Children gathered at a central Arlington Rainbow Express

Spring Break for the Arlington school district happened the week of March 9th. On that week, 723 students from several cities across Texas and 7 states outside of Texas came to Arlington to invest in our community’s children through Mission Arlington®. These students led Rainbow Express®, a backyard Bible club with games, crafts, music, snacks, and Bible stories, in 92 locations.  During this week, Rainbow Express® happened every morning and afternoon from Monday through Thursday.

Huddled in prayer at Rainbow Express during the second week of Spring Break

On the week, beginning March 16th, a second wave of students came into Arlington. This group was even bigger than the first.  773 students from 29 groups came into town to lead Rainbow Express as well.  The majority of these students came from Oklahoma and Missouri, plus a few cities around Texas (like Lubbock, and Liberty Hill) who were having their Spring Break a little later than the rest of the state. Since this wasn’t the week of Arlington’s Spring Break, these students spread out across our community each morning to do various work projects, and then lead Rainbow Express each afternoon when Arlington’s children got out of school.  Mission Arlington® led Rainbow Express® in 50 locations on this second week.

This week, a third wave of students has come into town.  They are also leading Rainbow Express® in the afternoons and doing work projects in the mornings.  Each of these student groups this week is from the state of Arkansas.  On Monday and Tuesday of this week, attendance at the 12 different Rainbow Express® sites has reach 648 children.

These waves of support from 22 cities across Texas and 8 states outside of the state have made such a difference at Mission Arlington® and throughout our city.  Altogether, 383 people have accepted Christ through Rainbow Express® during these three weeks of March.  Before this week is over, more than 12,000 children and youth will have attended Rainbow Express.

The Mission Arlington® family is so grateful for all of your support during these important weeks.  We are so honored by the privilege we have of loving our community to Christ, and doing it with you.

Children having a good time at a Mission Arlington gym night.

Three hundred and fifty children came to Mission Arlington®’s bi-monthly gym night last night.  Every other week, mission volunteers gather children from apartment communities and neighborhoods across our city.

They bring the children to one of Mission Arlington®’s gyms in central Arlington where the students play basketball and other games with caring adults.

The high energy in the gym translates to a lot of fun for everyone.  The students learn team work, get good exercise, and gain confidence, while, at the same time, learning more about the Lord.

We are grateful for the privilege we have of walking this journey with you, and of loving the children in our community.

Tillie Burgin speaks to students and teachers from Treetops International school. The students brought gifts to help the children Mission Arlington serves.

When Tillie Burgin was a child, she wanted to serve and to help.  She would ask different adults in the church, especially as she grew into her teen years, if she could teach.  The adults in her life were never quite ready to put her to work.  The answer was always “no.”  When Tillie turned 18, they asked her to teach, but this time she said “no.”  Perhaps out of those early experiences, Tillie developed a commitment to make a place for the children in all of our lives.  Letting children serve early on facilitates their services as adults.

For this reason, Mission Arlington® loves to work with children.  Children have always been a part of the ministry and of the volunteer landscape of this place. We value so much the gifts & contributions that children can bring here, and to our community. We are grateful for parents, for churches, for schools, and for civic groups of all kinds who bring children here to serve. Children make a difference.

This morning, the Tree Tops International student brought gifts to Mission Arlington®  Their teachers were illustrating for them how to give back to the community, and helping them know what their gifts would mean to other children – just like them.  Tillie spoke to the students to help them know how much their generosity meant, and shared with them how their gifts would be used.  It was a beautiful moment.

Jesus told his followers that “whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me” (Matthew 18:2 NIV).  The mission family believes that loving and welcoming children is an important part of our commission.

We are so blessed to serve in a community that does such a good job loving children.  Thank you so much for your prayers, and for the way you walk this journey with us.  We are so privileged by this partnership in these days.

1,300 students are here this week, serving at Mission Arlington. Pictured here is the team from Fellowship Church, Neosho, Missouri. They are putting Easter eggs together for our big Easter egg hunt this April.

By Jim Burgin, staff writer

When Jesus entered into Jerusalem on the Sunday of Holy week, the historian Josephus tells us that 2 million people were in and around the city. Crowds gathered to worship the Lord as he entered the city on a donkey.  When he taught in the Temple during the week, hosts of people listened to him teach, and watched the religious leaders try to chip away at his integrity through a variety of tricks and traps.

Yet, Jesus’ eye had a way of seeing through the crowds to the needs of individuals.  One of his accusers was amazed, and also touched, by the Lord’s responses to the constant interrogations. Jesus told him that he wasn’t far from the Kingdom of God.  In the midst of the temple’s noisy clatter, and the constant motion from the swarms of people, Jesus notices a widow putting her tithe into the box. He gathers his disciples to teach them about the beautiful hearts in this world. “This woman,” he said, didn’t just give from her surplus, but with her “mite” had given more than all of the others put together.  In the midst of constant motion and crowded places, Jesus could see into the heart of individual people.

