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by Whitney Waller-Cole
Creekwood Christian Church in Flower Mound, TX, is a congregation that seeks to live boldly as Christ calls us to love God and love neighbor. Interfaith partnership and friendship has been a huge part of our work and witness to love our neighbors and God well. We have held prayer services with different congregations and faith traditions. We built a Habitat for Humanity House with our Muslim and Jewish friends. We have been strengthened and blessed as a faith community each and every time we have participated in interfaith worship service or initiative.
In 2015, we decided to partner with faith communities in our town to create an Interfaith Summer Camp for our elementary-aged children. Together with three other congregations: The Islamic Association of Lewisville and Flower Mound, The Baha'i of Lewisville, and Congregation Kol Ami, we invited over 150 kids and volunteers within our faith communities and town to spend the week forming friendships and learning about each other's beliefs and values, focusing on the theme, "Honoring Diversity. Celebrating Unity."
Each day, we visited a different house of worship, where we would teach our children about our four faith traditions. By sharing our faith traditions, breaking bread, praying, and laughing together, we built friendships. We celebrated common values we all share like love, kindness, and charity. It was an incredible opportunity for children and adults alike to share, learn, befriend, and build a greater understanding of our common humanity and how precious we all are- to God and one another.
We live in a world where understanding, respecting, and loving one another becomes more important every single day. As a Christian church, we spend so much of our time teaching our children about Christianity, hoping that they will feel empowered and encouraged to live out their faith in authentic and loving ways. Teaching our children about who Jesus is such a humbling and holy part of what it means to be a Christian. As we teach our children about how we want them to live out their faith we, as a congregation, have realized it is also essential for our children to learn about the beliefs and values others hold dear. By teaching our children about what others believe, we strengthen their understanding of their own faith and the call God has put on our lives to love all our neighbors. Loving our neighbors means understanding and respecting them. Loving our neighbors means honoring diversity and celebrating unity.
Creekwood will be hosting Interfaith Summer Camp again this year Aug. 7-11. This year we will be meeting in the evening and have additional learning components for youth and adults. Our theme this year is, "Honoring the Divine; Honoring Each Other."
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Get ready for YOUR
Mission Gathering!
Use the videos and other materials online to brush up on the identity statement. You also might find the Justice Primer (8 pgs. with guide) and Justice Devotions (34 entries) to be helpful. Global Ministries also offers a new three-session adult curriculum called REACH.
Join the prayer effort and receive weekly prompts for prayer and action.
Find out more and sign up for information on the Mission First! page. You can also share your stories of mission on the Mission First! Facebook group.
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Show your Disciple pride! Available in nine colors. Order the first two weeks in June; shipped the last week of the month. Group orders save on shipping. Ten percent of all sales go to Disciples Mission Fund. (If you would like to customize these shirts to include your congregation's information for a small fee, contact the vendor through the website - http://store.disciples.org)
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| News in the Church Other News |
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Thanks for Hispanic Ministries Certificate Program
by Interim Hispanic Pastor William Almovodar
We celebrate Lexington Theological Seminary and Obra Hispana for initiating their Certificate for Hispanic Ministries program at the seminary facilities in Kentucky. They had a total of 42 students as their first group and were there from May 23 to May 27 of this year. There were students from Alabama, Florida, Oregon, Georgia, Tennessee, Wisconsin.
Thank you to all the regions and conventions, to our professors Dr. Samuel Pagan, Prof. Liza Miranda, and Dr Pablo Jimenez who also is the program director. Thanks to Rev. Vilson Hurtado, who promoted, met with pastors, regional ministers, and Lexington leaders and personnel to help this project be a reality. We want to recognize the efforts of our recently retired National Hispanic Pastor Dr. Huberto Pimentel who initiated the conversations and was part of this process from the beginning, Thanks to all, see you next year. ****
Celebramos al Lexington Theological Seminary y a la Obra Hispana al iniciar su programa de Certificado de Ministerios Hispanos en las instalaciones del seminario en Kentucky. Tenían un total de 42 estudiantes como su primer grupo y estuvieron alli del 23 al 27 de Mayo de este año. Había estudiantes de Alabama, Florida, Oregon, Georgia, Tennessee, Wisconsin.
