Fearfully and Wonderfully Made
Deion traipsed inside the doors of Chicago’s Agape Center, a safe haven from neighboring, but not always neighborly, streets. Though most of the facility’s staff has changed, the commitment to ministry within the four walls is much the same as when Deion’s mom enrolled during her teens. The after-school program is one of more than […]
A ‘Frozen’ Faith Begins to Thaw
Melanie Lamar might as well have been a dentist, since trying to get and keep the girls’ focus on Jesus was like pulling teeth. Sometimes it was just as painful. Melanie had such high hopes when 7-year-old twins, Tamara and Tali, returned to the S.A.Y. Yes!® center after dropping out of the program last summer, […]
Working Through the JAMs
Dominic plodded along a ruddy track, each step of his pristine sneakers made more miserable by the heft of his campmate — a half-foot taller — straddled across his back. His T-shirt, drooping from sweat-dampened folds, bore the words, “I Prove U wrong,” an impromptu message in markers. Boasting white hipster glasses, Dominic paused frequently […]
Schooled in Love
A special needs second-grader who can’t cope with online learning plus a fatigued father who spends long hours working away from home plus an overwhelmed mom trying to navigate the needs of her boys in their newly adopted homeland equals a formula for despair. One green backpack filled with school supplies is a catalyst for hope for the first-generation Guatemalan immigrants. […]
Body of Work
“The first time I saw him he looked like a wannabe gangster,” Gustavo said. When Gustavo Villatoro first set eyes on Omar, the child carried himself like many of the boys from the neighborhood. It wasn’t so much the clothes, but the exaggerated sense of swagger. It was a path that Gustavo could have easily […]
Sports Camp Scores with Teens
For the better part of a year, students from across America were told to keep their distance — a tall order for adolescents and teens on the threshold of self-discovery. Formational relationships, steppingstones to adulthood, were suspended in the wake of COVID-19. For urban youth, particularly vulnerable to broken homes, truancy, substance abuse, gangs and […]
Not in Vain
The following is an excerpt from a recent letter written to the Agape Center staff in Chicago. It’s from Ronald, a former 7th grader in their S.A.Y. Yes!® after-school program, where inner-city students are mentored in a safe, nurturing environment: “As I sit here reading my Bible, I can’t help but think about you and […]
The Inside Game
Sports engage young people of the inner city in productive, character-building activity. They learn discipline; they discover their talents and develop their skills; they learn teamwork. Young men who are involved in sports have the potential to become positive leaders and influence generations. But to do this, they need God. They need to understand that […]
Fruit from Faithfulness
“The Agape Center? I used to go up there when I was a kid!” I heard similar exclamations shared over and over, whenever our staff and volunteers advertised for our after-school program, S.A.Y. Yes! Centers for Youth Development®. As we engage parents and neighbors it’s clear that our Christian community center has a legacy. For […]
Raising Up Young Men
In April, five hundred volunteers came to the warehouse in Minneapolis to help pack Easter Bags, an outreach tool used by our church partners. Among the volunteers was Jacques. Jacques grew up in a broken home in East St. Paul. He became acquainted with the inner-city ministry of Cru® more than half a decade ago […]