Mission Arlington® has had a busy week.  If you’ve been down to our place this week, then you will have noticed the buses, the flocks of students, (1,300 of them) young and old, volunteers from every corner of the Metroplex hustling and bustling to serve, and a host of people in need.  Literally thousands of people come in and through our front doors every day.  The weeks of Spring Break beautifully are among our busiest times. WE LOVE IT!

Yet, Mission Arlington®, as busy as things get, isn’t about the crowds, but about the Lord, and about the people.  We believe, and always hope to be, a “ministry of ones.”  Every life and each individual matters to our Lord, and therefore, to us.  We believe that anyone can hand out food and clothes, but our heart isn’t just to give things away, but to connect with each life.

A woman in her early 20s sat quietly at our back door early this week. She was thin and shaking, because it had been a while since she had anything to eat.  Because of her own choices, she admitted, she had come to a place in her life where she didn’t have a place to stay.  Her only transportation was an old bike.  She wondered if we might have something to eat?  Quickly, we gathered the food she needed, and asked her to let us help her find shelter.  She refused all help, but the food.  While she sat there, one of our volunteers sat quietly beside her, pouring love and encouragement into this young life.  We watched her ride the old bike out into the night.  It was just a moment in time, but many of us here are still praying for this young lady today.

Later in the week, a young man volunteering with us had a medical emergency. Andrea, our medical clinic director, was there in a flash, as was Tillie, our executive Director, and two staff members.  There was a tenderness in the hearts and hands of the team, as they held this young man until he was ok again. The family was called, and we transported him home.  “Holding people” when they have a moment of need in their lives, is really what we do best.  Every life matters to the Lord, so each and every life must matter to us. We talk about this here every day.

When I was a child, I had a Sunday school teacher who was fond of saying that someone was “too big for their britches.”  It must have been a common saying at the time, because I seemed to hear this said a lot. She meant by this that someone thought too much of themselves, or had become self-important, to the exclusion of others around them.  Occasionally, I was the subject of the conversation too, apparently needing a bit more humility in my life.

Sometimes when organizations grow, they become an institution or a bureaucracy. Patterns become codified, and somehow the numbers themselves become more important than the people.  Yet, it isn’t the numbers that matter to our Lord.  It’s his people.  Jesus died for the people. It was the people He came to save.   Tillie reminds the team here often that she “has never seen a number walk through the door” and that “there is never a life that can be thrown away.”  I am grateful to be part of a place  that is growing, and yet where the needs of people still matter.  This is still true here every single day.

May we never be “too big for our britches.”

Rainbow Express picture at an East Arlington apartment community.

What an incredible week this has been at Mission Arlington®.  We hear so much in our day about students who get in trouble over Spring Break, or use their Spring Break to go to the beach.  That’s usually what makes the news, isn’t it?

Yet, this past week, in our own community, hundreds of students gave up their week to serve the Lord, and to make a difference here. These students (from across the country and from multiple cities around Texas) came to lead Rainbow Express, Mission Arlington®’s version of a “backyard Bible club.”

They arrived at the mission early each morning, then spread out across the community to play games, sing songs, create crafts, and to teach God’s word with the children who attended.  They would do this twice a day, from Monday – Thursday and get back into their Mission Arlington® hosted beds (places to sleep on the floor) each night.

These students led Rainbow Express® in 92 locations this week. 5,829 children attended a Rainbow Express® event altogether, and 213 of these children accepted Christ.

It has been an incredible week to serve our Lord here.  We are so grateful for your constant support.

Rainbow Express in Action at a central Arlington location – using puppets to teach God’s Word.

Rainbow Express® begins again on Monday. Spring Break has finally arrived, and student groups from around the country, like a mighty wind,  are making their way to Arlington to lead these creative and fun events for children and youth.

Rainbow Express® happens in 90 locations throughout our community next week alone.

Rainbow Express® is Mission Arlington®’s version of a backyard Bible club.  Crafts, snacks, games, music, and Bible stories form the foundation of this work with students.

Through the month of March, 3,339 people from 149 different groups are scheduled to arrive at Mission Arlington® to help. These groups are coming from multiple Texas cities, and many states across North America.  They will be leading Rainbow Express and work projects. They will serve in our health clinics, and help us get ready for Easter.  Most importantly, they will help us spread the love of God throughout our community.

Would you please pray with us through these next three weeks?  We are praying that we can share God’s love with our community with as many people as possible, and that many people will come to know the Lord personally.

Truly, at Mission Arlington®, March has come “in like a lion.”  It all starts Monday morning. Aren’t we grateful?

Mission Arlington in the snow. Even on the coldest days, the light still shines.

The Shorthorn has been UT – Arlington‘s main news source since 1919. Yesterday, Cassie Logan, a Shorthorn reporter, came to Mission Arlington® to see what happens around here when it gets cold and icy like it was yesterday.  You can read her interview with Tillie Burgin, and our medical clinic director, Andrea Wilson, along with the testimony of people who were being helped here yesterday.

