Chicagoando

Much has happened in the last week. I joined many folks from Denton Bible Church and UNT, and a few folks from Wisconsin and Arkansas, on a mission trip to speak with and preach the Gospel to the people of urban Chicago.

I learned that there are 77 neighborhoods within the city limits of Chicago. Each neighborhood is almost exclusively inhabited by one and only one culture. For example, you could be walking down the street in a Korean neighborhood. Every store would have signs in either Korean and English, or just Korean. There are Korean people - no whites, no blacks, no Hispanics, etc. There is Korean food, Korean stores, Korean churches, etc. Everything is Korean. Then you may cross a major intersection, and everything turns into Russian. Russian signs, Russian people, Russian stores, etc. It's crazy how segregated the city is.

We had 3 days devoted exclusively to either urban service or urban immersion. Some went to a homeless shelter to talk to the homeless about their past lives, play chess, or organize clothes in a thrift store. Others went to a day care for children of teen parents. Still others went to Chinatown to the Pui Tak Center to help introduce Chinese immigrants and their children to America. All the while, we are mindful to preach the Gospel whenever and wherever possible.

It was pretty amazing. There is so much to say, I will reserve this to personal conversations. For more info, just ask.

In the mean time, below are links to some of the many pics I took on the trip. Enjoy!
Photos 1
Photos 2
Photos 3