Dr. Mathews Appreciation for Math Madness Support

Here is a letter of appreciation from Gwen Mathews, Ph.D:

Dear Kingdom Causes,

I wanted to take a moment to express my deep gratitude to you for helping to make our First Annual District-wide Middle School Mathematics Competition a tremendous success.  Thanks in large part to your efforts, our students were treated to a first-class event to recognized their hard work in the classroom.  By providing valuable volunteer services, as well as nutritious snacks for this memorable day, your time, talents and treasures provided the foundation for an unforgettable academic competition for over 400 students and their families.

Our Math Madness competition was like no other in recent history.  Countless family members joined students, staff and community members to cheer-on our students.  While we have been fortunate to enjoy this high level of enthusiasm and participation for athletic events, I know you will agree that it is inspiring to see this type of support and encouragement for students who are determined to be champions in the classroom as well.

Thank you again for being an integral part of our district-wide middle school math competition.  This wonderful event simply could not have come together without the determination of dedicated people, such as you.  I am quite confident that the smiles on students' and families' faces, and the sense of pride that comes from participating in such a unique event, will remain with us all for a very long time to come.  We look forward to working with you again, as we continue to provide a world-class education for every student, every day.

Sincerely,

Gwendolyn H. Mathews, Ph.D

Assistant Superintendent

We, at Kingdom Causes, would like to reiterate Dr. Mathews' appreciation.  Thank you for coming along side us in supporting the school district.  Thank you for volunteering your time and loving on these students and their families!

..Grace does much more abound

At Kingdom Causes,one of our priorities is the Church of the City of Long Beach. To that end we host a prayer meeting for the pastors of the City on the first Wednesday of each month. We move from place to place in order to highlight local congregations and to hear the pastor's heart and pray for him and his congregation. This month we met at the Salvation Army on Spring Street.
Our first order of "business" was to address an issue of infidelity by a high-profile local leader and give the younger pastors opportunity to ask questions and the older pastors opportunity to speak into the situation. There were around 30-40 leaders in the room and I saw them rally around the church and family of the fallen leader to support them and make themselves available to them. A clear line was drawn that the Church in Long Beach will not tolerate the sin, and will not bless this brother in what he's trying to now establish in Long Beach. There was also an invitation from the older pastors to anyone who might be struggling with any of these issues to come and seek private counsel. We held hands and prayed for the church that has been left and betrayed, the family and the City. There were tears and pleas before the throne of grace for the restoration of the brother and a uniting in one accord around this issue. I (Judy) felt the tearing that happened when the wife and congregation found out they had been betrayed and abandoned and watched as others around the room sent their heartfelt requests to the Lord on their behalf.
As we moved into the second half of the morning we heard from Commander Glen Madsen of the Salvation Army. He shared about who the SA is and how they were started, and dispelled many misconceptions surrounding the Army. We really got his heart for the message of Jesus Christ for the lost and dying and his call to his mission. We also heard about the new Kroc center that is being built along PCH to serve the down and out population of Long Beach. What a blessing to our City this will be! And as I listened, I heard the scripture - "where sin abounds, grace does much more abound." Where one pastor has sown sin, betrayal and abandonment, the Lord's mercy for Long Beach has given beyond measure in this Center that will serve our City through the generosity of the McDonald's family and the dedication to excellence exhibited by Commander Glen Madsen of the Salvation Army. You will be hearing more about the Kroc center in months to come - look for it, you will be excited.
Yeah God!!!

Season of Repentance

A local pastor who’s been pastoring the same church for 25 years, Doug Richardson of Long Beach Christian Fellowship, has called his congregation into a season of repentance. It began March 24 and will go until Pentecost. You can go to www.lbcf.org to read his invitation. The church will have its doors open for a service each evening for the entire time. I went to one of these services and was thoroughly blessed. The presence of the Lord was there to gently remind me of the ways I was out of His will. It was a small intimate gathering where worship and prayer were the order of the evening. The atmosphere was inviting and there was no pressure to “do” anything except be there and pray, or not as you felt comfortable. The sincerity and humility of the people in the room was so refreshing that I came away knowing that I had been truly in the Presence of the Creator of the whole earth.

Personal note from Judy: I believe Doug has a voice for the City of Long Beach and I would ask you to consider joining him and his church in this season and see what our Father has for you...

Crazy for Math Madness

Math in general is difficult to do, but math in the morning is insane.  On March 1, 2008, middle school students from all 26 LBUSD middle and K-8 schools were challenged to Math Madness.  It is the first annual, all district math competition in Long Beach.  Gwen Mathews, Assistant Superintendent, asked KCLB to provide snacks for the students and volunteers for the event.  KCLB was able to make 450 snack packs filled with a water bottle, granola bar, and fruit snacks.  We also had many volunteers come to Math Madness to help with the breakfast for the parents and other tasks for the competition.  Thank you to all the volunteers who help welcome the parents and students and to make the event go smoothly.  I was impressed by the excitement of the students and the support of the parents and LBUSD staff (teachers, principals, and counselors).  All the students had a T-shirt representing their school at Math Madness.  It was great to see kids excited for math and were encouraged to study and to achieve in their math skills.  It was pretty intense.  The first round they narrowed down the group to three students representing their math level and grade level.  Proctors told me students wanted to continue to complete the math problems and practice their skills even after they were eliminated in the first round.  The Jeopardy round was also very impressive.  It was like real Jeopardy.  They even had real buzzards.  The students who place 1st, 2nd, and 3rd each received a reward.  Many of the students who participated in Math Madness found it to be a great experience and were looking forward to the next year's competition.  I am also excited for the next Math Madness.  I was a little envious of the students because I wished when I was attending Mary Butler K-8 school that I had Math Madness to look forward to.

An alive, vibrant church in our inner city

Oh my goodness! What have I been missing?! Sunday morning a friend and I visited Antioch Missionary Baptist Church on Gundry and 15th. We were a little late arriving and couldn't find a parking place and as we were driving and looking, this smiling man in a van pulled alongside us and told us if we would park in the parking lot his van would take us to the church. The first thing I noticed about him was his genuine, from the heart smile. He and his little boy perform this service each Sunday morning for their church. I found out there are a lot of people like him at that place.... When we arrived the place was packed out and they were praying and worshiping and such music!!! They were having such a wonderful time praising their Lord and there was no way anyone could stay sitting down for it! (there will be a lot of exclamation points in this piece!) As the service progressed you could tell there was a real investment on the part of the congregation and they loved each other, their church and their pastor. His message on sin was one of the best I've ever heard, delivered from such a heart of love and care for his people and connection with God's heart for His people. He made his points with passion, conviction, clarity, humor and sound Biblical theology. The presence of God's spirit was evident and was experienced by both me and my friend! Pastor Wayne Chaney, Jr. has an annointing and a heritage in and to the City of Long Beach that's evident. He spoke about the job fair they were having after the service where business owners who are part of his congregation are in booths to advertise their services. Pastor Chaney said he was doing this because of the coming recession and he wants to care for his people by letting others know of their services. He asked us to go to them first and give them a try and if they don't deliver, go somewhere else, but give the "family" the first shot. This young man truly has a shepherd's heart!
The final thing he did that so impressed me was to interrupt his closing prayer by saying that God frequently tells him something about the congregation but this time showed him something about himself. He said he wants to continue to preach with integrity and honor and can't do it in himself and asked each member of the congregation to pray for him at least once during the day. He had spoken on the sin of David with Bathsheeba and was well aware of the pitfalls pastors are prey to and asked his people to stand with him in prayer to keep him in purity for at least the next 45 to 50 years.
My invitation to you is to keep this man of God in prayer as he asked and to visit his church and experience for yourself the love of God. Then either stay and participate or carry it back to your own neighborhood. You will be encouraged and refreshed.....

