Mercy vs. Evangelism = false dichotomy?

Below is a great conversation between D.A. Carson, John Piper, and Tim Keller about how ministries of the Word and ministries of mercy need not be at odds, but rather natural, necessary outflows of keeping the Gospel at the core of what the church is and is for.

spiritual and physical needs

I recently got the following email:

Hello,

My name is XXXXXX, and I am a student at the Master's College in Dr. Tatlock's Urban Ministry Class. A project for the class involves studying an ethnic group within an LA enclave, and I have chosen Latinos and Hispanics in Pico Union. I was wondering if you could describe the spiritual and physical needs of the people 1st EV Free ministers to, and how the church has been working to meet these needs. Thanks so much for your time!


I thought I would post my response as it might give a little picture about what we do:


XXXXXXX,

my apologies for not getting back to you sooner. I have been out of town for the last week and was not able to get to your email. I hope it isn't too late.

I'll give you the short answer for now and if you want more info I'll be glad to respond more promptly.

Spiritual need: Well, the spiritual need of the people here is the same as that of all people - They are sinners who need to be reconciled to God. Obviously there is something supernatural that needs to happen in the life of a person for them to come to Christ, but God uses His people to proclaim the message and be midwives in the new birth, helping those seeking the truth to understand it, surrender to it, and live it. So some specific obstacles that need to be overcome when sharing the Gospel with those in our neighborhood are:
1. There is a distrust of outsiders, especially caucasians. Obviously this does not go for everyone but is the norm. This comes from a multitude of sources, including racism, oppression, classism, differing education levels, different languages, catholic vs. protestant issues, jealousy, and misinformation. When someone automatically does not trust you, they will not listen to the Gospel you have to share with them. It is important that Christians find ways to incarnationally live out the Gospel as they try to share it effectively in inner city Latino communities.
2. The culture of the city is one that is very spiritual, but very Godless. Therefore definitions of words should not be taken for granted. For example, we would define sin Bibilically as something which is outside of God's will, or missing God's mark. But to an unbeliever in the city, sin would be defined as anything that hurts someone else. As long as it doesnt hurt anybody, it is not sinful or evil. Thus, they have divorced the idea from any recognition of God and His Holiness. Tolerance is God. Everyone has their own ideas of what spirituality is, and in our neighborhood it is a strange mix of Catholicism, witchcraft, and MTV.
3. The Family, specifically fathers. Our cities will never be what they should until our neighborhoods will be what they should, and they will never be what they should until the churches in those neighborhoods are what they should be, and our churches will never be what they should be until the families in those churches are what they should be and they will never be what they should be until the fathers in those families are what they should be. (Sorry for the run-on sentence, I am preaching on this subject this week and get very passionate about it). In the youth group I oversee, 95% of the youth have only a mom at home. this has taken a huge toll on our community and the youth's understanding of family, responsibility, love...etc.


Some of the ways our church tries to meet these spiritual needs is by:
1. earning trust and introducing them to the love of Christ through meeting physical needs (job opportunities, providing education, helping with groceries, being advocates in legal and health issues, fighting for justice and those who have no voice in our political system, and having a ministry of presence, ie we live amongst them and are available to struggle through the myriad of trials they daily face with them). The Nehemiah House is a major tool in this aspect of our ministry
2. Placing an importance on the Word of God. We have to fight a battle of redeeming the culture of the city and the way to do that is by confronting and teaching people with the Word of God. In the word of Paul "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." (2 Co 10:4-5). We do this through providing Bible studies, services, and small groups in the heart language of the people. We make every effort to make the Word of God accessible to everyone, whether that means providing a ministry in their own language, or providing audio to the many who are illiterate in our community.
3. We are working on this one. We have a men's group, and we do MAN Camp for the youth, where we take them out of the city and do manly things and study what Scripture says about being a man of God. We try to emphasize the family in everything we do. Stressing the importance of the Father in the family is sometimes a source of contention as in most Latino communities, the mother is the center of the family. To be honest we have a lot of work to do in this area of our ministry...any ideas?

so I dont know if that was helpful or not. Let me know if you have any other questions. Of course the best way to learn would be to come down and spend a weekend with us and see what we do. You could come down on Friday for our youth group and stay till Sunday at the Nehemiah house. Let me know if you are interested.

