A prayer for Bellflower -- By Pastor Tom Hocking

Today the city of Bellflower hosted it's annual State of the City Address. As with many cities, Bellflower is facing some challenging days ahead as budgets tighten and the economy continues to struggle. The city manager entitled the talk, "The Rocky Road Ahead". I was particularly blessed by the prayer that my good friend Pastor Tom Hocking prayed as the invocation for the event. What he prayed was a powerful blessing for our city and I've included it below. Please pray it as you read:


Heavenly Father,
Thank you for this day,
Thanks for our city and the men and women who serve it and protect it.
Thanks for the opportunity to soberly consider where we stand as a community.
These are obviously difficult and uncertain times and I confess that I have struggled with feelings of anxiety—perhaps many of us have.
But God, when I think about it, the times when I have grown the most as a person have been times of great trouble, not times of ease.
So Lord Jesus, while we pray passionately for the peace and prosperity of Bellflower, I want to pray even more passionately that on the way toward peace (whether that peace is personal peace or social peace or financial peace or relational peace). . .I pray that on the way toward that peace, we would not forget that you and you alone are the giver of real peace—ultimate and eternal peace.
God, the road in front of us may indeed be a bit rocky. . .but considering that you once said that the wide and easy road leads to destruction. . .maybe a few potholes aren’t that bad.
But please help us to negotiate those potholes with grace and wisdom—and above all to make this journey together—loving each other more than ourselves and loving you most of all. I pray for Mayor smith and our Concilmembers: Bomgaars, Dunton, Koops, and Larsen; for Mike and his staff—that you would crown their efforts with abundant success. In Christ’s name, I pray Amen.

Seniors give back!

During the first few months working on Oak street, I gravitated toward the young and idealistic. I wanted the teenagers in this community to reach their potential, and the young families to work together to make their community a better place.

Unfortunately, in the midst of this work, I was missing a key part of the Oak Street demographic. I was overlooking the senior citizens and the rich array of skills and passions that they bring to the neighborhood. Here at kingdom causes, we use the Asset Based Community Development model (ABCD). In a nutshell, this means we look for what is best about a community, and then build on the skills and abilities of the community residents.

As I got to know some of the senior citizens through a senior's luncheon at a local church, I began to recognize how much these people had to offer the community. Over time, though, they have begun to believe that they don't have too much to offer. This mindset is reinforced by those of us who do not ask them to enrich our lives with the wisdom and skills they have accumulated over their lifetime.

In an effort to help these seniors have an outlet for giving back to their community, we've started a "seniors volunteer group" at the Bellflower Manor. There are around 15 individuals who have agreed to give some of their time and talent to various causes in our community. I am excited to learn from them as we serve Bellflower together.

If you know a senior who would like to be involved--let me know! Call our office or shoot me an email at abbeyn@kingdomcauses.org

Money

Better a little with righteousness
 than much gain with injustice. 

  Proverbs 16:8

This verse stirred up a lively discussion with the teens at our house last night.  When you get bombarded with messages that tell you the opposite... to get as much as you can no matter the cost... a verse like this might be hard to swallow.

Please continue to pray for our neighbors... and for the leaders... as we explore scripture and learn more about who Jesus is. 

What is KCB-101?

Here at Kingdom Causes, we're excited to introduce a new tool for volunteer training in 2010. We're calling the training "KCB 101".  We hope to better equip and empower our volunteers so that together we can be most effective at reaching our community. 

We're currently running our first training with a group of volunteers that are already deeply invested, but don't worry if you missed this first round.  This 5-week training will be offered again in April.  Spots are limited, so keep an eye out for the next chance to register. 

We have four goals for this training:

1. To get to know each other’s stories
2. To familiarize volunteers with the values and programming at the heart of our work in Bellflower
3. To help volunteers discover the best way to be involved (connecting your passions with the mission)
4. To help learn how to incorporate KC values into personal lives and spheres of influence.

In short, this training will help you be better equipped to serve with Kingdom Causes, but also to be an intentional "kingdom-maker" in the other areas of your life.

Photo: Teri, Jeudy, Betty, Abbey, Taylor & Alex... participants in the training

Relationships over programs

It's been a year and a half since we started having the neighborhood kids over on Wednesday nights for dinner and Bible study.  When we started we were expecting an entirely different (and smaller) crowd.  I'm happy my expectations aren't always met.  This ragamuffin group of leaders, friends & neighbors has turned into a family of sorts.  Relationships exist outside of 7-9pm on Wednesday evenings.  Neighbors are mentoring these youth and investing in their lives.  That's the real success.  Living an open life that leaves time for taking a neighbor kid out for a taco or a impromptu hangout at the nearby park.  I'm so grateful for the leaders... friends... that show up on Wednesdays and keep in touch with the kids throughout their busy week.  The kids are experiencing neighborly love the way Jesus wants us all to.

6,000 Easter Eggs

Looks like we're going to need your help.

Contact Abbey to find out how you, your family, church, etc., can get involved with this year's community easter egg hunt.

Cold Eggs and Reconciliation

"About a year ago, I beat somebody up really bad. Like really bad."

Kenny, the big, tattooed guy wearing a bandana and leather sitting next to me was reporting on "signs of transformation" he had seen since the last meeting of the Homeless Task Force, a group of Christians from several different congregations in Bellflower, who work together to love our homeless neighbors. Kenny, who had been homeless himself for many years before coming to know Christ, now serves weekly, building relationships with our homeless neighbors.

