Dearest Friends and Pray - ers,

It is with great peace and joy that we greet you, in the beginning of 2001. We have much to report, after an incredible year of ministry. Your praying with us, strengthens this work. Thank you for praying. This email newsletter began when our hope was that GOD WOULD MAKE A WAY WHERE WE KNEW THERE WAS NO WAY, humanly speaking. Our property search, acquisition, development and relocation had barely begun. Many miracles are recorded today, that God indeed has moved through prayer. We did find, acquire, and are now developing property where the many ministries of N.M. will one day relocate. Today we remain convinced that apart from prayer we shouldn't and won't go forward. Thank you for standing with us in prayer, so that together we can witness what God continues to do here. 

I KNOW THAT MY REDEEMER LIVES
The battleground can be bloody here in urban Phoenix. We can tell the terrible stories of losses and disappointments. Kids we love who live in crack houses, or kids we love who chose the streets over a loving plan of redemption. "Put on new glasses", the Lord will say to me. "Look at what I am doing in this place, under your very nose. Look at my hand of redemption on many lives, on the processes that take back hopelessness and transform it into the miracles of the living, those alive that once were dead."

CARLOS
You read Carlos' intern report this past summer. He served in the trenches, after years of growing up in the ministry. This has been a good year for Carlos. He is a local musician and wrote the theme "rap" for the ground-breaking of The Neighborhood Center. This rap appears on his most recent CD. http://www.neighborhoodministries.org/revelation_rap.htm
He was one of the youths baptized on Lake Day at "Kids Club", after which he got a new tattoo of Jesus on his arm, with the date of his baptism underneath. Years of investment in lives, have a common result with many of our families. We begin "tracking" with a family member, and somewhere along the line we begin loving and caring for their cousins, siblings, neighbors, and other relatives. 
Carlos was nine when we met him, soon after we added many of his family members. After about 10 years with one of these families, their lives were in terrible trouble; Child Protective Services finished a lengthy investigation. We were included in the process of short, possibly long-term placement for the children. 
Carlos watched his extended family lovingly admit that this "church" outreach had been there as a surrogate for the five children; he proudly gave a testimony of God's intervention over the past decade. The end of this first phase was that three of the five children went home with and now live with three different N.M. families. 
After that experience together, Carlo's aunts, sister and mother began attending church and began working in the kids programs on Monday nights. 
It has been quite a year for Carlos, watching God make a way of redemption for his family.
Carlos writes: "Honesty, integrity, respect, and love. These are some characteristics that are hard to find in our turbulent times. Despite all the harshness in the world, I have found all these attributes in the time that I have been attending Neighborhood Ministries. I have now found inner peace and have felt the sense of warmth and belonging. I have also found the love of God.

PLEASE PRAY FOR CARLOS AND HIS FAMILY.

NADINE
Nadine will assuredly confess that her journey with N.M. began when she was just three years old. She was the youngest at the time of five siblings, one of the first families who educated us about the Barrio. 
Her mother worked hard and struggled to raise her growing family, which included three more brothers after Nadine. Life has not been easy for this family. 
Nadine at 15 is already a leader among the younger children and with her peers. She has unusual sensibilities, wisdom that comes from the observations of an astute learner. 
http://www.neighborhoodministries.org/photos_nadine15.htm
She also lives with a N.M. family, attends a wonderful alternative high school, and most of the time dreams great big things for her life. 
We receive her insights as gifts to us, enlarging our own awareness'. 
Nadine writes these down as poems, a lot of the time. Her creativity and complexity are being recorded around here:

PLEASE PRAY FOR NADINE AND THE MANY TEENAGERS IN OUR MINISTRY MAKING KEY DECISIONS FOR THEIR LIVES-PRAY ALSO FOR THE MANY FAMILIES IN OUR MINISTRY THAT HAVE A PRECIOUS CHILD OR TEEN LIVING WITH THEM.

Another poem by Nadine:
http://www.neighborhoodministries.org/nadine_poem.htm

VICTOR
Victor is 20 now, possibly you've heard about him for years. The story of his redemption is now his own to tell, and he is invited often to give this "testimony" to groups of youth and others.
http://www.neighborhoodministries.org/t_victor.htm
One of the greatest moments of this year for me and others, was the invitation we received from the Native American community to participate as a fellow ministry to natives, during the Arizona Native American Recognition Days Parade and Intertribal Outreach activities. Victor was a presenter at the Outreach event, and N.M. made special t-shirts for the all native (plus kit) contingent in the parade. Our N.M. logo became transformed with feathers, placed inside a dream catcher. We lovingly experienced our Native American ministry identity that day.
http://www.neighborhoodministries.org/photos_na20001021.htm
God is producing a disciple in our brother Victor Lopez. He is an example of prayer to the brothers and sisters in this work. We are often told by Victor of some phenomenal break-through that has happened in his thinking, his walk with Christ or his attitudes as a result of the extended times in prayer he makes at night, riding his bike through the barrio and onto the bridge, where he once was notorious for gangbanging.