Prayer meeting at Covenant Presbyterian Church

One of the things I believe the Lord has put on my heart is to visit churches in the City during their prayer meetings and/or worship services. I’m not sure what He will do with that, but as I have prayed for many years for the Church in the city (whatever city I’ve been in) for pastors to come together I’ve also begun praying for intercessors to unite. Our web-page for prayer is one effort along those lines and blogging my visiting experiences is another. For me to effectively pray for unity, I probably need to come out of my comfortable “prayer box” and pray with others who converse with their Father differently than I. This blog is about the prayer meeting at 5:00 on Saturday for Covenant Presbyterian Church on 3rd Street in downtown Long Beach.
I first met Pastor Rob Langworthy at our morning City Pulse 2008 meeting. I fell in love with him first because at our 8:00 am meeting he was asking where the chocolate was since it’s one of the major food groups. I quickly brought it out and the chocoholics gathered…
As we spoke further I discovered him to be “the real deal” – sold out for oue Lord. He stood and “watched” as City Pulse went on and his presence was an open invitation to experience the love of Jesus. His church is a giving, vital presence in that corner of God’s world. Once instance of that is their tutoring program every afternoon M-Th for the neighborhood kids and the figure I heard was 250 kids in the program. About half of them attend Sunday School and most of them come without their parents (a point for prayer). On the other end of the age scale, they have a senior apartment complex next door where the residents are not only ministered to by Pastors Rob and Adele, but encouraged to minister outward themselves. I met one of the residents, who is a substitute tutor, at the prayer meeting I attended Saturday. That prayer meeting has been going for many years and the testimonies of ministry, healing and provision were inspiring. Praying with people of all different streams is a wonderful experience. It shatters my “right” way to pray and let’s me discover God’s magnificent creativity and diversity. We sat around a table with a wide mix of cultures, ages and walks of life, with a prayer list (I don’t do lists) and began to beseech the Father of Light in His heavenly courtrooms for “our daily bread.” I heard petitions for sons and daughters, for kids in their middle school program, for people they’re ministering to in their neighborhood, for missionaries in Africa as well as petitions for their local body among many other things. Pastor Rob led the meeting, but I heard that if he isn’t there, it continues under the capable direction of one of the women in the congregation. She is a seasoned intercessor and has been praying for unity among pastors of her denomination for many years. I came away blessed and encouraged at this living testimony to God presencing Himself in a life-giving way in the heart of our City. Personal note: I am so grateful for the prayer list because I can bring it with me to remember some of what we prayed for……
Their website is www.covenantlb.org. I encourage you to visit.

Kingdom Causes Emergency Prep Task Force at City Council

On March 11, we on the Kingdom Causes Emergency Preparedness Task Force presented our efforts to coordinate emergency preparedness among neighbors by mobilizing worship centers to be equipped and trained in the event of a large-scale emergency. This was one day after the 75th anniversary of the March 10, 1933 earthquake of 6.4 magnitude which caused millions of dollars in damage and tragically took the lives of 120 people. We have two local congregations fully invested in this effort which is our pilot project. They are The River and Glad Tidings. Representatives from both congregations spoke before City Council and gave their reasons for doing this and the effect it's having on their neighborhoods as well as their congregations. Councilmember Rae Gabelich from the Eighth District presented the item to go before City Council where it was received unanimously. We are preparing to go public with this effort and enroll other houses of worship that want to be trained, equipped and resourced with other City emergency services and the Red Cross to be a resource to their neighbors in a time of city-wide emergency.
Our Glad Tidings team showed out en-masse in full EP gear (they've all been CERT certified) and looked quite official and were an inviting presence to enroll others to be involved in this effort. The representative from The River spoke about their passion for Jesus as their reason for wanting to impact their neighborhood and was very effective in presenting the Christian posture of being salt and light for the city. Brad, as always, set up the room in an engaging manner and was enrolling in his invitation to the council to receive our report and to further coordinate efforts between houses of worship and the city.

I could lift a car!

During CERT we learned light search and rescue and cribbing.  They trained us how to properly search a building in the dark and with no flashlights.  We place our right hand on the wall to guide us around each wall of the building.  During our training,  we had to partner up and search a dark tower that they use in the fire academy to find "Jose".  Jose is a dummy made of rolled up hoses, hence the name "Jose".  It was really dark and scary because some of the assistant firefighters were hiding in the dark to see if we would find them.  We also learned how to safely lift up a car if a victim was trapped underneath.  The fastest way is to use your own strength and lift the car by pressing your back against the side of the car.  But we also learned cribbing as a technique to slowly but safely lift a car or any heavy object off a victim.  We use a bar and anchor to lift the car.  When the car is lifted, we place blocks of wood like a Jenga tower underneath the space one layer at a time.  We continue the same process until we have enough space to drag the victim out of the area.

They also taught us how to properly lift a victim out of a building.  They suggest having two people carry one body by using chairs, doors, or blankets.  There is a single lift.  I wanted to see if I would be able to carry a person just on my own, so I practiced on a dummy (see picture).  Just kidding Brad, I love you!  But, Brad if you need a hand just know that I am willing to carry you through.

Susana to the rescue!

One of the local causes KCLB is involved with is Emergency Preparedness.  There are four different levels of involvement.  Well one of the levels is to be CERT certified.  What is CERT you may ask?  It is Community Emergency Response Team.  The Long Beach Fire Department trains regular citizens how to react in the case of an emergency.  We are trained to help and not become part of the problem during a disaster.  So some of the KCLB staff decided to take the class together. We are learning how to organize ourselves into different roles, disaster psychology, fire suppression, search and rescue, triage, and more.  But the greatest thing about CERT is the fashionable gear you receive when you graduate the program.  Wouldn't you feel safe when you see a whole crowd of people wearing these?

Visiting local congregations

It's been a goal of mine to visit local congregations in the city and also prayer meetings. This week I was able to do one of each. The Lighthouse church on Studebaker has a prayer meeting on Thursday eve at 7:00 pm. I was welcomed into their circle. Pastor Theimens is heading up the WOW jam endeavor again this year and while we did pray over that, their heart was very much for other congregations and City concerns. He reports that more and more pastors are rallying around this very worthwile effort. Last year over 1014 filled out cards for being brand new believers. They couldn't count the rest because they ran out of cards!! The spirit in that prayer meeting was one of worship, humiity and faith to believe our Good God. They prayed for personal needs as well and want to be part of our 1000 intercessors praying in unity over our City.

This morning I had heard stories of healing coming out of The Light that meets at Alvarado School just across the street from our offices. David Hino is the pastor and the Lord is leading him to explore and minister in the area of healing prayer both for physical healing, but also emotional and generational healing. I had heard a report of two people being set free from their addictions after receiving prayer and I have a friend that is in a lot of pain so I took her. As they prayed they felt like they would like to pray again, so they're making an appointment to pray sometime this week for her - a congregation that cares and is willing to extend themselves to a stranger. After the service they were going to go into the park and minister to the people there. The Lord has been impressing me with the scripture about "open wide your mouth and I will fill it" and it seems this congregation of wonderful people is doing just that. I believe God will increase them and fill their mouths with faith.
It's exciting to visit new places in the City and see the different expressions of His love.

Second Saturday Prayer

Five of us gathered in the dark to pray - one a local pastor and one a local intercessor and we prayed. The intercessor wept, the worshipper led us in sweet, sweet worship and we prayed. We prayed over the pastor and his local congregation and his heart for the gang members in his area, and we prayed over him as stand-in for all the pastors in Long Beach. We declared Shalom over the City, and a spirit of reconciliation and unity....we prayed over two local congregations who have had sudden deaths recently and the grief and confusion that comes with that. We thanked our Lord for inviting us into His throne-room and the wonder of that. Praying from our vantage point overlooking the City really gives us a unique view of the city we're praying over. Kingdom Causes is having a "City Pulse 2008" meeting Tuesday to tell people what the possibilities are for local service, to connect with other Kingdom minded believers and to hear what we believe is God's heart for our City. We prayed over that.
These times of prayer are refreshing, faith-building and filling.
Try it - you'll come away refreshed!

Unite to Ignite

I want to make you aware of an event happening this Saturday, February 9th at 1pm. It's a gathering of different denominations, cultures and ages to seek God through united and passionate prayer, worship and fasting. It's being held at the church of one of our local pastors who is quite active in her community through Emergency Preparedness and other community services. She is Barbara Gilliam of the Glad Tidings Tabernacle, at 1900 E. South St., 90805. You can email her at BGilliam at GladTT.org for more information. The website for this event is jesusrevusa.com and a voicemail number is 800-850-8534

Local prayer gathering this evening

Here is the latest from Pastor Joe:

"I have a bit more news.

First, a correction. I am told that Isaac passed before any decision about his life support was necessary.

Scott knows about Isaac, and is understandably quite devastated. Andrea and Scott are in the same room, or "pod". Andrea was asked to move her toes and fingers, and moved them a little. I do not believe she is aware of the loss of Isaac at this time, but I do not know for sure.