Hope your paper goes well and you can apply it for the Glory of God outside of the classroom.

The Amazing Leslie Woo

One of the joys of this summer was meeting Leslie Woo in Brooklyn, NY. He is a little boy around 10 years old who latched on to me while we taught VBS. He is definitely a trouble maker, and has virtually no social skills. His mother died when he was a baby and his father basically abandoned him, leaving his grandmother to raise him in her busy boarding house. For the first 8 years of his life virtually all human contact came in the form of television. The wonderful staff of the 2nd Evangelical Free Church of Brooklyn has taken on the challenge of loving and training Leslie. I was privileged to be a part of his life for a week and hope to continue having an input in his life over the years.

Here is a small taste of my man Leslie. I love how he say's "Mr. Big John"!

Pray for Pico Union

In the last three days there have been three fatal shootings within 2 blocks of our church. Our neighborhood (Pico Union) is the stronghold and home of 3 of the largest, violent and most notorious gangs in the country: The Burlington Street Locos, Mara Salvatrucha, and the 18th Street Gang. Things have been fairly quiet as far as gang warfare goes in our neighborhood for the last few years, and our neighborhood was seeming to take steps towards becoming a safe community. But since January of this year gang violence has been on the rise again. Of these recent shootings one took place right in front of the grocery store that I frequent on a weekly basis, another was a few yards down from our church. Many of our youth saw the shootings and the neighborhood seems to have been plunged back into fear. I would like to ask that you pray for a few specific things:

1. God would use these events to open doors for the Gospel
2. God would use these events to motivate the church to be more active in connecting with and confronting gang members with the Gospel. Pray that we would be willing to die if need be so that others might hear the message that brings life.
3. God would use his church to confront the attitudes, injustices, and evil that lie behind and perpetuate gangs.


by God's grace
for God's glory
Safety

Hope for those controlled by Hatred - A praise update

Last week I had the immense privilege of sharing the Gospel with a youth who had been involved with gangs and to watch God bring him to repentance and salvation. This young man had been trying to break ties with the gang he was in but was jumped by 10 other gang members, resulting in a dislocated shoulder, a few knocked out teeth, and a concussion. Ever since this happened this youth has been filled with thoughts of hatred and revenge. He told me, “If I see these people again and I have a gun, I will shoot them.” He knew it was the wrong thing to do but he felt like he had no other choice, his hatred had taken him over. I spoke to him about the transforming power of Jesus Christ and that Jesus didn’t want to just change or fix some things about him but he wanted to kill him and give him a new life. God wanted to nail his old, sinful, hate-controlled self up on the cross with Christ and give him a new life as a child of God. When I explained these things to him from Scripture, he said that was exactly what he wanted and needed. I told him to just express his heart to God and without any coaching from me, a tear-filled, contrite prayer with sentences like, “I know I need to change but I am helpless to change”, “I have sinned against you and need your forgiveness”, “please kill my old self and give me new life”, and “I trust you with my life now Jesus” poured out of this broken teenager. What a joy to be able to witness this miracle! Please pray that this youth will be protected from the temptations and dangers of his old life and will remain faithful in following Christ.