PLEASE PRAY FOR VICTOR, HIS ONGOING HEALING AND THOSE HE WITNESSES TO, THE MANY OTHERS STILL CAUGHT UP IN THE LIFE OF THE STREETS.

NOEL
Noe (pronounced Noey) is just 8. In a group of stories about kids we have known for more than a decade, his begins the story of the next generation. We knew his mom for less than two years before, at age 12, she found herself pregnant with this beautiful boy. His troubled father, a step-father of some of the original kids in this work, killed himself soon after Noey's birth. 
Noe's uncle was the first youth baptized in our ministry. He died three years ago in a tragic accident at age 21.
Noe's infant brother died of SIDS five or so years ago, and was the first funeral ever done by our ministry.
Noe's entire extended family, with very few exceptions, either still attend programs with us through N.M. or have wonderful memories of when they did. 
Some cousins, half-sisters, and aunts and uncles are really excelling in life and living for Christ.
One day, Noe's mom asked if we could find Noe a "big brother". "Don't you have those", she asked. I thought we did and so set about finding one.
Around the same time, Chris (the web-master here), was interested in investing in a new relationship, with someone young enough to grow with. Check out the photos of this big brother relationship at a recent Suns game:
http://www.neighborhoodministries.org/photos_nm20001102suns.htm

PRAY FOR ALL THE MENTORING RELATIONSHIPS THAT HAPPEN IN THIS MINISTRY. 

CHRISTMAS -- 2000
Christmas for Neighborhood Ministries is traditionally a family reunion. Kids, who have grown up and we haven't seen for awhile, or parents and grandparents who always come out for the holidays, show up. It feels like one huge neighborhood, where everyone is known to us and to one another. 
Funny thing, this group is growing. We had over 1200 this year on our old little lot, the one still holding the food bank and the clinic. It was a night to be remembered, so sweet-with music, slides from this year, craft and game activities everywhere, gifts from 420 kids' wish lists. Wish you could have joined us!
http://www.neighborhoodministries.org/photos_nm20001215a.htm
Christmas also is a time where really hurting families are visited with gifts for the whole family by group sponsorships. Thirty of those happened. Food Drives come in from all kinds of places, and a huge clothing drive from Scottsdale Bible Church, also. Open Door Fellowship had one of its best food drives in over 19 years of doing this very thing. Thanks Churches!!!!
Christmas also happened at the Church at the Neighborhood Center. 
Check it out!

THE CHURCH AT THE NEIGHBORHOOD CENTER
New at the (developing) Neighborhood Center is the next congregation to be part of the work of Neighborhood Ministries. For years a Spanish speaking congregation, Iglesia Nueva Esperanza, was doing all it could to be the church to stand with us. What about those who needed and wanted an English speaking congregation? What about those who called N.M. their church and never attended worship services, celebrated communion regularly, and grew too old for the current programs? And what about the commitment of this work to be birth to grave, womb to tomb? Bill Thrall, Jr. was growing in conviction about these questions, and needs. The fruit of this ministry belonged in an environment that was for everyone, a multi-ethnic group, sharing two languages and many cultures. 
Beginning in September, the two groups have been worshipping together, separate language and worship times, yet coming together for communion, prayer, and a meal afterwards. We meet Sunday mornings on the new property, in the cold (or hot) warehouse. Bill Thrall Jr. and Jorge Macias are the first two elder-leaders. It is beautiful. Christmas at the Center was wonderful. The church(es) sponsored an old Mexican custom of a neighborhood coming out and worshipping together, called a Posada. We adapted it a bit, went caroling door to door in our new neighborhood, singing in Spanish and English. Then as families came out to join us on route, we all ended up at the warehouse for Piñatas and goodies. Small gifts were distributed to the children.  
Christmas Eve was a bilingual service morning and evening. Christmas tamales were for all in the morning and at night there was a candlelight dedication to Jesus and more Christmas carols and readings. 

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE CHURCH(ES) AT THE NEIGHBORHOOD CENTER THAT WE WOULD GROW IN LOVE FOR GOD AND OUR NEIGHBORS
http://www.neighborhoodministries.org/nc20000905.htm

I CAN DO IT
"I Can Do It" is a phrase we hope to hear from every at-risk junior higher in our ministry. There are currently 12 junior high age students in this stay in school program, six of which were not enrolled at all when the school year began. You remember that Partners in Learning, the academic component of N.M. seeks out the children in our ministry from families where school drop-out conditions are the most severe. Increasingly, over the years, the junior high years have proven to be the most critical. So this year, a new piece has been added. School attendance, passing grades of a "C" or better, and exceptional deportment are the goals. 
Long-term school attendance is the vision. Of the twelve, eight will attend the  first trip earned in the "I Can Do It" program -- a ski trip to Colorado leaving Jan. 11.