I'd like to set up a time to gather for prayer this evening at the church. If you can't come, that's OK - you can pray with us wherever you are. If you can come, there is often comfort in being with God's people in difficult times. I'm thinking that we should make it about 6 PM. Assume that's the case unless you hear differently. There will be people in the office at church starting at 3; anyone who wants to come earlier than 6 is (of course) welcome. Please help spread the word."

"Rollover Crash Kills 3"

Here is the latest news release from this morning:

Rollover Crash Kills 3

LITTLETON, Colo. - Three people were killed when a van carrying six people to a church collided with another vehicle and rolled over several times.The crash happened on C-470 near Santa Fe Sunday. Two adults and a child died in the crash.Littleton police said the accident occurred when a man driving a Jeep had a medical condition that caused him to lose control. Investigators said the Jeep hit the Chevrolet van, which then rolled several times.Two passengers in the van remained in critical condition Monday. The van driver was hospitalized in stable condition. The driver of the Jeep and his passenger had minor injuries.

Good and Sad news...

"This morning Andrea wiggled her fingers and toes a little. She's stable and doing well. That's the good news, and it is very good.

The bad news is that they've made a decision to remove dear little Isaac from life support. I can hardly imagine how difficult this must be for everyone.

Please continue to pray."
--Pastor Joe

I talked with pastor Joe this morning and he said that it turned out that baby Issac actually passed away before they removed him from life support as he had mentioned in that email.

What a sad day. Let's all continue to be praying for this family and all those loved ones affected so deeply. I can't even imagine.......................

Come Lord Jesus, Come

Pray, pray, pray for the Swards!

I just recieved a horrible email from Pastor Joe Ginder! We need to pray! Lord have mercy!

One of the young leadership couples from Long Beach, Scott and Andrea Sward (Andrea was involved in 30 under 40), were involved in a horrible traffic accident while in Colorado for missionary training. Here is part of the email I just read:

"I'd like to ask for prayer for Scott and Andrea Sward and their 18-month old son Isaac. Next Sunday we were to commission them to go to Cambodia; they were to leave a few days after that. This week they were completing their final pre-field training at MTI in Colorado Springs.

This afternoon after our service we got news that they were in a terrible accident near Denver. They were were driving with 3 other missionaries to a church near Denver this morning. We don't know who the others were, but believe there were in training at MTI also. Two of the other missionaries were killed. Scott and Andrea are in critical condition, Andrea with really serious injuries including many broken bones , a punctured lung, and a spinal injury. She's out of surgery and stable. Scott is also out of surgery for internal bleeding and stable. Isaac is in extremely critical condition and was air-lifted to Denver Children's Hospital. You can read more about the accident and watch videos at Denver-area news outlets, like 9news.com, cbs4denver.com, myfoxcolorado.com, or denverpost.com. The accident was on C-470 and two were killed - that's enough to recognize the headlines and get to videos of news coverage. We're kind if in a state of shock; next Sunday was shaping up to be a really big deal in the life of our church. We trust God no matter what, and pray for their recovery - we're really concerned about Isaac, and it sounds like Andrea's in for a long rehabilitation to an unknown state of health. It's been a tough day.

Both Scott and Andrea's parents are already in Denver (they were on an airplane within 6-7 hours of the accident), and we have support from some sister churches in Denver helping them out. We also have someone from our church living in the Denver area who is able to be with them. Right now we're waiting for news and praying."

Kingdom Causes EARLY morning prayer

Prayer is a mystery to me. Why does God need me to ask Him to do something He already wants to do and scripture tells me that if He can't find someone who will stand in the gap, He will do it Himself? When I prayed for years for a living marriage and worked it every way I knew - and it still failed, why pray? I'm supposed to listen to what His heart is in any given situation, then pray and ask Him to do what He already wants to do???? Boy, I ask you, does that make any sense at all to my human mind? No! So why do I pray? Why do I love to pray? Why do I resist Him so when He's GOD? I don't know...I am learning - again - that prayer, being with My Father in conversation is what gives me life.

For a very long time my prayer life went "underground", about 10 years in fact. It wasn't that God was gone, in fact in many ways He was very present, but - I didn't pray like I used to - at all. He wasn't angry, He didn't throw me away, He just was there and available any time I wanted to come. I realize when I won't talk to or look at someone that I'm angry and mostly don't want to confront that anger in myself. His grace is amazing! He knew my anger even if I wasn't willing and helped me with it when I became willing.

Since working at Kingdom Causes and being more and more captured by the need and opportunity for prayer, things have shifted in me. Thank You Father...
I'm talking to Him now out loud in private again, I'm praying corporately again, (I love praying with the student leaders at CSULB) and am consistently bringing Brad and Kingdom Causes before Him. As I travel with KC through the City and encounter so many pastors, City leaders, church planters, and school leaders not only in Long Beach, but in the other KC cities as well, something happens in my heart to know I want to lift them into the courts of heaven to make sure my Father sees what I see and works in it as He sees fit. Jack Hayford calls it "partnering" with God in establishing the Kingdom. Me! a partner with God Almighty, the Creator of the whole universe! Amazing....

Which brings me to our KC Second Saturday early morning prayer meeting. Thank you to all who come regularly and thank you to those who have come some. There's something that happens; 1)early with God and 2)corporately with others who love Him enough to lose sleep to be with Him. There is a sweetness in the room that can only be Him and there is always an impartation from Him both corporately and personally. The common comment is, "I wanted to stay in bed, and I'm so glad I didn't."

I think prayer would be easier for people if they could see the results like you can when you hand someone some food or money or service. With prayer it's a totally hidden, faith exercise. I don't know where my prayer goes or what it accomplishes, especially when so many specific prayers haven't been answered according to what I had in mind. I just know that answering His invitation to "come" is the best and that I am always changed afterwards.

I'm extending an invitation to you to join us and be "changed into His likeness" "from glory to glory" whatever that means according to God's heavenly dictionary.
Love to you from Judy

My Weakness in Strengths Finder

The Kingdom Causes Long Beach Team doubled when I joined.  In October both Polin and I signed onto Kingdom Causes.  So we wanted to focus our roles within the team by finding out each person's strength.  It was my first time taking the test.  I was intrigued by how the process worked and whether it was reliable.  In less than thirty minutes I found out my top five strengths.  They are: Restorative, Learner, Relator, Responsibility, and Individualization.  When I read the list I thought they were interesting until I read the specific description of each.  Then I thought they were scarily true.  Restorative describes my desire to grow and challenge myself.  I easily notice my flaws so that I can improve upon them.  Learner illustrates how I love to gain a lot of knowledge and information especially when I make a decision.  I want to gain experience so I could learn from them.  As a Relator, I don't rush into relationships and have a few friends.  I value honest because I am honest with others.  People can confide in me and they know I care for them.  Responsibility really surprised me as a strength.  But after reading about it, I realized how much it is a big part of my life.  When I read the description I didn't really see it as a strength but more of a weakness or burden.  I am very reliable.  I do everything to fulfill my commitments, but because of that I volunteer to have lots of responsibilities.  I also look though every angle before taking action.  Individualization I really enjoy having this.  It describes how I see the unique qualities of a person.  I love to observe people.  It also shows how I love to work in details and can do tedious work.

It was fun finding out about my strengths.  But now I know them, I don't know what to do with them.  It just goes back to my restorative trait of focusing on my weakness. It just goes to show that even through the strength finder test I can still find my weaknesses.

Thanks from Lindbergh Middle School

We want to thank you for your generosity in providing the backpacks to Lindbergh. The backpacks are given to students with financial hardships and as incentives to motivate students. The school supplies inside the backpacks were an added bonus. Lindbergh serves a disadvantage neighborhood and we are grateful for the assistance you have so generously given to our students. Sorry for the delay in this letter. Lindbergh wishes you a happy and safe holiday season.