Read the article here!

It is important to the Mission Arlington® family to be here on the coldest of days, because that is often the time the people need the most help.  We are so grateful for the privilege we have of serving our community together.  Thank you for all the ways you support our work. We are grateful.

A student works on his math skills at an “after-school” program in a central Arlington apartment community.

According to various agencies who do research on childcare, After-school programs help students find success with employment later in life, keep them out of trouble during their school years, and bless hard working families who want to provide the best for their children.  According to one report:

Children who spend time in enrichment activities have better grades, better work habits and more positive relationships with their peers. After-school programs give children the opportunity to develop creative thinking, problem-solving, communication and self-direction skills that are linked with success in the workplace.

Mission Arlington® hosts after-school programs in 34 locations. More than 1,500 (1,683) students attend a homework help session with us each week.  We are so blessed to spend time with the students, and to be one contributing factor towards their success in school.  When they begin to do better in school, they tend to succeed more at home, in their relationships, and to feel better about themselves.

Working on homework and learning God’s word is an important part of Mission Arlington’s “after-school” programs.

Most of Mission Arlington®‘s after-school work involves snacks, creative games, and Bible stories, in addition to homework help.  The volunteer after-school teachers encourage these young people, and listen to what is going on in their lives.

Driving to the basket at a Mission Arlington youth gym night.

More than just a “relief” organization, Mission Arlington® invests in the children and youth of our community on a weekly basis. We recognize that providing emergency relief, such as food, clothing, household items, furniture, medical care, and emergency financial assistance, is so important. When a family has had a crisis of some kind, they need a little help to get them through the crisis.  We love being a conduit for our community, so that when you give, we can give it away – directly to the people who need it – and at no charge.

Yet, it is also important to walk besides our children and youth as they grow and learn to live in this world. Many of us growing up had someone special in our lives – a coach, a teacher, a mentor of some kind – who was there for us, when we needed advice, support, or just a shoulder to lean on.  The army of volunteer Bible study leaders for Mission Arlington® fulfill that same role for the students of our community.

In the same way, Mission Arlington® also provides ongoing supportive services to these same children and youth.  We host 7 camps each summer, children’s and basketball leagues, wrestling and soccer teams, and Bible study teachers who teach God’s Word each week – right where the students live.  We have Bible study leaders who teach God’s word in 349 locations across our community.

Twice a month, Mission Arlington® hosts “youth gym night.” Bible study leaders drive donated Mission Arlington® vehicles across the community to pick up the young people.  They gather in a central Arlington gym to play basketball for a few hours on a Friday night.  The exercise is good, of course, as they run up and down the gym, and the students learn how to work on teams.  All across the gym, you will see adults talking and laughing with the young people.  It is a lot of fun.

It is a beautiful sight.  Of course, with all events sponsored by the mission, it is absolutely free, and the students also listen to a Bible study sometime during the evening – a Bible study designed specifically for them.

We are so honored and humbled to be partners with you as we walk alongside, and share Christ’s love with the young people of our city.

Tonight is youth gym night again for Mission Arlington®.  If you think about it, somewhere between 6 and 9 tonight, say a prayer for our city’s youth.  God bless you for your faithful support.

Joining hands to pray – next to the carport – at Mission Arlington. Will you join us?

By Jim Burgin, staff writer

Some of you reading this post may be old enough to remember a popular question used as a public service announcement on television across much of North America during the late 1960s and into the 70s.  The question was, “It’s ten o’clock. Do you know where your children are?” When I was a teenager, I remember the local broadcasters asking this question just prior to the start of the late local news.

A few months back, one of Mission Arlington®’s congregations began asking its parishioners to pray for the church and for Mission Arlington® at 10:00 each morning. The image was beautiful. Even though everyone would be spread out across the city, metaphorically, everyone would be joining hands to pray. Various Mission Arlington® Bible studies began to join this ever growing circle, and then Tillie asked the Mission Arlington family to join in.

Today, we would like to ask each of you who already love and support Mission Arlington® to join hands with us – from wherever you are – at 10:00 a.m. central standard time.  Please pray that we would remain faithful to the Lord. Pray that we would hear His voice as He leads us day by day. Please pray for resources, so that there will always be enough food, furniture, and finances to help the people. Pray for more volunteers and Bible study leaders to join the team, so that His Word can be spread throughout our community.  Pray that our Lord will be lifted up and glorified through this place. Please pray however God leads you.

There was another song from my childhood which I remember. The refrain called for the “circle to be unbroken.”  It was a song about heaven, and a lot of fun to sing.  In this context, I wonder if we could create an ever-growing and unbroken circle of prayer for Mission Arlington.

We truly covet your prayers in these days?  When it’s ten o’clock, will you pray?  May this circle be unbroken.

Praise His Name.