Hood Kids

Meme Webb, 19, grew up in a tough, lowincome neighborhood. Like many children, she was dragged to church in her early days but wondered what the church had to say to her generation—to whom God was acceptable but the church was considered out of touch. She writes:

Hood Kids

hood kids
but good kids
not bad kids
just misunderstood kids
watch mom shoot up
and dad shoot bullets
and combat the words
that scream that I'm useless
I'm not
just hot
and mad at dad who split
and mom who took him back
even though he split
her lip the third time
I watch from the sidelines
and grow full of hate
from parents' guidelines
and you, pastor
push me faster
to hate
taking our crumbs to fill
your already full plate
your frock is stained
you mock the name
of He who commissioned
cuz you're more concerned
with titles and pensions

than the mission to save me
don't forget the babies
don't be so lazy
cuz I need you greatly
it's not about parking spots
and who pays a lot
but who gives a lot
and who prays a lot
for me
the lost sheep
but nobody's looked for me
don't you know God made
the Good Book for me?
but I need direction
some protection
much affection
not rejection
I...NEED...YOU
man of God
woman of God
be of God
and keep your eyes peeled
for real
we're crying
and dying
but still trying
though momma ignores us
and daddy abuses us
I'm sure that God still
wants to use us
when momma doesn't hug us
and daddy slugs us
I'm confident that God
still loves us
cuz I'm a hood kid
but a good kid
not a bad kid
just misunderstood kid
and I need your help
before it's too late
and I walk the same path
that my parents made
look at us
behind the chain linked fence
pain wrenched kids
such tainted kids
who were struck
but never fainted kids
we live hellish lives
but can be saintly kids
if you just try TRY!
until then
we'll continue to die
continue to cry
the hood kids
that no one really cares about
it's so obvious that no one
really cares about 'em...

Support Letter

Below is the support letter (minus the pictures) that Sarah and I have mailed out recently. It explains our heart for the ministry we are in, new opportunities coming up, and our need to raise support in order to keep ministering in this capacity. If you are interested in joining our support team send us a note and your address at Freibergjr@gmail.com.

Dear Friends and Family,

You have all been a part of our life in some meaningful way. It is our joy to share with you some of the new adventures God is taking us on.

What We’re all About:
Sarah and I (John) were married on July 22, 2007. We met each other while pursuing our passion, bringing Christ to the darkest parts of the earth. We were both attending the Master’s College and serving in the Nehemiah House, an internship house in the inner city of Los Angeles when we discovered that not only did we love serving Christ, we loved each other and wanted to serve Him together. Over the next few years of serving together in the youth ministry we knew that the Lord was calling both of us into full time ministry and that He was calling us to serve together as husband and wife.

Our ministry (or the ministry the Lord has graciously entrusted to us):
Since 2005 I (John) have been serving in the First Evangelical Free Church of Los Angeles as the High School Director. Our Youth Group consists of kids of church members as well as neighborhood kids who have received Christ through our outreaches. Some of the many responsibilities of being in this ministry include the normal youth group stuff: counseling, discipleship, staff development, running weekly meetings, preparing sermons, organizing trips and outreaches…etc. However, due to our inner city location there are many unique challenges to this ministry some of which include: poverty, generations of broken families, gang warfare, low education levels, language barriers, undocumented immigrants…etc.

Our Neighborhood: Pico Union
The following Wikkepedia entry gives a good overview of our neighborhood:
Pico Union is one of the poorest neighborhoods in Los Angeles… it is now primarily populated by first-generation Hispanic immigrants, particularly Mexicans, Guatemalans, Salvadorans, and Hondurans. Nearly 50% of the population is believed to be living in the United States illegally, but due to Los Angeles being designated a sanctuary city, many of the undocumented are allowed to freely live there. Most of the district lies within the infamous Rampart Division of the Los Angeles Police Department, and is plagued with high crime. Several transnational gangs, most notably the 18th Street Gang and Mara Salvatrucha ("MS-13"), were started in the neighborhood and maintain a strong presence. -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pico_Union

New Opportunities
Now that I have finished seminary, the church has asked me to become a full time associate pastor. My three areas of focus will be overseeing spiritual development (discipleship, Bible studies, and encouraging members to be consistent with their devotionals...etc), facilitating and hosting outreach groups from other churches/schools, and (the big one!) starting, organizing, overseeing, and running a new service geared for the younger generation in our church and neighborhood. This last task has been on our hearts for years and it is so exciting to be given the freedom and authority to pursue it. This service also has the potential to become a church plant in itself. These tasks are God-sized in scope and only through His strength, power, sovereignty, and grace will it become a reality, but we are overwhelmingly grateful for the opportunity and burning with excitement to start this new adventure.