Sincerely,
Michael Conlon
Program Facilitator for Lindbergh Middle School

Kingdom Causes' wild ride

Hi:
My name is Judy and I just turned 64. I thought I'd be home tending my garden and caring for the hummingbirds in my back-yard as they come to check out our koi pond....NOT!....instead God in His infinite wisdom and with a twinkle in His eye has me here on staff as Brad's assistant! I came on board to help with administration in the Long Beach office, but that morphed into what I'm doing now with Brad. His vision and energy are limitless and part of my job is to ride along with him and try to keep order in all the spheres he's in to. What an "E" ticket ride!!! Sometimes I go home wondering what in the world I'm doing here, and then I see the Kingdom being established and it's all OK.
My heart is to see prayer happening in a connected way in this City and to see the Kingdom Causes vision established in cities around the nation - world. Since coming here I've met so many young church planters, so many young leaders in the city and on the Cal State campus that I'm excited to see what our Father is up too and where He's going next! I've never met so many people "doing" Kingdom stuff, with a passion as in these last 6 months.
I'm personally working toward networking prayer in the City, so if you have a prayer meeting that's open to the public, please let me know. After the holidays I will be visiting different churches in the City and blogging about them, and I will be attending as many prayer meetings as I can around the City and see how the Lord would like to connect the city pray-ers. For many years I've been praying for a Church of the City, for pastors to be connected, but lately I've felt led to pray for unity among intercessors. This is one way I feel like that process might begin.
We have a wonderful mix of people on our team with a variety of giftings and talents. The common thread is our love for Jesus, our desire to see Him famous and followed, and our sense of humor!
Have a wonderful, blessed Christmas.
If you would like to join our team of 1000 intercessors you can sign up on our web-site or e-mail me at judyw at kingdomcauses.org. I'd love to add you to our once-monthly e-prayer-mail. We also have a Second Saturday prayer meeting at our offices on 21st and Cherry at 6 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. Last Saturday we had three new people!
Each time I come away from that meeting, I know anew and afresh the power of the God I serve and His love for His people.

"Susana" in Wonderland

I have just joined on to the Kingdom Causes Long Beach Team for about two months.  I should have known from the first day what a wild adventure I had just signed up for.  My first day consisted of the Prayer Breakfast meeting in the morning, a Kingdom Causes Long Beach staff meeting, and a Youth Education Task Force meeting.  I felt like Alice in Wonderland being exposed to new people and new places.

I was born at St. Mary's from a Cambodian family that escaped the Khmer Rouge.  I went to Long Beach public schools and finally ended schooling in the Spring of 2007 from UCI.  With a Bachelors in Psychology and Social Behavior in hand, I felt like Christopher Columbus setting sail to discover that the world is round.  It was a difficult choice for me to not continue on to graduate school.  I would love to go to school and postpone growing up and facing the real world.  But God had other plans for me that I could not dream of or comprehend.  He has revealed little pieces and opened doors for me like joining Kingdom Causes.

I came into Kingdom Causes with the mindset of exploring the world but God instead has been exposing me.  Exposure in all aspects of the word.  Exposure of me (my strengths, my sin), of Long Beach (through Kingdom Causes), of people (their hearts), of God (especially His love), and many more.

In this blog, I hope to bring you along on my adventure of "Wonderland"; to share with you my feelings, observations, and thoughts; and to expose you too.

Thank you for falling down the rabbit hole with me,

Susana

He Sent a BABY!!!

At our last Second Saturday prayer meeting, the Lord began to impress on me again His absolute sovereignty. What a ridiculously bad idea - to send a baby to proclaim the Kingdom!!! He sent a baby, helpless, totally dependant on people, so fallible, so human! to safeguard the plan of the ages?! Such extravagant foolishness. Such extravagant faith. What an extravagant demonstration of the Father's power to save and to care for His most Beloved Son and to execute His amazing plan to have us all - for Himself. As I began to think about all the impossibilities in my life, my faith began to grow. I began to pray (again) for the trust Jesus exhibited while He was here. Scripture is clear about Who Jesus trusted while He was here. Think about all the ways God protected His Son during those 33 years and at the end it didn't look so good, but - we all know the glorious, triumphant outcome of the perfect trust of the Son and the perfect trustworthiness of the Father. We are called to become like little children. My prayer for you and me is that we would be able more and more to do that and to grow in the trust the Baby demonstrated when He left glory to come and be with us here - to demonstrate, among many other things, how perfectly trustworthy His Father is.
God Bless you this Christmas season. Lord, we believe, help our unbelief!

Plant a Tree!

There is a great opportunity to serve your school kids on October 27. Hughes Middle School and Longfellow Elementary have been awarded FIFTY trees through a grant from the United Voices Coalition. Hughes will receive 36 (15 gallon) trees and Longfellow will receive 14.
The October date is the date set aside for the planting and volunteers are greatly needed. For more information contact Lisa Nelson, 427-8529, or e-mail her @ lisa_nelson at earthlink.net. (I put her address in this way to avoid her getting spammed.) If you have a club, a scout troupe or a service group or a church group looking for a way to serve - here's your chance!

Citywide Conversation about homeless children

KC wants to get the work out about this great opportunity!

Children and families without homes is a growing challenge in Long Beach and across America. A child’s view of being without a home is quite different from an adult’s. When a family has no home, parents face difficult issues in their efforts to provide a safe environment for their children to thrive. Thus the approach to helping children and families without homes is different than helping homeless individuals. On October 27 we will have a chance to better understand what families must deal with and an opportunity to explore solutions. The Long Beach Area Coalition for the Homeless and the Long Beach Community Action Network invite you to attend this important dialogue.

What: Children and Families without Homes Dialogue.
When: Saturday, October 27, 2007 from 9:30am till 1pm.
Where: Cesar E. Chavez Park, Community Room, 401 Golden Ave., Long Beach, CA

Mayor Bob Foster and Long Beach First Lady Nancy Foster are scheduled to attend. Continental breakfast will be served at 9:30am with the program getting underway at 10am. There will be short multi-media presentation followed by a panel of family members experiencing homelessness and professionals in the field of social services. Then small discussion groups will explore how we can better understand the issues surrounding children and families without homes and what actions can be taken to move towards solutions.
The dialogue is being planned by the Homeless Dialogue Steering Committee, a collaboration of the Long Beach Area Coalition for the Homeless, the Long Beach Community Action Network, the Downtown Long Beach Associates, the California Conference for Equality and Justice, Children Today, Food Finders, City personnel, and private citizens whose purpose is to foster understanding of issues surrounding homelessness and promote change that will improve the quality of life for all residents of Long Beach.

The Committee develops themes and formats for a series of ongoing, community dialogues around critical issues of homelessness. The dialogues endeavor to educate the community, service providers, city departments, as well as those experiencing homelessness in order to increase awareness and foster understanding of various issues surrounding homelessness. These dialogues are intended to lead the way towards identifying objectives and actions that can result in meaningful change. The information is to be presented in a manner that places no blame and implies no shame with regard to the truth of homelessness. The dialogues are expected to empower the community and result in intentional objectives and actions to affect institutional change.

This might be something you want to check out!

To RSVP, or if you have any questions, please call Mary Coburn at 562-485-3133.

Prayer at CSULB

Yesterday at CSULB there was a gathering of some of the Christian clubs on campus to proclaim the Word of God, pray and worship. There were students asking and answering questions, praying, worshipping, preaching and just standing....some of the "standers" were asking questions and some were scoffing. There were quite a few on cell phones telling people about what was going on. Eternity alone will let us know the fullness of the results of what these very passionate young people sowed into. It must have been a "day" on God's calendar for CSULB because 50 feet away there was another ministry preaching also. And it was the day Homeland Security decided to have a drill so there were students everywhere that wouldn't have normally passed that way... There was real passion for Jesus expressed in a very public way in a very public place. It affirms everything I'm learning about how the "post-modern" generation walks out their Christian faith. I'm two generations down the road and am inspired over and over by the young people I'm in contact with in this Kingdom Causes work!!! Way to go!

Local Church Planter family looking for place to live

One of our new church planters here in Long Beach is looking for a place to live. Here is the email that we received.

Anyone have an idea to help them out!? If so, please contact us and we will get you in contact with them.

"Hi everyone:

We are asking for you to pray for our family. We just got word today from our land lady that we need to move out of our home in the next 60 days. Her daughter is getting married and needs a bigger place than were she currently is staying. We’ve loved living here. We’ve hosted so many Bibles studies and entertained a lot of people at this home. It came as a shock, but we know that God has a better plan and place for us.

We have a lot going on in our lives right now with the church plant now meeting weekly. We’d appreciate your prayers and if you know someone who is renting a house (specifically a house) at a very reasonable price in Long Beach, Signal Hill or Lakewood, please let us know.

Thanks for your prayers!

