Realizing the importance of reaching the young in their community, church members in cities around the world are connecting with this special group in different ways. Visit missiontothecities.org for resources and more ideas on how you can use your skills and talents to reach the people in your city.
Ellen White wrote, “Those who love God should feel deeply interested in the children and youth. To them God can reveal His truth and salvation.” (Reflecting Christ, p. 373)[1] Realizing the importance of reaching the young in their community, church members in cities around the world are connecting with this special group in different ways.
Let’s look at some of the largest urban areas of the United States where Adventists are ministering to youth and children.
Los Angeles, California, is the second largest city in the country. In the greater Los Angeles area, members of a Vietnamese Seventh-day Adventist Church saw the need to teach younger generations how to speak Vietnamese so that they could communicate with their older, non-English speaking family members. The church opened the first Vietnamese language school in the city. The children not only learn the language but also become more familiar with their culture. What began as weekly classes became a summer camp and then an after-school program. Opening the language school enabled the church members to fill a need in the community and to serve the people in the city.
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Chicago, Illinois, is the third largest city in the US. In Chicago, staff at an urban center of influence called Art Space use pottery, crafts, painting, and music to connect with children. Located next to a play area in a busy mall, the center initiates relationship building through creative activities. Art Space is open throughout the week, and it partners with different groups, such as schools, to make its activities available to children. The center’s goal is to make the community aware that the center is present to provide a blessing to people in the surrounding areas.
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Are you inspired to do your part in reaching a particular group in your city? There are the university students, the deaf, the young parents, the caregivers, all who can benefit from your interaction with them. Visit missiontothecities.org for resources and more ideas on how you can use your skills and talents to reach the people in your city.
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