Your Support
One of the challenges of inner city ministry is the lack of resources in the face of such great need. This challenge can be your opportunity. There are many ways that you can support our ministry in one of the darkest yet strategic cities in the world.
Prayer Support: God has promised and proven throughout time that He listens to the prayers of His faithful. Please consider battling alongside us through committing to praying for us and the Lord’s work in Los Angeles.
Ministry Support: There are many ways to use the gifts and resources God has given you to help further His work in the inner city. Organizing missions trips from your home church to our church, sponsoring a youth to go to summer camp, donating basketballs for a sports outreach, hosting meetings to create partnerships between inner city and suburban churches, helping run health clinics for children without health insurance…the sky is really the limit for possible ministry opportunities.
Financial Support: Due to our church’s inner city location and situation, they cannot afford to pay me. We are taking steps to provide salaries for staff members but at this point it is just not a reality. According to our budget, Sarah and I will need $2,500 a month for living and ministry expenses. (This does not cover any of Sarah’s medical school costs, we took out a loan for that). We are sure of our call to this ministry and trust that the Lord will make it possible, yet the means by which He will make it possible are yet to be seen. We do not know whether God will provide through the financial gifts of supporters like you or if He desires me to commit to less time at the church and work a secular job as well. It is obviously our desire that I would be able to devote all of my time and energy to the ministry and we believe that if that is God’s will He will make it possible. In the meantime, I continue working a night job at the Staples Center to meet our monthly quota. In short, if we are able to raise our goal of $2,500 a month through outside support I will be able to work full-time (and more!) at the church. We are very committed to this ministry and we will do whatever it takes to keep our commitment but your support would enhance, enable, and expand it greatly! Ultimately, we joyfully trust in God’s perfect plan and never-changing faithfulness in providing what is needed to respond to His call.

In Christ’s Love,
John and Sarah Freiberg


For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” (Romans 10:12-15)

“And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood. Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore. For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.” (Hebrews 13:12-14)

“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” (Ephesians 6:18)

Prayer Request

On Tuesday night one of mothers of the student leaders in our youth group was beaten by her drunk boyfriend. Since she does not have health insurance, she spent 16 hours in the waiting room of the LA County Hospital before she was treated for injuries to her face, including a broken nose. This is not the first time this has happened to this woman. Thankfully none of her 3 children were hurt.
Because this has happened before and because the boyfriend is connected with a local gang, the mother wants to get out of the neighborhood. Unfortunately she has no where to go and so is looking to stay at a shelter for battered women. There is also a possibility of the kids going into foster care. Obviously, our church would like to provide other alternatives to these scenarios but most of our church already lives in over crowded apartments that the social services would not allow this family to stay at. It would also be devastating to have to say goodbye to her children, who are a vital part of our youth ministries. So needless to say we need your prayers. Please pray that the mother would come to know Christ and his forgiveness and comfort, that her children (who are believers) will trust, find refuge in, and be protected by their heavenly Father and that our church, Christ's hands and feet in this neighborhood, can make responsible decisions that reflect God's heart for the widow, orphan, and abused.
on a personal note, this family is very close to Sarah and my's hearts and even as I write this my eyes are full of tears and my heart is full of pain and anger and desperation. I meet with the oldest son on a weekly basis and he has become like a little brother to me. To see them go through this pain is overwhelming. Please pray that I would see God's faithfulness even in this and that I would be able to point this family and others to that hope. Also please pray that I will have the ability to love even this boyfriend who I may see around the neighborhood (even in writing this request I feel the fires of anger against this man), yet still stand up for justice.