Kreng & Panya"


UPDATE : Friday, Oct 4th
To praying friends & family:

I wanted to give you an update to the recent email I sent out earlier this week. Kreng and I seem to be doing very well with the news that we have to move out of our current place within 60 days. We trust that God will work it all out and provide us even a better place than where we’re currently staying. There is a specific situation you can pray about. I believe we should pray specifically and God will answer specifically. It’s a little complicated so let me explain the details:

There is a 4 bedroom, 3 full baths house about 5 minutes north of us that could be vacant soon. The owner is a Christian and he rents it out to young families in ministry for a very low price (he does it as a ministry). The rent would be the same as what we are paying now, but we would just need to pay the utilities. It has everything and more than what we could want in a house or could ever afford to rent or buy. The current tenants (David & Gina) are a pastor of a church in La Mirada and have been commuting for 16 months. They have been trying to find a house in that area, but cannot afford the home prices. Recently, they found a house in La Mirada that they could afford and that would be ideal for their family (that was a God situation for them). David’s parents are going to help them with the house, but they first need to sell his grandma’s house in Pasadena. With the money that they make selling her house, David’s parents will help pay for the new house in La Mirada. So there are some things pending. Here are specific things to be praying for:

· David grandma’s house needs to go on the market soon (she hasn’t done that yet) and for it to sell quickly
· No complications regarding the financial aspect in order for David and Gina to get the house in La Mirada
· The timing all works out for everyone involved
· My land lord would be gracious to give us more than 60 days if we need it

Also pray for us as we realize that this is spiritual warfare. The enemy is trying to distract us as we are now going weekly in our church services. It has been a bit of distraction, but we are trying to stay focused and trusting God with everything. Even if this situation does not work out, we know God will provide another place.

We’re very exciting how God will work this all out!! Thanks for praying for us and all your encouragement.

Love,
Kreng & Panya

Healing Conferency in Laguna Niguel

For many years I was part of the Vineyard churches in South Orange county and specifically of the Mission Viejo Vineyard which has now merged with Vineyard Community Church in Laguna Niguel. Ed Piorek who is now pastor emeritus at VCC has done a conference called "The Father Loves You" for many years and is doing it again on October 12, 13 and 14 at the Laguna Niguel Vineyard. If you need a touch from the Lord, or some healing of early wounding to enable you to live more fully into your calling as a son or daughter of the Kingdom, I would highly recommend attending. Their website address is www.vccgn.org for more information. I've seen amazing things happen for people at these conferences and to my knowledge Eddie hasn't done one locally in a while, so take advantage of this opportunity.

Golf Marathon Update

Great news!

We just this morning confirmed our 8th and 9th players for our Golf Marathon. That is amazing! We still have spots open if you are available/interested! More = Merrier

To learn more about this annual fundraiser or to sponsor one of our current Long Beach golfers click HERE (if you don't know who is golfing for Long Beach, you can use 'Jim Schorr' as a default golfer name)

Our goal for this event here in Long Beach is to raise over $25k for our ongoing work. Part of this money will be used to hire an intern here in Long Beach for the next year so that we can have someone to help us administratively but also focus 1/2 of their time on creating an online database of Information and Opportunities for Involvement that exist around various other local causes than the ones that we are strategically involved in (Youth education, HIV/AIDS, Homelessness & Emergency Preparedness). Once this list is compiled it will really serve as a great resource for people and/or groups to get mobilized locally.

Know anyone looking for an 1 year (or so) internship in community development/city reaching!?

Mustard Seed Foundation is coming to town

On Tuesday, October 23rd, (the day after our Golf Marathon!) Kingdom Causes will be hosting a meeting for Brian Bakke from the Mustard Seed Foundation here in Long Beach. This foundation was the one that gave us our first grant to help us get things started with Kingdom Causes here in Long beach!

The are actively (did I mention ACTIVELY?) looking for local churches that are interested in applying for MSF matching grants. Come and hear about the possible options for the grants that are currently available for local churches only! They are encouraging each local church to bring 2-3 decision making people from any local ministry (and the senior pastor does not need to be one of them).

Details...

Time: 12:30 - 2:30 (they will stay until 3:00 to answer ?'s)
Location: Antioch Missionary Baptist Church (map)

We will need a rough head count so if you are interested in coming please email us at longbeach@kingdomcauses.org. We will also do our best to answer any additional questions that you might have but most of your questions could be best answered by checking out their web site.

See you there!

Well deserved recognition!

Bianca Sovich, our Kingdom Causes Emergency Preparedness Task Force leader, received an award last Sunday at the Good Neighbor festival in the 5th district where she lives. She got this award for ALL OF HER HARD WORK in her community from her local councilwoman, Gerrie Schipske. You and Peter are awesome!

Reminder: Our next task force meeting is next Tuesday eve from 7-9 PM at our offices. Come and learn how local congregations are being mobilized and how you might get involved!

Well done good and faithful servant

What do you say to thank someone for 40 years of selfless service in the inner city among gangsters and the homeless? On October 6th at 3:00 PM there will be a celebration honoring Fred Newkirk and the 40 years he has dedicated to ministry as a missionary in the heart of Long beach.

You are invited to help Long Beach Friends Church thank Fred & Mardella and recognize how God has worked through them. The celebration will be held at:

Long Beach Friends Church
850 Atlantic Ave
Long Beach, CA 90813

The celebration will include a service in which they will recognize Fred's ministry. Afterwards, dessert will be served and you can thank him in person! All are welcome and for those of you who have also been around a while (ahem, those that some us younger folks are standing on the shoulders of!) might want to come and/or pass along word of this special afternoon event to those that have had the pleasure of working with Fred over the years!

(for more information see Long Beach Friends Web Site)

I'm excited about what I've seen in the last weeks

Over the last weeks since hanging out with Brad, I've met, talked to and observed so many young people with vision, purpose and energy to see God's Kingdom established in their cities. I had opportunity to be at the meeting at CSULB Wednesday eve and saw young people from various campus ministries gathered together to worship the same Lord I do. I met two of the young people and we prayed for each other. My prayer request was for this week-end when I will be with my daughter in her journey toward sobriety and H wanted to pray for me and wound up telling me of her journey with her alcoholic father. I had dinner with a young woman who lives in the City near a rest home and wants to have a prom for the residents to bless them! I met a young man with a totally God-inspired plan for a business venture to serve the Kingdom like I've never heard before! I was at a meeting where I heard from a high ranking LB police officer speak of his heart for the pain gang violence between the Rollin 20 Crips and the Insane Crips (please forgive me if the names are wrong) in Long Beach is causing the innocent and also the gang members themselves. I heard his love for his city and the people in it. I saw young church planters being connected with older church "fathers" and encouraged in their vision. I talked to a young man and heard his vision for a small church in our City and his journey to get there. Then last night I heard from the wife of a pastor who runs a recovery house for women in the city. I heard her journey and how God has met and is meeting her and using all the things meant to destroy her and turning them into gold to use for His kingdom.
My vision is to somehow broker prayer for the City in a way that will invite the Kingdom and pave the way for revival. He is at work! and I want to join with others to pray HIS vision and plan for Long Beach into completion.
One of the ways I want to do this is to pray with people in their established meetings and also to publish the places prayer is happening around the City. If you have a prayer meeting that is open to everyone would you let me know at longbeach@kingdomcauses.org? If it isn't open to the public I would still love to know about it and what your focus is so I and my friends can pray for you. Let me know at the same address.
My life took a radical left turn about 10 years ago and I am feeling alive and hopeful for the first time since then. Take heart all of you who have suffered severe disappointment and loss!
God redeems everything in His own time!

Long Beach Rescue Mission Celebration

Tonight is the night where we get to celebrate one of the MANY great organizations that we have here in our city. This one has actually been around for a while now! I am excited to be going out to support this organization as they share their vision with the broader Church of the city and also raise needed funds to advance their work. I am privileged to be able to offer the closing prayer this evening to wrap things up!

Here is a Press-Telegram article about the banquet and the new Executive Director (Jim Lewis) that came on board there about a year ago. He is a great guy with a great heart and is bringing a wealth of expertise to the growing ministry team there. He is also working with his team to create a positive image in the surrounding community for both the mission and for those that are served through the mission. As you can imagine, this is not always an easy task for an organization that ministers in such a field! Pray for them.

We actively work with the rescue mission staff on our homeless task force and we are grateful to have such a great group and a great work here in our city! They are a key piece for bringing hope to many that are currently not feeling very hopeful. We trust that they will be encouraged by this evenings banquet and feel supported by the greater faith community. If you are unable to attend but would still like to support their work in any number of ways you can go to their web site here.

Rivive!