Gracias a todas las regiones y convenciones, a nuestros profesores el Dr. Samuel Pagán, Prof. Liza Miranda y Dr. Pablo Jiménez quien también es el director del programa. Gracias Reverendo Vilson Hurtado, que promueve, se reunió con pastores, ministros de la región y líderes de Lexington y personal para ayudar a que este proyecto sea una realidad. Queremos reconocer los esfuerzos de nuestro recientemente jubilado Pastor Nacional Hispano Dr. Huberto Pimentel quien inicio las conversaciones y era parte de este proceso desde el principio, gracias a todos. Nos vemos el año que viene. - Bendiciones ________
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You are invited to ¡Missionworks!
 ¡Missionworks! is an unique experience for pastors, mission board members, and anyone interested in mission to connect with the global work of the church. Over the weekend of Aug. 26-28 you will find out how to build on your congregation's existing passion for mission and receive tools for sharing about God's mission in the world.
¡Missionworks! will help you to:
- Discover music, prayer, and worship resources
- Learn first-hand from international partners, missionaries, and Global Ministries staff
- Hear the Good News of how the global church is making a difference in the world
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What's app?
We have a Disciples app for your iPhone or Android! Download it today!
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Limited spots remain for XPLOR
 We still have room for one or two NBA XPLOR Residents for the 2016-17 program year. If you know a young adult aged 21-30 who may be interested in this transformative opportunity, please help us spread the word! The 2016-17 application has been re-opened for a limited time until these spots are filled. Learn more and apply
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NBA Launches Prison and Jail Ministries Peer Group
Rev. Monica Wedlock Kilpatrick, Director of Disciples Care Exchange and Affinity Group Ministries, NBA
In April, eight prison and jail ministry practitioners gathered in Louisville, Kentucky, to attend the "Reaching Individuals Behind and Beyond the Bars" conference and to kick off the first NBA Prison and Jail Ministries Peer Group. This select group was developed as an extension of the work of the NBA Prison and Jail Ministries Affinity Group and in conversation with ministry partners, who expressed a need to connect prison and jail ministry leaders in a small, peer-group setting designed to cultivate peer support/encouragement, mutual dialogue, spiritual renewal, and peer-to-peer learning. The NBA is contracting with Rev. Héctor J. Hernández to serve as the Prison and Jail Ministries peer group convener through 2018. Read more
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CELEBRATION - On May 16, 2016, Christian Church Homes (CCH) hosted a grand re-opening of Garfield Park Village, a senior living community in Santa Cruz, California which recently completed a $33 million renovation with the goal of preserving deeply affordable, sustainable, senior housing in the city. Garfield Park Village is CCH's first senior property, constructed in 1964 in the Errett Circle Neighborhood of Santa Cruz which was home to a large revival camp for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the 1800s.Santa Cruz Mayor Cynthia Matthews, Congressman Sam Farr and Assembly member Mark Stone spoke at the event.
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If you are interested in advertising in future issues of the Disciples News Service, please contact Fred Jones |
| Events, Resources and Ministry in Action |
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 Events |
Find more events on the calendar hosted by Chalice Press
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 Ministry in Action |
NBA XPLOR Spotlight:
Dallas
Meet XPLOR Residents Caleb, Natalie, and Derek, along with team members serving with East Dallas Christian Church, Agape Clinic, Ebby House, and Juliette Fowler Communities, and find out what's next for these young adults!
Watch the Spotlight on YouTube |
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You can find ways to plug into mission and more through these ministries.....
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The Disciples News Service, also known as The Disciple®, is distributed weekly or as needed by Communication Ministries. For changes to your subscription options or to subscribe to this newsletter, please visit:
disciples.org/dns/subscribe-to-dns/
If you are interested in submitting news for distribution in the Disciples News Service, please review our "Guidelines for Submitting News and Information to Disciples News Service":
disciples.org/dns/submitting-news/
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The next deadline to submit news for consideration
in the Disciples News Service:
Friday, June 3, 2016
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Free resource on ministry to veterans