With hope in the Holy One
jrf

Prayer Request - Youth Group Kick Off!

I want to take a break from the never ending road trip to ask for your prayers as we prepare to kick off another year of youth ministry. We are trying a lot of new things this year, including emphasizing small groups a lot more. We have never really been able to get consistent small groups off the ground but hopefully this is the year. another big change is that we are going to have Junior High and High School together for the worship and teaching time and then split up when we go to small groups. Could get pretty crazy.
the first seven weeks I will be preaching through the topics highlighted in our missions statement:
Our mission is to create a Christ-centered community of passionate worship, unwavering discipleship, personal and corporate holiness, and radical missional ministry

By spending so much time going through the missions statement I hope to create a sense of unity in purpose and mission, so that the Youth and Staff are clear about what we are about and what our goal is as a body of Christ.

So if you would like to join in our mission, you can do so by praying for the following things:
- that the staff would make the priority of their life to know and love Christ deeply , whether or not that translates into "successful" ministry
- that the youth would catch the vision to know Christ deeply themselves and want to share that knowledge with their city
- that we would be excellent in every aspect of ministry
- that logistics would go smoothly
- That we would have a CHrist-reflecting attitude even and especially when things don't go smoothly

thank you for lifting us up,

by His grace
for His glory
jrf

Sex trafficking in Los Angeles

You would be shocked at how common stories like these are in this city. All the more reason that the light needs to shine in this dark place.

"For he will deliver the needy when he cries for help,
The afflicted also, and him who has no helper.
He will have compassion on the poor and needy,
And the lives of the needy he will save.
He will rescue their life from oppression and violence,
And their blood will be precious in his sight;"
Psalm 72:12-14

"Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom : she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy."
Ez 16:49


"They are fat, they are sleek,
They also excel in deeds of wickedness;
They do not plead the cause,
The cause of the orphan, that they may prosper;
And they do not defend the rights of the poor.
' Shall I not punish these people?' declares the LORD,
'On a nation such as this
Shall I not avenge Myself?'"
Jer 5:28-29


"Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven."
Matt 5:16

Back from Camp

Sorry for the lack of posting. But I have a good excuse. I spent the last week being a counselor at World Impact's summer camp, the Oaks. This was a new experience for me as I had never been to a summer camp, either as a camper or a counselor. While I would like to record every moment of the week so as not to forget the amazing experience this was, my time and your patience do not allow for a detailed account. Instead I will just list this brief and incomplete list of things that I learned at camp. Many of these things were not new but it was refreshing to be reminded of them in new and different ways.

1. There are few things, if any, that are more powerful and exciting than telling someone that Jesus unconditionally loves them and is willing and able to save them no matter what they, their mom or their dad has done.
2. Few things are more beautiful than watching Christ bring together 150 inner city kids of all ethnicities and backgrounds to worship Him.
3. I like glowsticks
4. The Gospel is both vastly complex and utterly simple. Because I am fascinated by the complexity of the Gospel I often unnecessarily and unfortunately present it in a way that robs it of its power and beauty. A youth entranced by the glitz of the world, a homeless woman selling herself to earn money so she can worship at the altar of cocaine, or a business man chasing after the wind does not need the know the intricacies of predestination, headship or the hypostatic union to find the hope their soul needs. They need to know that they are not lovable, yet God loves them anyways, that the perfect and holy God/Man Jesus Christ is willing and able to save them if they will repent of themselves and give their torn, battered, shame-filled lives to Him!
5. Chorizo, Mountain Dew, and Cottage Cheese is a bad idea.
6. Party like a Christian...ie. Christians should be constantly showing the world that we have more joy than they do. That righteousness and being right with God and enjoying Him is immeasurably more satisfying than the lust of the world.
7. Standing firm in the Lord is both an individual and communal task.
8. I love my wife
9. I want to be a film director (our cabin made the best music video)
10. It is a great privilege to be used by God in someone else's life