John Lockmer and the collaborative campus ministry known as Christian Students Unite (csulb.net) is hosting a Unity Prayer meeting this evening at CSULB. We have some people going and will be documenting the momentum that is happening on campus there in our October E-Newsletter (sign up here if you are not on our "opt-in" mailing list yet!!). It is another one of those stories that you have just got to hear about!! God is doing a wonderful thing on the CSULB campus by bringing many of the various campus ministries together to pray. Could these students be living out God's heart for the broader city at-large!?

See the web link above for more details about the gathering!

Thanks for the encouragement!

A quick shout out to a few great friends (Brittney & Mike) here in the city who said that we really should make more contributions to this blog because they actually check in and would love to have us share stories about how God is on the move in Long Beach. You never know who is actually reading blogs so we were very encouraged.

The dream was to have this blog be a place that stories of hope and transformation from our city could be posted, by those connected with Kingdom Causes in various ways, and serve as a daily place for people to check in on and see what God is doing in parts or arenas of our city that some may not be as familiar with.

Having been encouraged, a new story will be posted now...

PS - This is also a test to see if they really do check the blog :)

North Long Beach is W.O.W.'ed!

W.O.W.! What an awesome time in North Long Beach! On June 26th W.O.W., Kingdom Causes and Lighthouse 4 Square Church joined with 15 other churches in North Long Beach host a party for the people living around Houghton Park. Over 5000 people attended and were blessed by:

• 2780 meals served
• 2200 plants given out
• 146 family photos taken
• 400 corn on the cob
• water for everyone

In addition to:

• fixing 120 bikes
• cutting 110 heads of hair
• doing 129 sets of nails and
• 58 makeovers

This was a great party and great to see the churches come alongside Steven and Linda Tavani, the President and Founder of Winning Our World, (WOW) to bless this part of our great city. Steven gave a strong salvation message that saw 1014 people sign cards and give their lives to Jesus as their Lord and Savior for the first time. The churches that participated were given the cards and are calling on each one and encouraging the new members of the family of God to come and become part of one of the many great fellowships in that area.
Next year we will be doing two dates in June again in North Long Beach and on the West side at SilveradoPark. We would love to have you come and be part of this great blessing to our city. Watch for further updates.

Pray-ers from around LA gather to compare notes

On Monday, July 30 there was a gathering of pray-ers from Southern California for the purpose of sharing information about what they are hearing from the Lord regarding Long Beach. Praying people from many points in the Southland are hearing God’s heart for the City and have joined forces for a more directed effort to pray in the Kingdom here.
Being in a group of intercessors from as far away as Azusa and San Gabriel and as near as Torrance and Lomita as well as local people is amazing. We were sharing our personal impressions and found that the Lord is speaking parts and pieces to many and as we gathered, a whole picture began to emerge. There was a wonderful spirit of unity and service in the room; people gathering in order to pray together “in one accord” has to delight our Father’s heart. Each person went away encouraged and more focused, connected and directed than when they came.
So much prayer has gone up over our harbors and it was wonderful to see that God has heard and is directing His people to “seek the peace of the City where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace.” Jer. 29:7
We, at Kingdom Causes, will be hosting a monthly prayer meeting on the second Saturday of each month at our offices on 21st and Cherry, Signal Hill from 6:30 to 8 a.m. in order to sow into what God is doing here in prayer. All are invited and welcome.
We believe, and the consensus of the July 30 gathering, was that God is hovering over Long Beach to protect and bless.

May Leadership Prayer Gathering

I continue to be awed by our great God as He sends quality people into a city that I love. Today we gathered at Fountain of Life church with Pastor John Teter. John is a church planter on the West side of town who moved to our city in 2001 and has services at Hamilton Middle School. It was exciting to hear how God moved he and his wife Becky to Long Beach and how he and his team use sports and family issues to reach people. John is the director of More Than Conquerors, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship at Dominguez Hills and Compton City College, authored "Get the Word Out" and co-authored "Jesus and the Hip-Hop Prophets."
In ministering on the west side and in north Long Beach, John's prayer request are these.

* For strength, as a team they are very tired due to intense giving out, torn ACL, and a fire in one of the leaders buildings
* For their core team that has an average age of 27 to be empowered by God
* For their ministry of evangelism in the city through sports and family needs
* For continued good relationship with the Principal of Hamilton Middle School

This hour and a half we spend with leaders is one of the best times of our month. Hope you can joins us next month
Jim

LB Fire in Galaxy Towers

Here is a message from the Origins Church Planters who live next door to the burned out unit. They hosted our last church leadership prayer gathering there in their apartment.

"Last night was a sleepless night. For those of you who have not seen the news, our apartment caught on fire but we are ok. About 9:30pm we discovered a fire in the room next to us. We went inside and screamed for people to evacuate, but no one answered. We could not see past the first 3 feet inside due to the smoke, and the lights would not turn on so we assumed all were out of the room. The fire dept. arrived and we evacuated the building. After 3 minutes of being outside a man emerged on the balcony of room 1820 and screamed for help. To no avail he had a choice to be burned or jump. He chose the latter and we watched him descend from the building. Please pay for us that our minds would be healed from this tragedy and that we would offer hope and restoration to many grief-stricken people in our complex. This is an opportunity for us to love these people and pour the love of Christ in these residents.

Here is a link to the video. If you look to the far right you will see our apartment (1840) is the one that is fully lit. http://cbs2.com/topstories/local_story_088022239.html We love you all and are asking God to somehow get glory from this broken event." a.j.sherrill

Homeless Community and LB Police Dept Dialogue

Open to the Public!

Objectives:
· Provide a setting for increased understanding and improved relationships between those
experiencing homelessness, the Police and the community at large
· Raise awareness among homeless/community at large and the Police Department about the
laws (spirit and letter) that impact homeless and the resources available to assist them
· Explore specific solutions to improve the conditions surrounding people experiencing
homelessness

Sunday March 25, 2007 @ 3p-5:30p

First Congregational Church - Patterson Hall
241 Cedar Ave.
Long Beach, CA 90802

For further information contact Mary Coburn at (562) 485-3133

Does the Church of LB ignore the poor!?

At our recent Homeless Task Force meeting someone shared the following quote from Roberta Hestenes. It comes from a plenary session address that she did at The Spiritual Formation Forum in May of 2006 here in Long Beach. It is quite a powerful statement!

Any focus on Christian discipleship which persistently ignores or neglects the poor is a defective discipleship. Any spirituality which persistently neglects or ignores the needs of the poor is not a truly biblical spirituality. It is not a Christian spirituality following Jesus. Any adoption of spiritual disciplines to receive the blessings of God or as away to draw closer to God while ignoring, neglecting or mistreating the poor, the hungry, the lost, the stranger in the midst, the widow, the orphan- any use of spiritual disciplines while neglecting or disobeying God in this area is to run the risk of spiritual self-deception and even the danger of the judgment of God. God cares about the poor - not just about the spiritually poor, although in the cross of Jesus Christ he made provision for the full redemption of a lost and broken world. God cares about those who are really, physically marginalized, neglected, broken, diseased, impoverished, forgotten, living on the margins without enough resource to live life as God intended it with dignity and joy. Any spirituality that misses the poor is inadequate, deficient, and needs correction. This passion that God has for the poor runs through the scriptures so pervasively that you almost have to be willfully blind not to see it.

Do I hear any amens? Or other!? Reply if so!

Save the Date!!

On Monday, October 16th, Kingdom Causes will be hosting our 2nd annual Golf Marathon here in Long Beach. 100 holes of golf in a day! But, this is actually not really about golf. You don't even have to be a 'professional' golfer to get involved. You can sign up to come and play or you can help a golfer out by sponsoring them for every hole that they play. This event will help us advance the local work here. More information to come soon!

"His Nesting Place" on Cable TV

One of our local ministries is going to be on TV in a "30 Day" Actual Reality Documentary. The title of this specific episode is "Pro-life - pro-choice"

The show can be viewed on FX cable

The time and date is Wednesday, August 23 at 10:00 pm E/P

The episode features a pro-choice women from Georgia who had an abortion six years ago. She spent approximately 30 days at His Nesting Place Maternity Home interacting with the mothers, children and staff.

Let's encourage others to watch the program and pray that God will use this to help others become pro-life as His Nesting Place gets exposure.

Long Beach Rescue Mission Tour

Yesterday afternoon I went and met with Jesse Krohmer at the Long Beach Rescue Mission. After a recent difficult season in the life of that ministry, he is one of the new faces there working to advance and expand the work. It was great to tour the facility and hear about some of their hopes, dreams and plans for the future. What a tremendous Kingdom resource they are to the city!! Great work! Keep it up!

