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UTA run supports the Saxe Dental Clinic

Dentists at work in the Allan Saxe Dental Clinic

Dentists at work in the Allan Saxe Dental Clinic

This evening, at 7:00 p.m., UTA students and other volunteers will be participating in a 5k run to support the Dr. Allan Saxe Dental Clinic’s denture program.  Dr. Allan Saxe is an Associate Professor of political Science at UTA whose gift twenty years ago provided the seed money which started the clinic.

This event tonight is hosted by the American Student Dental Association at UTA. The run is called the “Ignite Smiles 5k run.”

According to the association’s Vice President Diem Tran, they decided to help with the denture program at the Saxe Dental clinic when they learned that more than 250 people are on a waiting list to get their dentures through the clinic.

All of Mission Arlington®’s services are provided free of charge. In 2014, the Saxe clinic provided care to more than 1,400 (1,434) patients. Dentists treated these patients about 3.5 times each, meaning that people were sitting in the dental chairs at the clinic a little less than 5,000 times.

The Mission Arlington® family is so grateful for the constant support from UTA students, teachers, and administration for all they do to support people in need through Mission Arlington®.

You can read full coverage of this event in UTA’s student paper, “The Shorthorn. Click here to read the article.

Date Published: April 25, 2015

A Platform and Training Ground

deltasigmatheta-2This past Saturday, the alumni from the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority of UTA brought twenty-six youth to Mission Arlington®. This team of adults and youth worked hard for several hours sorting donated food. Because of their work, this food will soon go to people in need.  Not only did they get a lot of work done while they were here, they also had a great time doing it.  It was fun to watch the adults working alongside of the students, and providing encouragement to them at every opportunity.

According to the Arlington Alliance for youth, “87% of youth, ages 10-17, say it is important to have caring adults in their lives” and 45% of these same young people express a need to have more adults to talk with deltasigmatheta-1when they have problems. You can download their research summary here.

Week after week, caring adults bring students of all ages to serve at Mission Arlington®. Whether it is a scout troop, a school sports team, honor society, or a church youth group, we are so honored to see adults across our community who give their time and resources to make a difference in young people.

Over five weeks in the Spring, more than sixty (63) student groups brought 1,778 students (including sponsors) to serve for a week in our community.  The amazing thing to watch is that the students themselves discover the confidence, courage, and character to become the instruments of care and not just the recipients.   These student groups in the Spring touched the lives of more than 13,085 children when they were here.

Mission Arlington®, of course, has many ministries to youth happening all year long.  Whether this happens through one of our sports leagues (basketball, soccer, wrestling – and baseball soon), our free summer camps, after-school programs, or one-on-one mentoring, youth are an important part of what we do.  We love working with young people.

We are also so pleased and proud to work with adults across our community, like the amazing leaders of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority here last week, as they spent their day with students.  Mission Arlington® serves as a kind of training ground for young people, and a platform for caring adults to invest in the young people they love.

We are so grateful that we have the honor and the privilege of serving alongside such an amazing community.  Together, we are making a difference.  Thank you.

Date Published: April 23, 2015

Outdoor baptisms

An outdoor baptism at Mission Arlington.

An outdoor baptism at Mission Arlington.

Mission Arlington® hosts Bible studies, congregations, Backyard Bible clubs, and a host of other ministries, such as after-school and summer feeding programs in 349 locations across our community.  Thousands of children, youth, and adults attend these accessible Bible studies each week.

These Bible studies/congregations meet in neighborhood homes, apartment community club houses, mobile home parks, and anywhere else that we can meet to share God’s Word and His love.

Because our congregations don’t meet in traditional church buildings with baptisteries built in, we have had to be creative over time when people accept Christ and want to follow their Lord in believer’s baptism.  Years ago, someone donated a mobile baptistery.  We have been able to load this mobile unit onto a truck and trailer, and carry it around our city, whenever someone is ready to be baptized.  These outdoor baptisms have become something of a tradition for us, and they are truly beautiful to watch.

This past Sunday, one of our congregations in central Arlington baptized two people.  The baptistery was filled with water at the mission, then carried to the location where the baptism happened.  You can see Matt Hart, one of Mission Arlington®’s pastors,  in the picture performing the baptism.  What you can’t see in the picture is all the people from the congregation surrounding and supporting them as the baptism happened.

We are so grateful for your constant prayers, and faithful support as we work to share God’s love throughout our community.

Date Published: April 18, 2015

How many Easter eggs?

eehunt2015 - 1Nearly 5,000 children (4,932) – with their families – came to Mission Arlington’s egg hunt this past Saturday, April 4th.  Affectionately dubbed the “World’s Largest” egg hunt, we weren’t disappointed with the attendance.  Volunteer groups had worked for weeks in advance inserting candy into plastic eggs, then scotch taping each individual egg shut, for maximum effect.  It took more than 110,000 eggs to make the egg hunt work.  Every child left the hunt that day with plenty of eggs.