Stand Firm
Eph 6:10-18
jrf

“Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’

One of the injustices that adds to the cycle of depravity on Los Angeles' Skid Row is the practice of "dumping" that hospitals and mental institutions occasionally (some might argue frequently) participate in. Check out this article about the lastest reported incident. Then pray for those stuck in a cycle of poverty, hopelessness, and addiction. Then seek the Lord to see if He is asking you to do something beyond prayer. If so let me know and perhaps I can offer some suggestions.


by His grace,
for His glory,
jrf

Mi barrio

My wife recently discovered this feature on the LAPD web site. If you put in the address of any location with in Los Angeles and it will pull up a map of recently reported crimes in the area. If you are interested in the crime rate of the area we live and minister in plug in the address of the church, 1356 S. Albany Street, 90015 or the internship house 1431 S. Valencia St., 90015.

Freedom!

As of 12 o'clock today both Sarah and I are done with school for this semester. Its been a rough semester, especially for Sarah but God was faithful to bring us through. So you three regular readers who are foaming at the mouth for some bloggy goodness to chew on just hold on for a few more days while I wait for my brain to stop bleeding from stretching it way beyonds its abilities during finals week. I'll do my best to get something more substantial than a "what I am doing now" post up in the next few days.
In the mean time, we would love your prayers for a six hour planning meeting for our church we will be a part of today. Pray that God would unify us around His truth and that a love for Him and each other would permeate the meeting. Pray that our methodology would flow out of our doctrine which would be solidly founded in a proper understanding of the truth of God's Word.

by His grace
for His glory
jrf

Updates and the like

Man Camp and Woman Camp were a success, thanks for asking. Immediately afterwards it was difficult to judge what kind of spiritual fruit might come from the weekend. Last night however, one of the girls that attended made a proffession of faith in Christ! In addittion two youth who also attended where baptized last sunday at our Thanksgiving service! Only God knows exactly how He used the time spent at the camps but praise Him that He is working in the lives of these youth so visibly.

Have a great Thanksgiving
jrf

Look out Will Ferrell

Two months ago the TV show NASCAR angels did an episode at the Nehemiah House. We still don't know exactly when it is going to air, but here's the synopsis according to the web site:

Episode 106: L.A. Youth Center - Scott Yetter is associate pastor of the First Evangelical Free Church of Los Angeles, an inner-city church with deep roots in its community. Before accepting this assignment, Scott and wife Sarah founded the church's SAY Y.E.S. inner-city youth program, and it's changing the lives of kids in their area. The program is located, in part, in the Nehemiah House, a very old home in the inner city. When the NASCAR Angels come to the neighborhood, church members, kids from the youth program and college students participating in an urban ministry training program will paint the Nehemiah House and landscape the grounds. As they give some TLC to their beloved home, the Angels will be showering some TLC on Scott's Honda Accord...

Christ is all
jrf

Speaking of prayer

Please join me in praying for Joshua Ortiz (15), a student in our youth group. He hurt himself skating a few weeks ago and while at the doctor's they discovered a lump on one of his testicles. The biopsy came back positive for cancer. He had it removed but then a tumor was found on his lung. This was also removed and test results are still pending. As I write this Josh is in surgery, getting his lymph nodes removed. I was able to speak and pray with him before he went into the operating room. Please pray for him, that the surgery is successful and the cancer does not spread, but more importantly that He understands and accepts the Gospel. He says he is a Christian but I am not sure if he fully understands what it means to let Christ be the Lord of his life. Pray also for his family situation as he is an orphan who lives with his grandparents. Fortunatly they are strong believers but don't relate well to him as they speak only spanish and he speaks primarily english.

thank you for your prayers.

jrf

Prayer Sheets

Last night the outreach team from the Master's College joined our church in a night of prayer. The night was divided into a time of personal confession, intercession for the church and community, and lastly praise and thanksgiving for who God is and the riches of His blessings. The night was overwhelmingly encouraging and might very well have been the most profitable thing we have ever done with a visiting missions team. Below is the prayer guide I printed out to facilitate the prayer walk around the neihborhood. The walk was divided up into 8 sections, each section focusing on a different aspect of the community and the needs and opportunities of that area. I am
posting it here for those of you who are interested in praying for our church and community. Though the requests are somewhat broad, I assure you that behind each need and opportunity, there is a name, face and soul to which our church is ministering to.

