BELLO CONNECTION -- Berly, Jamie, Ethan y Logan in the DR
Life & Joy Community Launch - July 2020 e-news

View this email in your browser

Comunidad Vida y Gozo = Life & Joy Community
Church Plant Launch in Arroyo Hondo, Santo Domingo

Vida y Gozo Start Up Year
Church Plant Project

Your strategic partners, the Bello family, have been serving in the Dominican Republic for 20 years directing National Teen Ministries -- reaching thousands of students, seeing hundreds of youth leaders mentored, and dozens of churches establish healthy teen ministry. For these 20 years, Berly has been producing Christian music, mentoring worship leaders and bands, making a distinct impact in lives and culture through his gifting. In the past 6 years, Jamie has developed the Uconexion university ministry -- leading its expansion to multiple campuses across the country, discipling students to lead hundreds of small groups, seeing dozens of students come to Christ each semester. In 2020, alongside these ongoing national ministries, God has led the Bellos to start a new church plant project -- Comunidad Vida y Gozo (Life & Joy Community).
Watch the short 2 minute video to hear them share their heart for planting this church in the Arroyo Hondo community of Santo Domingo, a city of over 3 million people.

The Venue = $2,500/month
Would you, your family or your church prayerfully consider giving a month's worth of rent?
Goal: raise start up year investment within 3 months

MARK DONATION: Class 64, Church Plant

(email us to let us know of your donation)

Rest of Start up costs (besides rent): $30,000

Renovation of Venue (floor, ceiling, cooling & electrical) = $14,000
Audio / Media Equipment = $10,000
Kid's Min & Nursery = $2,750
Chairs / Tables = $2,250
Signage = $1,000

Our Dominican VG Launch Team is raising money for the renovation. We are better together. Let's partner and reach this community for Jesus.

Pray for our summer outreach / connection opportunities with unchurched families:

Summerfest at Home -- 3 weeks of digital camps for kids on Zoom
Friday Fun Day -- an hour of games with kids every Friday on Zoom
Café con las Chicas -- moms' coffee hour -- Jamie leading conversation with the book "Super Mom Myth" (online until we can move to a living room or coffee shop)
Alpha -- online conversation for adults discussing questions of faith
BBQs -- *still on standby* as we await covid protocols; we hope to open up our yards to the neighbors

REFOCUS JOURNEY IN THE DR

In February with the visit of our NWMN Assistant Team Leaders, Dave & Debbie Cole, we started the first ReFocus Journey in the DR with 90 lead pastors and leaders from 20 churches. Several influential national church leaders are participants. In March, the #stayathome orders challenged us to shift the Journey ONLINE by pre-recording teachings and leading Zoom meetings for interaction, small group discussion and Q & A on important topics challenging each of these pastors and their teams to do honest, healthy evaluation and assessment of their church culture, the demographics of the community where their church is located, and to begin the process of developing a ReFocus strategic plan for implementation in order to create an outward focused church culture. The covid-19 implications on traditional church function has HELPED these leaders have very real life examples of how being "forced" to take their ministry on-line brings about greater engagement with outsiders. We are excited to be investing in the first of many cohorts with pastors and leaders who will make valuable shifts and see more people reached for Jesus as a result.

COVID-19 INCREASED OUR MINISTRY REACH

Uconexion university small groups grew in attendance during the covid-19 #stayathome quarantine. Our student leaders actively discipled their peers to grow in Christ through group conversation, personal Bible study & prayer. We connected student leaders with international peers across Latin America who are doing the same thing in their university ministries.

Jorge, our first Uconexion intern has stayed on as staff. He is a role model to his peers in the DR and across Latin America. We hope to receive interns from our sister university ministries in LAC countries. And we expect new Dominican interns to come as graduate students from our AG Bible school. We are committed to raising up a generation of University missionaries.

Our National Teen Ministries team kicked into high gear when the mandatory imposed quarantine and curfews went into place in March. For four months now, we have consistently created and shared resources and content online in order to help churches, youth leaders and students 1) learn how to utilize online platforms to host or stream services, leadership meetings and small group discipleship; 2) engage in shared bible study plans, prayer and evangelism challenges; 3) study the book of John through a 52 video devotional series; 4) overcome the emotional and social challenges of quarantine -- helps regarding depression, suicide, teen-parent communication, and more. Our ministry has been regularly called on to be guest communicators on zoom sessions, live webinars, as well as key technical support and workshop speakers for the national church pastors' conference hosted online under the title "ministry in times of crisis." Thank you for praying for us during this increased time of ministry. Coronavirus has NOT slowed down the Gospel or ministry engagement for us in the DR. Our boys were just as engaged online during this time -- attending online classes for school from 9am-2pm daily!

Vida y Gozo Start Up Year Church Plant Project

(email us to let us know of your donation)

REFOCUS JOURNEY IN THE DR

COVID-19 INCREASED OUR MINISTRY REACH

Vida y Gozo Start Up Year
Church Plant Project