Block Party Update



(L-R, top to bottom) Pastor Chris Shaw shares the Gospel at La Luz,
UBC workers serve guests, kids on our train and enjoying face painting,
sister of all ages love Block Parties!



July 20, 2011

Close to both Living Word Bible Church (our church plant) and the UBC Resource Ministry, the Lebanon School Administration Building on Holbrook Avenue was a great place to have a Block Party on July 21. Over 300 doorhangers were distributed advertising the event to the surrounding neighborhood.

And even though it was too hot for the bounce house and cotton candy that night, 24 residents and 28 UBC workers endured the 110 degree heat index by eating made-to-order snow cones! Attendance was low due to the heat and the Warren County Fair, but Pastor Chris Straw shared the Gospel and made connections with families who expressed an interest in the new church plant.

Tear-down went quickly, not because of the heat, but because of an approaching thunderstorm. The lightening and thunder were pretty intense!

July 27, 2011

74 guests and 41 UBC workers showed up at La Luz Apartments this past Wednesday night to enjoy hot dogs, popcorn, snow cones and our Kiddie Train. Temperatures soared once again bringing the heat index up around the 100 degree mark, but workers and guests made the best of it!

Pastor Chris Straw shared the Gospel as part of our on-going partnership with Living Word Bible Church, our new church plant on Columbus Avenue.

Sandy Huddleston and Tim Oliver followed up with two shut-ins at the apartments. Maxine Coulter, an elderly and medically fragile woman, welcomed Sandy and Tim into her home. They share the Gospel with her and Maxine prayed to accept Christ! This reminds me of Matthew chapter 25… “when did we see you hungry and when did we feed you?”

Our fearless Block Party leaders Kelli Hundley (eight years) and Deanne Clem (five years) announced to the work team that they are stepping aside as team leaders in order to give others an opportunity to serve.

Deanne and Kelli will be greatly missed because they have been passionate and committed to a Kingdom ministry through the Block Parties. Their goal was to see souls come to Christ. Thank you, ladies (and their families) for your faithful service. Both ladies have agreed to assist the new leaders that God calls through the transition process.



Faith Builds a Home in Lebanon, OH

Today's blog reviews our home-building project with Habitat and our recent Warren County Fair outreach...

Habitat for Humanity’s Faith Build 2011 for Lebanon began with an on-site celebration July 10. Danny Mitchell and I were among the guests who met Randy Fields and his sons, Richard and Brandon, as they begin the exciting project of building their own home.

(L to R) The Fields Family and Danny Mitchell
at the on-site celebration held July 10.

Located on Holland Avenue, the project site is right across the yard from Countryside Community Church of the Nazarene. Volunteers for this project have permission from the Countryside Church to park in their parking lot and walk to the site through the yard. This makes parking for this project much safer and more convenient.

Several representatives from Habitat, including our coordinators Natalie Nuce and Tara Price, were there along with several of HFH board members. After I had the honor of opening the ceremony in prayer, Pastor Lester Jones from Countryside shared a devotional. At the end of the ceremony, we had the opportunity to write on the walls [really] which included bible verses and personal wishes for the family.

Our UBC “wall raising” scheduled for July 23rd was cancelled because of some permit hold-ups…sorry team! (It’s missions right? We just have to be flexible and fluid in adjusting our schedules.)

But that brings us to our next opportunity for folks to serve on July 30th. Please contact Danny Mitchell as soon as possible at mitchdj@go-concepts.com or 513.850.9012 if you would like to participate.

 

Fans were a popular give-away at the Warren County Fair.

The Warren County Fair, July 18-23, was held at the fairgrounds on North Broadway in Lebanon. This year’s Warren County Fair booth volunteers provided free water for hot and thirsty fair-goers and a free diaper changing station for families with small children. Our forty volunteers handed out hundreds of Challenge Newspapers and Gospel tracts plus information about Urbancrest, Living Word Bible Church (our church plant) and the Resource Ministry.

Even though attendance was low due to the heat, booth workers distributed 2500 hand-held fans shaped like cowboy hats with John 3:16 printed on them. The fans sure helped folks to cool off in the high heat index that lasted through Fair Week and also sparked some great conversation about John 3:16, giving Urbancrest volunteers a chance to share the Gospel by using the Evangecube.

Last Week's Ministry Outreach Was "Hot, Hot Hot!"

Despite the sweltering heat, the visiting South Carolina team from Great Falls ministered with great results at a baseball camp, Back Yard Kids Club and our Resource Ministry last week.