Also, if you are interested in learning more about their work and/or how you might get involved yourself they are hosting a 2 day revival/open house for the neighborhood on August 18-19. They are looking for more support for the activities of that day. If you are interested you can contact Jesse at 562-591-1292, ext 13.

Praying for Revolution Church Family

This morning we gathered as a group of local Church leaders at "The Hub". This is the new ministry center for the Revolution church family. As a relatively new church plant here in Long Beach it was encouraging to see, hear and experience their passion for spreading the Good News of the Gospel. Creativity abounds here! They shared with us and asked for prayer primarily in regards to their expansion efforts. The vision of this ministry is to be "one church with multiple locations". Our prayer was that the Lord would continue to stretch them, mature them, multiply them and continue to grant them passion for the local harvest fields. For more information you can check out their web site.

"In Jesus Name I Pray" is back

In Carson that is... I have heard a number of local leaders express their frustration that they are not allowed to pray in Jesus' name locally here (still have not heard otherwise) at the city council meetings. Check this out:

California Mayor and City Council Restore Right for Pastors to Pray "In Jesus' Name"Gene Maddaus/TN (Daily Breeze, Jun 27, 2006)"Jesus is back, by order of the mayor."

In 2002, the Carson, California city council voted to obey a 2002 state appellate court ruling barring ministers from "invoking the name of Jesus" at public meetings. Since that time, area pastors have stayed away from the meetings. But, according to a report in the Daily Breeze, Mayor Jim Dear changed his mind, and the council voted last month to "allow Christian pastors to invoke their Savior at the beginning of City Council meetings." "Jesus is back, by order of the mayor," Dear proclaimed, adding that he invited clergy members to pray "the way they do on Sunday morning." Reporter Gene Maddaus noted that when asked if he would pray to Jesus, Buggs said, "Of course."

Maybe our new mayor will have a change of heart as well!?

Long Beach Leadership Prayer Breakfast

Every year in our city there is a Leadership Prayer Breakfast. The prayer time is actually patterned after the National Prayer Breakfast which is held annually in Washington D.C.. It is designed to gather local civic and business leaders for a time of personal reflection to our Creator, as well as affirm the Spiritual Heritage of our Nation. Every year locally here there is a keynote speaker that comes and shares an encouraging message of some sort. Into that story is woven their personal testimony and a presentation of the Gospel message.

This year's speaker is going to be Judy Martz. She was elected as Montana's 21st Governor in 2000 and was the first woman to have been so in that state.

I have been blessed to have been a part of these for the past 4 years now. Prayerfully consider coming. Start by saving the date!

Details:
Thursday, September 7th, 2006
7:25 am - 9:00 am
$30/ticket (includes breakfast, program and parking)
Hyatt Regency Long Beach (200 South Pine Ave)

Shoot me an email if you need more information.

Brad

Harvest Crusade

with Pastor Greg Laurie. August 11-13. Angel Stadium.

A day of City Tours

What a fun day. This morning I met the IV students at 8:00 in the morning to head out on a city tour. I always like to start these conversations by asking what people have heard about and/or know about Long Beach. When you are with youth you always hear about Snoop. Some of the students were from the LA Basin and knew a little bit more. Things like most ethnically diverse city in the nation, known for tourism (Queen Mary, etc...) and has a big sea port were mentioned. After driving around a bit to see the transitioning of neighborhoods we went to Sophy's Cambodian and Thai restaurant for lunch. Great food!

While at lunch we had the Summer Servants team from the East San Gabriel Valley join us. Kingdom Causes partners with the New Hope Network to work in that area. I spent the afternoon hanging with this team as we dialogued about city-reaching, praying for your city, mobilizing the church in a city and how people of "good faith" can come together with people of "good will" to work together for tangible solutions for the good of the whole community.

Great times! I love seeing young people get excited about serving cities. I love being able to encourage them at such a critical stage of their life to give themselves away for the cause of Christ and for the love of their neighbors. I love seeing and hearing about how God stirs hearts to pursue things that He cares about. I too was encouraged by their passion. Fun times.

Side note #1: this muggy weather is ridiculous!
Side note #2: I just got my digital camera back from Best Buy (in for the 3rd time!!) and need to take more photos for this blog.

Intervarsity students arrive today!

In addition to the 48 or so Campus Crusade for Christ students that are here this summer, there are almost 20 IV students here now as well. We worked with them last year as well to assist them in their summer teams. They have a handful of teams working around LA and two of the teams are here in Long Beach. They will primarily be working at Covenant Presbyterian, New Life Nazarene and Christian Outreach in Action (COA). Each team will spend various mornings at COA serving breakfast and working in their warehouse and the rest of their days will be spent at either one of the other two sites working in the youth ministries there. They will be helping kids with homework, hanging out, helping the older kids lead the younger kids, doing work projects and will even help plan or orchestrate a VBS.

Here in Slovakia

Here in Slovakia I am visiting some long time friends Brad and Carla Thiessen and seeing their work with the Gypsies and refugees from other war torn nations. Brad has started a language school to help foierners from countries like Afghanistan and Burundi learn the Slovakia language so they can adapt better to society. He has also helped to plant a gypsy church and is teaching gypsy believers working skills like plastering and wood working. The gypsy are a people group that are despised all throughout Europe, and Brad and Carla are looking to change the culture one life at a time. They have been in Slovakia for 15 years with their 4 boys. I am helping to drywall a guest house and played some music at a pizza Party on Friday where they were able to share with some of the Language students. I will be home on Tuesday morning see you then.
Love you all

Jim

Where in the world is Jim Schorr?

Hey Jim, send us a word about how things are going in your parts! Encourage us about God's Global work! Jim is currently on the other side of the planet. Whether he gets a chance to post while there or if it isn't until he gets back home...I'll encourage him to share!

Hanging out in Bluff Park

Last night I took the family down to hang out at Bluff Park with the 40+ Campus Crusade Students who are here for the Summer. They were gathering for a time of testimony, encouragement and prayer. It was great to hear the stories of how God is using them to be a blessing here in the city! They are here to get jobs, build relationships/friendships around the city with people, initiate spiritual conversations and share about the radical love that Jesus has for people. Along the way we are believing that many will also choose to similarly follow in the ways of Jesus. Our hopes would be that a handful of new churches/missional communities would be birthed this summer as well.

Great to see Thien Doan (new church planter) down there as well to encourage the students!

Next week: 20 some InterVarsity students will be here in the city to start a 5 week stint and we have them connected to Christian Outreach in Action, Covenant Presbyterian Church, North Long Beach Community Prayer Center and New Life Nazarene Church. Stay tuned!

Do it again Lord...

One of the things that I have been praying about lately (as I shared on Pentecost Sunday) is that the Spirit would do something in our day that would not only bless the entire city as a whole but would also serve to encourage the hearts of Jesus followers in a hundred years from now. That they would be able to look back and be encouraged about the Lord's faithfulness to His people, to His Word and to our city.

One of those stories that does this to me is the story of what happened here in Long Beach back in the 1920's. Of late I have been learning more about happened during this time period. By coincidence (!?) on Pentecost sunday Christine Lu (*hat tip*) happened to give me a Press-Telegram magainze from 2003 that was entitled "100 famous faces of long beach." If you have never heard of a local preacher from those days whose name was George Taubman check this out. Along with the likes of Cameron Diaz (grew up in a house around the corner from me), Nicolas Cage, Denise Austin, Bo Derek, Steven Spielberg, Warren G, he made the top 100 list! Here is how they told the story:

"Dr. George Primrose Taubman found his way to Long Beach in April 1915 when he was already 46. A pastor who tended flocks in Missouri, Kentucky, Ohio and Oklahoma, Taubman became the first pastor of the First Christian Church, then at 4th street and American Ave. The men's Bible group had a membership of 40, with about 25 attending most meetings. Under Taubman, that figure would grow a bit. With the (apperently) charismatic Taubman leading the studies, the group outgrew its room at the church by 1917 and moved to the Laughlin Theater on Pine Ave. Two years later, it moved to the biggest indoor meeting spot available, the Municipal Auditorium, where 2,000 men would gather to hear Taubman's sermons and sing to their God and country. And it still grew. Throughout the 1920's, Taubman had to take his class outdoors in Lincoln Park to accommodate regular turnouts of 4,000 men (women were allowed twice a year - on Easter Sunday and Mother's Day). Occasionally, Taubman would put together a special program that would draw as many os 30,000 men. With the radio audience, the figure would go as high as 100,000 listeners to Taubman's sermons. On June 12, 1938, with his health declining, Taubman gave up the Bible class. The last crowd he drew was the hundreds who showed up for his funeral in Long Beach on March 14, 1947."

