But the best part of the interview was bragging about our team’s outreach ministry to the Emerald Glen apartment complex. 85% of the residents there have a household income of less than $10K a year, and one census showed just 13 married couples out of 240 units.

Life Journey has been active at Emerald Glen for several years now — participating in food distributions, running a Vacation Bible School, and hosting several outdoor parties.

But in August of 2005 that ministry grew exponentially  when a family from Life Journey intentionally moved into that apartment complex as incarnational missionaries. It took a while to figure out the most effective way to reach people, but last Easter we started a small group for children, which soon became two groups, and has since extended into a third group aimed at junior high students.

We’re also in process to start an after-school program in the complex — offering academic mentoring and life-skills mentoring in addition to our current focus on spiritual growth.

Every time I share this story I get excited! I love what God is doing through our people to serve “the least of these,” and, in so doing, to serve Jesus.

We've been going just 12 weeks, and we already have over 45 kids attending the new children's small groups that we have started. What started as just one group expanded this week to three — K-2nd, 3rd-5th, and a new group for junior high that started on Tuesday.

The whole thing started when one of our families moved into this community as incarnational missionaries. They left behind a well-paying job in the oilfields, a house on several acres of land, and their kids left the best high school in the district. Now they live in a small, low-income apartment in the complex.

The place is in a pretty rough neighborhood — there have been a couple of fatal shootings in the area in just the last year. And the complex is filled with really poor people — about 90% live on less than $10,000 a year. That's not much by any standards, but it's particularly difficult in California.

This ministry, which we call Trailblazers, isn't just a few evenings a week. This family has become a magnet for the children there, providing a safe place, and safe people for kids who don't have much of a sense of stability or safety.

We dream of what it would like for the Lord's Prayer to come true in this place, that God's will would be done in this apartment complex as it is in heaven. It's a big dream, but we have a big God…

The risk is about two things: perceptions and tradtions. There’s still a pretty strong cultural perception here of the church leader as the preacher, and I’m just a bit concerned that some people may question whether or not I am really “doing my job.” Of course those perceptions are really rooted in traditions — particularly the single pastor model that has dominated American church history.

But the more I study, “doing my job” means equipping other people to do the work of the ministry. We have a number of people in our congregation who have the ability to speak and teach — this provides them a great forum to learn how to use their gifts. And it exposes our congregation to the minds and hearts of other followers of Jesus and not just me. Overall, I think it will be a great series, and I know that the rewards will be worth it.

If you’re interested in following along with the series, follow this direct link to the audio messages. Keep in mind that it may take a week or so for the audio team to upload the file. The series starts on July 2nd.