The transformation happened after the previous week's breakfast. At the end of the weekly meal where we serve 40-50 neighbors we had left over eggs and beans. We were about to throw away the excess when Kenny offered to load up his Harley and bring them down to the riverbed. As he walked down the embankment near the intersection of the 605 and the 105, the first person he encountered was this man with whom he had brawled a year back. Tensions were high as you might imagine, but as Kenny reached out and handed him the cold left over eggs reconciliation happened. This simple act of love and concern melted what ever conflict had remained between these two former enemies.

I am constantly humbled to be involved in the story of God's Kingdom work in Bellflower. I get to see God use people who most would consider too far gone, or damaged to minister his love and peace. I am blessed to see the Body at work, with our many gifts and backgrounds, all working in symphony as God uses us in His ministry of reconciliation.

what makes the difference?

The name of our program, Good Soil, comes from Jesus parable of the seed that is scattered (Mark 4). Some seed falls on thorns, some falls on rocky soil, and still other seed falls on good soil.

During 2009 I have worked with men who were part of this good soil, and they experienced radical transformation in their life because of Christ. Men have become members of local churches, become married, found full-time jobs, moved into homes, and worship Jesus with great passion. Their testimony has given me fresh hope in the limitless power of Jesus.
I have also worked with men who currently seem stuck in thorny or rocky soil. Life is filled with thorns that keep them from reaching their potential.
The strength that I’ve found in the parable is that God has called me to be a sower, but the power is in the Word. When I am obedient and share Scripture, I can trust God to do the rest. Scripture is active and when we share how it is impacting our lives, we plant the seed and let God work. So as I look to 2010 I am renewed in my excitement to share God’s word with the men of Good Soil and to watch how it transforms both our lives.

A local business that's giving back...

Kingdom Causes has a shout out in this video:



Did you know that locally owned businesses invest MORE into the community than chains? That's exactly what Casa de Luna is doing in our city. Interested in learning more about why it's important for a community to have strong local businesses? Check out the 3/50 Project.

Still looking for new toy donations...

We're still short toys for our Christmas Store. Will you help our community out by donating a new, unwrapped gift for a kid (ages 0-17). Click here to read more about how the store works... where the money goes... why we sell the gifts... etc.

600!

That's how many gifts we need to have for our Christmas Toy & Gift Store on December 15th. Eeek! 600. Will you help?

You can drop off new, unwrapped gifts of $10+ value for kids ages 0-17 to Rosewood Church (10115 Rose Street) during regular weekly office hours or you can bring them to the City Wide Carol Sing on December 13th.

Christmas Carol Sing - 12/13

Visit www.blessbellflower.org and click on "Bellflower Christmas" to learn more about what's going in in our city in December.

Eavesdropping on a Thanksgiving Luncheon

I wish you all could sit in on this...

A group of Christians, including a local retired pastor, host a weekly Bible Study in Thompson Park for our homeless neighbors. Today they are using the front of our community center to host a Thanksgiving Lunch.

Pastor Dan is playing the ukulele (a skill he picked up in the last few months of retirement) and leading the group in the song "Rejoice in the Lord always again I say rejoice." The diverse group of 20 neighbors is attempting to sing the song in rounds. It's awesome!

He just shared a Bible story and I've never heard so many enthusiastic "Amens!"

I'm sure God is smiling right now. I am.

Fall Newsletter

Miss our Fall Newsletter? Click below to download past KC Bellflower newsletters.

OPHS - Now Hiring

Our Place Housing Solutions is now hiring. Please visit our website www.ourplacehousingsolutions.org for job descriptions.

Submit resume and cover letter, no later than October 23, 2009 to: admin@ourplacehousingsolutions.org. No letters or phone calls please. Resumes will be reviewed as they are received. OPHS is committed to non-discrimination and equal opportunity in employment.

Oak Street Neighbor Meeting

Seeing neighbors get excited about transforming their community is probably one of the most inspiring things ever. Last Saturday, we had our first neighbor meeting in the Oak Street Neighborhood, and it was so much fun! (Thanks to Neighborhood Christian Fellowship for letting us use the church yard!)

To be honest, I was preparing myself for disappointment at the meeting. Even though I’ve gotten to know many residents over the past few months, I didn’t feel overly confident that they would take time out of their Saturday morning to meet with their neighbors. But, I was wrong! It was exciting to see a diverse group show up and share their dreams for the neighborhood.

We talked about everything from better street lighting to potlucks to front porches. I couldn’t be happier that the group’s main goal was to foster a sense of “togetherness” in the community.

With Asset Based Community Development, fostering togetherness is the first step! When neighbors get to know what is best about each other, they can’t help but work together to bring transformation to the neighborhood.

What about us? Let’s go treasure-hunting in our own neighborhoods to find out what is best about our neighbors and community. Who knows what God will do with one small step!

Mayor's Prayer Breakfast goes GRASSROOTS!

Tuesday morning was sweet! This was the first year we hosted the Mayor's Community Prayer Breakfast. We changed things up a bit. Read more about it in the Press Telegram Article: Bellflower prayer breakfast goes grassroots.

Project Oak - House Cleaned!

Check it out! http://ourplacehousingsolutions.wordpress.com/blog/

Project Oak

Check out our affordable housing project: www.ourplacehousingsolutions.org

Mayor's Community Prayer Breakfast

The city of Bellflower has hosted the Mayor's Community Prayer breakfast for many years. Unfortunately, due to budget cuts, they were unable to host it this year. So, Kingdom Causes and Bless Bellflower agreed to host a modified version of the breakfast as a way to encourage the city and keep the tradition going. And hopefully encourage prayer on behalf of our city!

The breakfast will take place on Tuesday, October 6th from 7-8:30 am at Simms Park. It's only $5 for a time of prayer and encouragement, plus a yummy continental breakfast!

If you're interested in helping with this event, or if you'd like to attend please, call Kingdom Causes at (562) 804-2189.