Kentucky...the Basketball State

March Madness is long gone, but the love for basketball never seems to slow down here in Kentucky. Summer is fast approaching and the weather is so much nicer than it has been the past few months and with these factors in play the the neighborhood of Shelby Park comes more alive! I cannot think of a day over the past year that I have not seen a group of kids out on the basketball courts on the west side of the park. These courts are constantly full of young men and boys who are in love with the game. The question is "How do we reach them with the Gospel?" Well, some of the men on the URBN Experience team and a few members of Sojourn Community Church had an idea: a 3 on 3 basketball tournament where the winners would all receive brand new basketballs and of course bragging rights until the next tournament.

Over the past few months a lot of prayer and planning went into this 3 on 3 tournament. Having been able to sit in on some of the meetings for the tournament I know that it was a long, hard, and sometimes stressing process. However, these men committed to faithfully praying and believing that God would do big things for the community through this tournament. Flyers were handed out a week in advance, talk of the tournament had been spreading throughout the neighborhood, supplies was being gathered, roles were being assigned, and brand new basketballs were being bought...all without knowing what the turnout would be. Would six people show up and the tournament be over after one game or would hundreds of people show up and the tournament go on for hours? No one knew, but what they did know was that no matter what happened, the work was not in vain.

Below are pictures of the 3 on 3 basketball tournament that took place today. There is no doubt in my mind that God's hand was in this from beginning to end.

If You Can Dodge a Wrench, You Can Dodge a Ball

Sojourn Community Church has/holds more events and activities than any church I have ever attended and I love it! Today was an extremely busy day, but one that has been filled with great fellowship, laughter, sweat, hard work, and the Gospel. On the third Sunday of every month Access Ventures, a local non profit, puts on what they call "Urban Workdays." Today happened to be one of those days. During these workdays, Access Ventures has a list of tasks that need to be completed throughout the neighborhood of Shelby Park. To give you an idea of what these tasks could be, here is a list of activities I have personally done while at a workday:

1.Cleaning and planting in the community garden

2.Demolition on a house

3. Picking up trash around the neighborhood

4. Painting

5. Pulling up old tile

As a team, the URBN Experience members went out and completed tasks like these during the morning shift for the workday, but by lunch time we had reassembled as dodgeball players! Some transition right? Already sweaty and dirty from the workday, I'm sure we were the most intimidating team to show up. Why are we playing dodgeball you ask? Sojourn's youth group, S2, is getting ready to go on their summer retreat and have put together a dodgeball tournament to raise money for students in the neighborhood to be able to go! How awesome is that? At the end of the day, we did not win the tournament but we were able to help send students on a summer retreat with S2 where they will hear the Gospel and we were able to fellowship and worship with our brothers and sisters in Christ, even if that looks like a bunch of adults pretending to be in their high school gym class again.

It's days like this that God reminds me of how sweet His love is for us and how blessed we are to be able to freely worship and fellowship together.

Support Raising

It has been a month since I had my official training and became a staff member for Great Commission Ministries (GCM).GCM is the agency that I will be working with along side Sojourn Community Church during my year long inner city ministry with URBN Experience. I know that seems like a lot to remember and wrap your mind around and it is, but simply put we are a team of many people working together to take the Gospel to the inner city of Louisville, KY.

A few weeks ago I wrote a post about quitting both of my jobs. I am doing so, with faith, that God will provide supporters to help make my next year in Louisville possible! Over this past year I have been working and doing ministry part-time in the neighborhood of Shelby Park, where I currently live along with other URBN team members. As a side note: If you would like to look into the demographics of Shelby Park I attached the link to the words "Shelby Park" in the previous sentence. This next year, I am making the switch from the marketplace to full time ministry. One of my jobs over the past year has allowed me to be present in the neighborhood and to experience many of the same things that the ministry track gets to. Each and every person that I have been able to meet and engage with in the park during these hours has been used by God to impact my life in a way that I didn't expect.

My heart has been affected by what I see and what I have experienced in the park. I have known for quite some time that God has called me to a life of ministry, but was unsure of the context of that. Over this past year, God has revealed to me that, at least for this next season in life, it is to be in ministry full time. My heart has not been this full nor have I been at such peace with a decision in some time. I am trusting and fully believing that God's plan for my life is far better than my plan could ever be!

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths."
-Proverbs 3:5-6

There is always room for you, yes you, to join me in what I am doing here in Louisville, KY. We would love to have people come visit! Sojourn Community Church is always having an even, many of which are right here in the neighborhood, prayer is always a need, and finally in order to make this a possibility I am in need of financial support as well!
If you would like to join my support team click here: SUPPORT MELISSA!