 

The team of 19 divided their time by partnering with:

1. John Steiner of Living Word Bible Church (LWBC) from July 11 to 14 teaching baseball fundamentals to fifty-five children who came out from 10 AM to noon each day,
2. Natasha Neal of LWBC from 11:00 AM-12:30 PM in a Back Yard Kids Club outreach at La Luz apartments where up to nineteen kids attended each morning, and
3. the Urbancrest Resource Ministry on Columbus Avenue where they painted the outside of the building and loaded trailers of donations that went to Bryan Byrd and the Christian Appalachian Project in Kentucky

Greg Bachelor, the pastor of Great Falls’ First Baptist Church and team coordinator, Cindy Taylor, also led the South Carolina team
in prayer walking the neighborhood around Pleasant Square Park on Monday, the sight of last week’s Block Party. On Tuesday night,
they rallied around the LWBC ministry team, holding a car wash at the Resource Center as a way to connect the LWBC team prospects for the church plant which begins services on September 11.

Christmas In July

It was like Christmas in July at the Block Party at Pleasant Square Park on July 13. We didn’t have snow, but God provided cooling breezes and milder temperatures to make things much more comfortable than the previous Wednesday night.

81 Urbancrest members and 19 mission team members from Great Falls, SC attended while Pastor Dave Bickers and the Urbancrest Praise Band/Praise Team rocked the park with praise & worship music. Pastor Dave’s devotion, Christmas in July, reminded us all that, just like the angels that first Christmas Eve, we all have Good News to share.

130 area residents attended the Block Party. This was the largest residential attendance so far this summer! Two people made a first-time profession of faith in Christ and three people prayed about maintaining a closer relationship with Him.

The Great Falls, SC team also added to the Block Party activities by holding a whiffle ball tournament. Forty kids had fun while their parents cheered them on! The team also held back yard kids clubs and worked at the Urbancrest Resource Ministry during their week with us.

Seven kids from the Block Party showed up for the Baseball Camp on Thursday. The camp was held to connect families with kids to the Living Word Bible Church plant that begins services on September 11.

Sharing Faith With Summer Fun

Our last three block parties have been "full steam ahead"
as we present the Gospel in a new neighborhood each week.



Jen Marbach adds color to a Block Party Event!



On June 25 we ended vacation Bible school with our traditional Urbancrest potluck & cookout along with a block party on the church grounds. Then on June 29 we took the bounce house and the kiddie train to the Hunter's Run neighborhood.

120 people from the area plus 61 workers enjoyed the great weather that night along with a performance by our Youth Drama Team. Duane Gillen wrote people's names on grains of rice and placed them in small glass vials (very interesting) and Kyle McQuinn shared the Gospel.

We thank God for the four people who made professions of faith that night. We also praise God for and thank the Youth who took responsibility for set up, tear down and food service. They did a great job!



All of the Block Party locations this summer have been chosen to help promote Living Word Bible Church, our new church plant on Columbus Avenue that begins services on September 11. This past Wednesday was no exception.

There were less people at the Colonial Park North venue than is normal, no doubt due to the high heat index and humid conditions. But even though it was hot and muggy, Pastor Chris Straw (from our new church plant) was able to connect with a couple who were looking for a church home.

3 people made professions of faith following the Gospel presentation and a bilingual guest indicated she may help with our hispanic church plant in the fall. God used us, heat and all, to reach people where they live.



The new Kiddie Train is a hit wherever it goes!






Oh The Places You'll Go!

Although Dr. Seuss wasn't really referring to missions when he said "Oh The Places You'll Go!" it certainly applies to our local missions teams. Here are a few of the places we'll be going in the next few weeks...

Wednesday, July 6: Urbancrest Block Party at Colonial Park North on Monroe Road in Lebanon. Setup at 5:30 PM; Block Party at 6:30 PM.

Saturday, July 9 & Saturday, July 23: Habitat for Humanity Project. Contact Danny Mitchell at mitchdj@go-concepts.com for more information on the location and times.

Sunday, July 10: Cedarbrook Camp Pancake Breakfast and Devotion Outreach. Meal prep at 8:00 AM. Cedarbrook is located on State Route 123 just north of Silver Street in Lebanon. Contact Jeff & Teri Lipot at jlipot@embarqmail.com if you would like to volunteer this weekend.

Monday, July 18--Saturday, July 23: The Warren County Fair on North Broadway in Lebanon. This year's fair booth is in a prime location to greet Fair guests and share Jesus or hand out information about Urbancrest. Sign ups are already underway. Call me at 932-4405 or email me at mwright@urbancrest.org for details.

Also, be on the lookout for a visiting South Carolina mission team in July. We'll want to give them an extra warm welcome and thank you for the help they are giving our Resource Ministry and Living Word Bible Church, our new church plant with Pastor Chris and Janella Straw.

This Friday's blog will be closer look at recent local missions events including June's Big Apple Adventure Bible School and the June 29 Block Party at Hunter's Run. Until then, choose a place to go and share Jesus! You'll be glad you did!