Community-building and discipling for God’s New Generation
By Pastors Alex & Sally Perez
The husband & wife team of Alex and Sally Perez share how their post-summer Back to School Bash was more than a community gathering. It was an opportunity for ministerial outreach to people in real need…not just inside the four walls of church.
God’s New Generation is one of our New Faith Communities in Pasco, Wash.
God’s New Generation held a Back to School Bash & Family Car Show Outreach event last August at Highland Park in Pasco, Wash. There were approximately 600 people who showed up to the event. We celebrated with a BBQ – offering free hot dogs, back to school supplies, clothes, books, summer toys for children, and raffles to local restaurants. We also had an outdoor concert with several local Christian artists, worship teams, with some driving from as far as Phoenix, Ariz. to perform at the event. Several car club members even brought their cars for the family car show viewing.
It was a great blessing to our congregation leaders and volunteers because they were able to give of themselves to make it all happen! Our leadership prayed for people in need, which was amazing. They had the opportunity to minister to our community – fulfilling physical needs through a delicious meal while meeting the spiritual needs through listening and prayer. It’s exciting when leadership and volunteers are empowered to show who we are as a church in these ways.
This event really brought together multiple generations of leaders and volunteers in our church. They all worked together towards one common goal, to reach out for Jesus. They even brought friends who didn’t attend the church to help out because they were so excited to serve.
This ministry is valuable because there is a huge demand to help families in need – especially on the eastside of the Pasco. This area is known for crime and is a scary place for many citizens. Still, it is amazing to be able to host a positive event in a field that needs Church the most.
While some of our leaders were buying supplies for the Back to School Bash, the cashier at the local Wal-Mart inquired about all of the supplies and what they were going to be used for. As the leaders began to tell her about our ministry and event, she began to cry. The cashier said that her family had to move from the eastside of town because crime was really bad (we learned her brothers were starting to hang out with the wrong crowd). She was very thankful to the leaders because they were doing something positive in the community where she used to live. “Thank you for everything that you do to make our community a better place. We need more people like you,” the cashier said. Our leaders were very touched in seeing first-hand of the need to embrace people.
We would like to thank the Commission on Ethnic Ministries so much for supporting the development of our leaders and volunteers. We also thank you for giving us an opportunity to reach out for community-building and disciple-making.