Arlington’s firefighters brought a fire truck and patiently allowed children to look through it all day long. Mission Arlington’s medical team was there taking blood pressures and checking oxygen levels, and giving advice about health to people of all ages.

Bouncy houses filled a gym, and the smell of free hot dogs and other tasty food items filled the air.  Eight lanes of (not so) hidden Easter eggs made a colorful picture on the lawn outside.

Children were laughing, playing, and having great fun on this beautiful day.  Families enjoyed this free event together.  Mission Arlington® children and youth came with their Bible study leaders from all across the community, driven to the event by incredibly kind and patient volunteer bus drivers.  Young people from one of the Bible study groups even stayed behind at the end to help the Mission staff clean up for the evening.

The most important news from the day is that everyone who attended this fun event had the privilege of listening to the Easter story, the good news that Christ had risen from the dead.

Thanks to each of you who gave Easter eggs and candy to make this day such a success. Thanks to everyone who volunteered (hundreds of you) to cook the hot dogs, drive the buses, man the egg hunts, watch the bouncy houses, etc.  You made the day so special.  Also, a big thank you to everyone who came out to enjoy this family friendly event.  It was a great time together.

We are so grateful for the privilege we have of serving this community along side of you.  We are already looking forward to next year!

Date Published: April 7, 2015

Youth Services

Maundy Thursday good pic - 1Working with children and youth is a big part of what Mission Arlington® does all year long.  We have a special love for teenagers. We know that in these “in-between years,” they are becoming the person they are going to be for the rest of their lives.

In the Scriptures, Paul encouraged Timothy not to let anyone look down on him, because he was young.” In his youth, Paul challenged young Timothy to set an example “in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity” (I Timothy 4:12).

The Mission Arlington® family understands that teenagers go through so much as they grow up in our day. We are so proud of the young people who attend our Bible studies and congregations.  We love watching them grow in their own faith, so we do what we can – whenever we can – to be a support to them as they try to follow Christ and to live in this world.

Maundy Thursday good pic - 2On Thursday of Holy week every year, Mission Arlington® hosts a youth-oriented, Maundy Thursday service designed to bring youth together from across the city.  This past Thursday night, 289 young people came with their Bible study leaders to a joint worship service held in central Arlington. They watched a video about the suffering, the death, and resurrection of the Lord, then took the Lord’s supper together.  Afterwards, they received pizza, then spent time in small groups with their Bible study leaders discussing what they had experienced.

What we observe, again and again, is that there are some very special teenagers all across our community who love the Lord, serve Him faithfully, and who are growing in their faith every day.  We believe that our future is in great hands.  We are so humbled to have the privilege of walking side by side with these young people in our day.

Thank you so much for the way you walk with Mission Arlington through each part of our year.  We are grateful for your support, your help, and your prayers each and every day.

 

Date Published: April 4, 2015

“World’s Largest” Easter Egg Hunt

An Easter egg field filled with beautifully colored, candy-filled eggs (2014) - ready for the children.

An Easter egg field filled with beautifully colored, candy-filled eggs – ready for the kids.

Mission Arlington®‘s EASTER EGG HUNT is affectionately known as the “World’s Largest,” because so many children and families take advantage of this wonderful, free event.

Our huge “egg hunt” requires more than 80,000 plastic candy-filled eggs to serve the children, and their families, who come out to enjoy being with their children on such a beautiful day. It is so much fun to watch the children racing over fields of brightly colored eggs, knowing that there will be enough for every child. It is also so much fun to watch families outdoors together at a free event designed just for them. You can help by bringing eggs and/or candy to the Mission anytime  before or up to when we begin.

More than just an egg hunt, however, Mission Arlington® leaders will share the Easter story with everyone who attends.  The children will also enjoy exercise in a gym full of bouncy houses. They won’t go hungry either, because there will be plenty of food for everyone,

A young man, after the egg hunt, with a bag full of eggs.

A young man, after the egg hunt, with a bag full of eggs.

and it’s free. Our local fire fighting force will be there to let children look through their fire trucks, and there will be plenty more to do than we can share in this space. Suffice it to say that “it is going to be a wonderful day of fun for everyone.”


Here are the details:

Date: Saturday, April 15th.
Times: 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Where: 1516 W. Pioneer Pkwy – behind the church & across from the Kroger.
Who: Everyone is welcome: no unaccompanied children, please.


We would appreciate your prayers for this Easter egg hunt, and for all the events of Easter week through the ministries of Mission Arlington®.  If you would like to volunteer, please contact us at 817-277-6620. Thank you so much for your constant support.

Date Published: March 31, 2015

A Third Wave

Children gathered at a central Arlington Rainbow Express

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

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.

Date Published: March 25, 2015

“Two Points!”

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

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.

Date Published: March 21, 2015

Children are welcome at Mission Arlington®

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

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.

Treetop International - March 20, 2015 022This Treetop International - March 20, 2015 011amorning, 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.

Date Published: March 20, 2015

Too big for our britches?

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.

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.”

Date Published: March 19, 2015

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