Listen to this testimony -- Yolanda Ramos, Choosing the Ancient Path 
"Yolanda Ramos is an 8th grader in our ministry that has been coming for several years to Monday night Kids Life and now the junior high program. 
She has grown up in the neighborhood over by the new church on 19th Ave and Van Buren with many obstacles and struggles. Her entire extended family and cousins have all been gang members or are currently active gang members. Her older sister had a baby at only 13 years old and was always fighting at the mall, at school, and in the neighborhood. Yolanda learned at an early age that reputation was important and you never backed down from anybody. But a few years ago when two of her cousins were killed, Yolanda began to ask hard questions about who she was and where her life was going. She used to fight all the time in Junior high where she attended the 7th grade and she was always in trouble.
But this year Yolanda has  begun to take the ancient path and follow the Lord more than ever before in her life. She actually asked her mom to let her switch schools to a smaller alternative junior high so that she would stop fighting. And she joined the I-Can-Do-It Junior High Stay in School Program with church where if you don't miss too many days and you get good grades you get to have fun parties and go on cool trips outside of Arizona. Early into the program, some girl at her new school still got in her face, was talking stuff to her, and wanted to fight after school. She thought that was the only option and the only way to settle the score and get this girl to stop punking her. The other kids warned Yolanda to be careful because this girl carried a knife on her all the time, especially when she fought. That Monday night Yolanda came to church and was talking about how she was going to have to fight that girl the next day. That was the night that we talked about Jeremiah 6:16 and what it meant to follow the ancient path, to make the hard choices to follow the Lord and do the right thing when we come to the crossroads in our daily lives. She had a choice to make because she was at a huge crossroads that night. Her reputation was on the line but if she fought she'd be suspended and kicked out of the stay in school program, and maybe even get hurt like her cousins. 
The next week Yolanda came back to church with a huge smile and she was very proud of herself. She had chosen to not fight that girl and told everyone that she wasn't fighting not because she was afraid, but because she had more important things going on and she didn't care what they thought or said about her. It was such a tough decision but choosing the ancient path was worth it. Now Yolanda is on track with the I-Can-Do-It Program to go to Colorado in a few weeks, and she also made THE HONOR ROLL FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HER LIFE."

MOM'S PLACE
Nothing changes the lives of everyone involved, like the birth of a child. Some of our teenagers will wait for parenting until they are older and more ready. Others didn't. For these precious young moms and their wanted children, ministry needed to begin immediately. Enter a new program with N.M. called Mom's Place. This mentoring program has three pieces, a training part for the mentors, a monthly gathering for mentors and teen moms (and babies) where there is parenting instruction and weekly get-togethers for the mentors and girls.  
We have prayed for years for this needed piece. This program is in its first five months with six teen and mentor pairs. 

PRAY FOR ALL INVOLVED THAT TEEN MOMS WILL GROW IN WISDOM AND STRENGTH.

PROPERTY
This month, January 2001, marks four years of homelessness as a ministry. On any given day, we fight with our impatience for the property to be truly our permanent home. We struggle with how close it seems and yet how complex each stage of development truly is. It can be agonizing and exhausting on the road and the truth is, we are pretty tired. We get to be on our new property everyday for office stuff and on Wednesdays and Sundays for youth group and church. So that is wonderful. Yet, the past months have felt like a lot of waiting ... waiting for permits from the city, for dirt removal, for specific specialists to add their part so that we can revamp the submittals to the city ...  So while we were waiting, we found a most excellent new staff person to help with development, Louisa Percadani. And we continued to do what we could do, and that was pray and raise the funds to build this property. 
A week before Christmas, the Lord answered us in the waiting. Some very generous gifts were given, allowing us to complete a funding match from another organization. To date almost $500,000 have been given and/or promised. Also, in the same week, the final submittal went into the city with the permits coming 23 days from the submittal. The combination ought to allow us to begin construction on the buildings very soon. 
Please pray for us and with us as often as you think of what God is doing here. 

• For the final permits
• For construction to begin
• For volunteer teams to come on board with specific abilities:
  plumbing, electrical, dry wall, framing, etc.
• For donations of equipment and supplies
• For time and strength for John Cavness, our project manager
• For protection of the project, timely and efficient
• For the ongoing fund-raising

God Bless you dearest friends. Thank you for all you do. Thank you for praying prayers of intercession for this work. 

Love, Kit