Prayer Guide


1. First Evangelical Free Church of Los Angeles
Restore and Renew Campaign
Funds will come in for the Physical Restoration of the church
Unity among congregations both internal and interdependently
Spanish Congregation
English Congregation
African Congregation
Conversion growth
Pray for a new wave of revival in this neighborhood
Pray for passion among church members to reach and disciple the lost
Pray for the resources to undertake comprehensive discipleship
Leadership
Pray that the leadership will be united around Biblical philosophy of ministry
Pray that leadership development structures will be put into place to raise up a new generation of leaders in the church and community
Logistics
Pray for wisdom, creative, energy, diligence, resources, and commitment in running and maintaining church programs

2. 1331 Apartments
Immigration issues
Pray for the church as they seek to bring the Gospel to immigrants in a way that is faithful, holistic, and loving as well as law abiding
Pray for the injustices against immigrants that make it difficult to find work, housing, education, and support
Pray for those immigrants that will someday return to their country of origin that the Gospel will return with them as well

3. Corner of Albany and Pico – main bus stop for schools
Schools
pray for safe learning enviornments
pray for competent teachers
pray for a desire to learn amongst the students
pray for a growing witness in these schools
10th street Elementary
Berendo Junior High School
Belmont High School
Learning Center
School Police Station
Pray for safety, wisdom and justice amongst police officers who work at the schools

4. Corner of Pico and Union
The Neighborhood
Taken from wikipedia.com
Pico Union is one of the poorest neighborhoods in Los Angeles. Once predominantly white and (prior to World War II) heavily Jewish, it is now primarily populated by first-generation Hispanic immigrants, particularly Oaxacans, Guatemalans, Salvadorans, and Hondurans. In many places, Pico-Union resembles an East Side neighborhood, with busy industrial concerns frequently adjoining residential properties. A number of Korean businesses, priced out of Koreatown, have also established themselves in the district. Most of the district lies within the infamous Rampart Division of the Los Angeles Police Department, and is plagued with high crime. Several transnational gangs, most notably the 18th Street Crew and Mara Salvatrucha ("MS-13"), were started in the neighborhood and maintain a strong presence.
Pico Union may be in the beginning stages of gentrification. Although the core of the neighborhood is still impoverished and somewhat dilapidated, the area's western and eastern fringes are beginning to see residential development. Near the Harbor Freeway, development in downtown Los Angeles--especially the South Park area around Staples Center--is expanding into Pico-Union, while the areas around Hoover Street are beginning to be incorporated into something of a "Greater Koreatown."

5. Joe’s House
Family Issues
Pray for God to restore strong family units back to this neighborhood
Pray that God’s Spirit, Truth and church will minister to broken families and penetrate into these households
Pray for child abuse, adultery, alcoholism, teen pregnancy. poverty and drug use, all of which are prevalent in this neighborhood. Pray that God will break this cycle with His Good News

6. Nehemiah House
Pray for those in the house
Pray that they will grow in unity and love
Pray that their walk with God will remain strong and focused in the midst of so much responsibility
Pray for Aaron as his sister was killed last week
Youth Ministry
Pray for the specific ministries that they would be faithful to communicate the Gospel in a true and relevant way.
S.A.Y Yes Center
High School Youth Group
Junior High Youth Group
Nehemiah House
Protection and Sustaining of those in ministry

