as-is and available first-come, first-served.
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God Brings Unity and Transformation
God has the power to transform the lives of vulnerable people.
That truth is the heartbeat of everything we do at Reconciled World. Indeed, in one of our programs, Truth Centered Transformation (TCT), we’ve seen Him transform a thousand communities out of poverty. The TCT program doesn’t do development projects or bring outside resources of any kind. Rather, we offer simple discipleship to Majority World churches in extremely poor areas. Through ten trainings over five years, we teach churches the biblical truths that God cares about life’s daily struggles and challenges, that every aspect of life is meant to glorify Him, and that His commands to love our neighbors, build His kingdom, and steward His creation are for all believers. The teachings are simple and practical. There is nothing very special about the program...except that, in village after village, as His people have sought to be obedient, God has intervened to lift entire communities out of poverty.
One of the first signs of God’s transforming activity in most of these communities has been greater unity in the Church. We hear many testimonies like these:
- “There’s great reconciliation between two communities who used to fight with each other. Before...they had to each have their own leader, but now they have just one. Now they always go to church together.”
- “In the community and in the church there is peace now. Before there were rivalries between denominations, no fellowship, bad feeling, and hatred between them. Now they can have fellowship with one another.”
- “In the beginning, when I visited different churches, some churches said, ‘You can’t stay here more than one night because you are not from our denomination.’ ...people thought if I stayed longer I would try to steal church members...But now I can visit and stay as long as I want.”
- “Their attitude between different denominations has changed. Before they couldn’t do anything together, but now they can have combined fellowship, combined class...anything they can do together. Now they have a heart to help one another.”
As God gives unity to the churches, the community witnesses their love and service. Incredible things can happen. For example, in DR Congo, about 20 churches worked together to protect their community from Ebola. In May 2018, multiple cases of Ebola virus were confirmed in Equateur Province. There was great concern that if Ebola reached Equateur’s riverport city of Mbandaka, it would spread from there to Kinshasa and other major cities. The TCT partner churches in Mbandaka quickly mobilized to help stop the spread of the virus. The churches suspended baptisms and introduced hand washing before taking communion. Members were asked not even to shake hands in greeting. The churches brought trainings to every member about how to prevent the disease, so that even the children were able to explain it. And they
worked to dispel some common myths in the area that Ebola was the result of witchcraft or a scheme to scare people into paying for unnecessary treatments. They even did radio broadcasts to educate the community. They also reached out to support people who had lost loved ones and took medicine to patients in quarantine areas. The churches’ messages and good example spread throughout the entire population, and Ebola never took hold in the city.
It’s amazing what God can do when His people live and work together in unity!
Harmony Hub Contributor:
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Cultural Leadership Through the Unified Body of Christ
Did you know there are over one-hundred nonprofits in Tucson funded to impact our culture through music and art? Some of them are well-known, like the Fox Theatre or the Museum of Contemporary Art. Others are obscure, like the Society For Preservation and Encouragement of Barbershop Quartet Singing America. You know, SFPEBQSA! Many of these organizations exist because they know that music and art move culture.
How are all these organizations shaping the culture of Tucson? How is our culture affecting the perception of the Gospel? In what ways is the Church providing cultural leadership here? Are we able to influence the culture of our city?
The reality is we, as the body of Christ, have everything we need to lead the culture of Tucson. Music and art gain influence through the size and strength of its network, and as Christians we have access to the greatest network in all of human history! It’s a network of brothers and sisters, a new family through the blood of Jesus Christ, extending across racial, denominational, socio-economic, and generational lines. We have the opportunity to leverage our network along with our talents and skills to lead the cultural development of our community, creating music and art that reflect the Good News of Jesus to a society so inundated with counterfeit messages. Tucson needs cultural leadership from the Church. We can provide it immediately.
We also have the most compelling reason to lead the development of Tucson’s culture. There are so many people in our city who don’t know yet that the Good News of Jesus Christ is really great news. Imagine if the Church worked together to cast a fresh vision of Jesus in Tucson through music and arts so everyone in our community could see that His Good News is great news for them and for our whole city. There are many Christian musicians and artists who want to use their talents to glorify God and make a difference in Tucson, but don’t know how. As a Christian community we can start by empowering the artists and musicians around us to consider how they can utilize their talents for kingdom impact outside the walls of the Church. Also, we can encourage them to find other Christian musicians and artists to connect with. City Psalms can help. We’ve been working with musicians and artists for years to help them use their talents to glorify God and make a difference in Tucson. The Church has an opportunity in this season to step up and lead the culture of our city. All that's required is a decision. If we choose to collaborate, share resources, and work toward a common vision in the area of music and art we can drastically impact the culture of Tucson. Isn't it worth it?
Collaboration Corner Contributor:
Brian Goodall, Executive Director of City Psalms
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Check out the latest opportunities to strengthen
your faith and connect with the community.
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Highlighted here
are events coming up immediately.
Click the button below
for a complete listing of events.
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What's happening for
everyone
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What's happening for
pastors
?
- Pastor Partners
- Pastors' Edge is taking June and July off.
- Stay tuned for exciting new possibilities for the Pastor Prayer Summits!
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If you are part of an area event promoting unity and collaboration among the citywide Body of Christ and beyond and would like it included in an upcoming newsletter, please click
HERE
to submit your request.
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Men's weekend: July 18-21
Women's weekend: July 25-28
The weekends are only about 2 months away, and spots are filling fast. The men's weekend is about 1/4 full and the women's weekend is already 1/2 full!
Even if you aren't 100% certain you can attend, if you want to save a spot, now is the time to apply.
Submit your application now and be part this year's Tucson-area Christian discipleship weekend that emphasizes the essentials of the Christian life and walk.
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