I have pictures of these gatherings in my office. It might look different in these days but none-the-less come and do it again Lord...

What else happened on Pentecost Sunday!?!

Millions of Believers from Almost 200 Nations Pray during the Global Day of Prayer
News Staff / Aimee Herd reporting (Jun 5, 2006)

"There are more than 4,000 venues across Africa, where an estimated 40 million Africans are joining the river of prayer that's sweeping the continent, and the world."

According to a report by Mission Network News, 198 nations registered as taking part in yesterday's Global Day of Prayer. Making it even more significant was the fact that it was Pentecost Sunday, when over two thousand years ago, the original outpouring of the Holy Spirit was experienced by Jesus' followers in Jerusalem, and the "Church" was born.

A report from Taiwan stated, "Today, the power of Christian Pentecost was shown clearly in Taiwan. Thousands of Christians have come out of the disputes, and joined together at the Presentation Square in Taipei City, not to make a political statement, but to pray for the country and to praise the Lamb." (Photo: Brian Blanco/The Herald-Attendees sing, dance and worship in the isles during The Global Day of Prayer Sunday afternoon at the Sarasota/Bradenton International Convention Center.)

In Hong Kong: "More than 30,000 Christians flocked to the Honk Kong Stadium, to play their part in a worldwide Global Day of Prayer. They prayed to God to protect the city's health, in particular from the threat of a bird flu epidemic. They also prayed to the Lord to give direction and faith to the youth of Hong Kong, who were a strong presence in the crowd, and to heal fractured relationships between family members."

From Africa, where the Global Day of Prayer movement began, it was reported: "There are more than 4,000 venues across Africa where an estimated 40 million Africans are joining the river of prayer that's sweeping the continent and the world." (Photo: Believers in Africa pray together.)

In Egypt, a reporter for Sat-7 said, "I'm at the Cave Church in Garbage City near Cairo, Egypt where a couple thousand people have gathered today on the Global Day of Prayer. It is such a privilege to be here with these believers. Many have come out and are celebrating in one heart and one spirit as we come together."

In the U.S.: "My name is Graham Wells and I'm calling from Atlanta, Georgia. We had an event right on the steps of the Capitol, and it began thundering and lightning. Although it was cut short, there was a great sense of God's presence and prayers going out to God to work in this great city of Atlanta."

And a report came in from Calgary, Alberta, Canada: "I'm standing just outside the Prengrove Saddledome where even now, thousands of Christians in this city are beginning to rally to celebrate through worship and prayer, Pentecost Sunday and this global day of prayer."

Check out the following sites for more stories:

www.gdop.org
www.gdopusa.org
www.globaldayofprayer.org

Pentecost Sunday

What a glorious day it was! Around 200 people gathered locally here to lift up praises to God Almighty, ask the Lord to move throughout our cities and celebrate the Lord's Supper together. We came expecting the Spirit to move and we were not dissappointed! There is just something very special about being together in the presence of the Spirit with followers of Jesus that represent a diverse cross-section of the Church of the city! Many theological perspectives, many different cultures and backgrounds, many different expressions of Worship and yet one Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! We joined with a concert of millions of voices all around the planet that asked "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done in our city as it is in heaven!" Do it Lord! For Your Name sake!

So many people contributed to make this gathering truly something special for all those that were able to make it out. We want to thank ALL OF YOU for doing your part to make this 1 day of gathering an incredible blessing to the Lord and to the collective Church of the city!

Day #10 Prayer Update

THE BLESSING OF CHRIST

How appropriate was it that we ended our 10 days of prayer gathering at a local church that is actually an extension of an African church. This whole 10:1:90 effort has its roots in the Church of Africa. All Saints Anglican Church is part of the Luweero Diocese of Uganda.

Once again it was a blessing to be joined in prayer for our city with believers from around the city. Tonight we prayed that Christians both locally and abrod would live with the expectancy of the ancient promises of God's blessing to be fulfilled in our days. The result would be nothing short of the transformation of our communities, nations and countries.

Thanks to the All Saints family for hosting us!!

Another perspective from the 10 day journey...

I just received an email from Carol OConnell. She is one of the many great people that I have met for the first time over the past few days that are equally committed to praying for the city. I and many others stand with you Carol! Here is what she sent:

"I have been honored and incredibly blessed to be a part of the Kingdom Causes-led intercession and prayer storm for Long Beach, our nation and the world over the last 10 days. We have cried out to God for mercy, grace and compassion and that He would pour out His spirit over this city and bring radical transformation. Our sense has been that repentance and unity are the keys. Early on, I had a vision of the walls of the individual Long Beach churches just collapsing and, when the dust settled, there were no denominations or isolation - it had become the Church of Long Beach - precious, shared and powerful. As we have traveled to different wonderful congregations throughout this journey, as we have been welcomed in as family, and as we have seen the power of joining hands across cultural and denominational boundaries, I have seen the absolute truth in that vision. If we were each to mobilize - to get out into the communities - to visit other churches just to bless them - then I believe revival would hasten as we stand shoulder to shoulder and heart to heart with all eyes on Jesus. As Mother Teresa said, "All for Jesus. All for Jesus. All for Jesus. All for Jesus." "

Day #9 Prayer Update

THE HEALING OF CHRIST

What a treat last night at Covenant Presbyterian Church! Another great evening of the Spirit guiding the Church into a focused time of intercession for the city. Each of our morning and evening prayer times over the past few days has been unique and different and last night was no excetion to this. Pastors Rob and Adelle Langworthy prepared a special prayer time for us that involved a contemplative environment by displaying revolving slides of creation images, having us sit still in rows quietly before the Lord and by adorning the cross area at the front of the chapel with numerous candles. The ambiance of the room alerted our senses to the presence of the Lord in our midst.

In addition, our prayer time was punctuated with Taize chanting in Latin. A young woman named Michelle from their local church joined us and she served as our Cantor (soloist). She would use her "angelic" opera voice to affirm our prayers throughout the evening. After each of us offered up prayers she would sing in Latin the following phrase: "Ex-au-di-nos, ex-au-di-nos" ("Lord, hear our prayers; Lord, hear our prayers").

At other times during the hour we as the "assembly" would be taught a phrase in latin to sing (the "ostinato" chant) and while we would sing that repetively she would sing other Sciptural texts in Latin over our chanting. The journey over the hour of prayer was nothing short of amazing.

In the midst of our prayers for the healing touch of Christ to be felt I was specifically struck with some of the things that we were praying for: worldwide over 250,000 young people are infected every month with HIV and over 30,000 children die daily from preventable diseases. Lord, have mercy... How can we (I) sit still any longer?

Off to All Saint's Anglican Church facilities tonight!! Can't wait!!

Day #8 Prayer Update

What you see in the above picture is the reason I was late in getting to the evening prayer gathering last night at Glad Tidings Church in North Long Beach. Our Kingdom Causes Bellflower crew was hosting a Ministry Advancement Dinner and I wanted to be there to help them kick off the night. Well over 200 people showed up! Good work team! May the Lord continue to radically bless your local work there as you take responsibility for your city and may the resources (people, skills and finances) abound!

There is a 10:1:90 effort also going on in Bellflower over these past few days and the will be joining us on Pentecost Sunday as well :)

Now about the prayer time.

THE GLORY OF JESUS

I showed up late to see a large circle of people in the "upper room" at Glad Tidings Tabernacle full of many young adults. Turns out that a handful of them were CSULB students who have been asking God to do great things on their campus locally here and some were part of a Campus Crusade for Christ team that are here for the entire Summer (partnering with Kingdom Causes and the Crossroads network of house-churches) to plant simple (house) churches in and around our city.

How great it was to pray for followers of Jesus to be courageous in their faith and in their love. After spending day #6 praying for "the coming generation" it only made these prayers seem all the more on point since they were coming from the hearts of younger people. We prayed at length for the labors of all of the young people this Summer who are living in this city and will be extending the Kingdom of God in various ways. I was thoroughly encouraged last evening!

Pastor Barbara, thanks for hosting an evening of prayer for the city! Lord, move in and through the family of faith that gathers there! Continue to make yourself famous in this part of our city!

*(I forgot to take a picture. Darn.)