7. Toberman Park
Gang warfare
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 18th Street Gang is a Los Angeles-based gang comprised mostly of Chicano and Mexican members. It is estimated that it is the largest gang in the United States with over 20,000 members in Los Angeles County alone.[1]
It has since grown to be California's largest street gang, with membership in the thousands at the start of the gang. Out of the membership it is estimated that about 60% are illegal immigrants, according to a confidential report last year by the state's Department of Justice.[2] While the majority of the gang's activities occur in Los Angeles, the gang is active throughout the United States and in other countries such as in Canada, Peru, El Salvador, Australia, and in several Asian and European countries.
Pray for the salvation of gang members
Pray for those vunerable to become involved in gangs
Pray for victims of gang violence
Pray for believers who are seeking to reach gang members with the Gospel
The safety and justice of police officers

8. Corner of Albany and Venice
Pray that God would bring unity around His Truth and Love amongst the many different ministries and churches that are in the city.
Pray for the protection, guidance, and sustaining of all Christians who are involved in ministering in the inner city in some way or another.

by His Grace,
Fory his glory,
jrf

Prayer Requests

For those of you who are my brothers and sisters in Christ, I could sure use some prayer in the following areas:
- Thirst for intimacy with God. I was greatly convicted today when my Pastor pointed out in his sermon that instead of seeking God so that He will bless our ministries we should seek God first and formost for God. We should have no greater joy than pure, hardcore, in your face, nitty gritty, intimacy with the one that lets us breath. I want to want that!
- That said, I do feel right in asking for God's blessing on the ministry He has me in, a ministry which I feel increasingly inadquate for. It has been discouraging to see so many of the core youth of our youth group struggle with rebellious hearts, lack of faith, or just become distracted with school or new jobs. Please pray that God would send a new convicting passion to know Him through His Word and to be fervently obedient to it.
- Please lift up our church (First Evangelical Free Church of Los Angeles). Being submerged in the barrage of worldviews, marketing schemes, and spiritual warfare that is the inner city, our body is very often bruised and battered. Pray that we will be radically Biblical in our faith and practice and God would send encouragement in the face of daily battle.
- Pray that our upcoming High School Youth Group staff retreat goes well. Pray that the lessons will be Biblical and well communicated. Pray that hearts will be united. Pray that selfless servant leadership will be modeled and pursued.
- I would also crave your prayers for strength and love in leading my wife. I am incredibly selfish and marriage just amplifies that. Loving her, "as Christ loves the church" is a task which requires constant prayer to even think about obtaining.

eternally thankful,

jrf

Skate Update

So here's the skinny on how God answered this prayer request.

Some of the youth workers, including myself met with the leaders of both the English and Spanish congregations of our church last tuesday. Evelyn did most of the talking, as she is directly responsible for the skate ministry. She shared how the Lord had put it on her heart to provide a safe place for the youth to skate as well as provide opportunities for them to hear the Gospel. Joe, a skater from the neighborhood also attended and shared how he had accepted the Lord and had the opportunity to share the Gospel with many friends as a result of the skate ministry. When it was my turn to speak I shared that I believed the issue was that we need a balance between pursuing opportunities for evangelism, opportunities that the Lord has literally brought to our front door and yet still being good stewards of what we have been given as a church. There is no doubt that there have been some problems with trash, tagging, and vandalism as a result of the skaters being in front of the church constantly. Yet we should never see the youth, or any potential trouble makers for that matter, as a problem to elliminate but rather as an opportunity to evangelize and disciple. That being said, there must be standards and people to enforce those standards. I proposed that we set up regular scheduled times for skating that will be supervised but the superviser will not be there to merely enforce rules but to reach out the youth primarily. For the time being, the leadership went with that idea. They are still thinking and praying about what to do when the new tile is put on the steps.

Overall, the meeting went extremely well. The leadership were assured that the youth staff does in fact have a plan and cares about keeping the facility in tack. The youth staff also went away with the feeling that the leadership does care about the youth ministry and wants to pursue evangelism.

thanks for all of you who were praying!

by His grace
for His glory
jrf