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Urban Discovery Ministries

Save the Date!

2nd Annual

Thanksgiving

BBQ

Please join us for fellow-

ship and

thanksgiving to God

during our 2nd

Annual Thanksgiving

BBQ on Thursday,

October 23rd at 6:30pm.

The event is located at our

new CURT Center at

121 E. Virginia Beach Blvd

Norfolk, VA 23510

Details and

invite to follow.

In This Issue The CURT Center Blessing

“One Died for All”

Basketball Camp

Triple R Ranch Youth

Retreat

Fellowship of Christian

Athletes Camp

Norfolk East Church

Update

The CURT Center Blessing Michael V. Fariss, President/ CEO

Praise The LORD Our Provider! He gave UDM an ideal building at a great location for urban leadership development. This September UDM pur-chased a former fire station from the Union Mission.

God must have strategically positioned this station years ago for our mobilizing work today. At Virginia Beach Boulevard and Monticello Avenue, this blessing sits across the street from the Young’s Terrace neighborhood and on the edge of Norfolk’s business district. With gladness we named it the “CURT Cen-ter” in gratitude for co-laborer Curt Kenney (pictured left), who went to be with the Lord this year. The acronym CURT means Commission URban Training (Center). God gave this equipping resource at the right time for UDM’s widening vision and impact. More than ever, we ask Him for

grace to expand UDM’s church planting and missionary mobilization. Through the CURT Center we received facilities to equip laborers to fulfill Christ’s Great Commission. Join our grateful praise to the Lord of the Har-vest and our prayers for laborers. Visit us soon!

Mike Fariss prays, while coaches explain the Gospel with those who responded to his invitation to receive Christ

September 2014

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“One Died for All” Basketball Camp Ronnie “Mack” McAdoo, Executive Director

On July 21st—25th, UDM hosted the ninth annual “One Died for All Basketball Camp.” For the last two years the ministry has decided to strategically target youth in the neighborhoods where we are actively planting churches. Consequently, 95% of the participants came from the Young’s Terrace and Calvert Square neighborhoods. Praise God for the financial support from our donors and volunteers that enables us to extend partial and full scholarships for this important outreach event. Over 30 young people made professions of faith; as we proceed with follow up, we have been able to establish several in home Bible studies with these young people and their families. The high-light of the camp this year was one of the volunteer coaches who responded to the gospel on the final day of camp and gave his life to Christ. He is now actively attending a local church and being pur-sued for one-on-one discipleship by UDM.

Sports Ministries

with AAU Girls

Basketball UDM President/CEO Michael Fariss coached the Norfolk Xpress (Boo Williams) 5th Grade Girls AAU Basketball Team. The team placed 8th at the 2014 AAU National Championship in June. During the summer, Coach Fariss and other UDM staff team members provided the girls weekly basketball training with devotions. Many from the team attended UDM’s summer camps.

Sunday Afternoon Basketball Ministry

“One Died for All” Basketball Camp

Sunday Afternoon

Basketball

Ministry At Sunday open-gym

basketball workouts, UDM

leaders effectively shared

God’s Word with the girls

from Coach Mike Fariss’s

AAU team and with players

from other teams as well.

The girls studied the Bible

and played

basketball eagerly. Some

gave their lives to Christ.

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Giving

Please contact us

about

receiving NAP State

Tax Credits.

United Way Campaign

3779 – Commonwealth

of Virginia Campaign

( CVC)

8084 – Combined

Charities CCC

( Cities and Schools)

23291 – Combined

Federal Campaign

United Way of South

Hampton Roads Write-

In Designations (for

businesses).

There is no code, just

write-in our

organization’s

name on the pledge

card.

PLEASE

PRAY

Please pray for the

upcoming

UDM GLOBE

Vanguard

Conference that will

take place Oct. 3-5

at Camp Kerr Lake

in Henderson NC.

More details

are available at

www.urbandiscovery.

org

Triple R

Ranch Youth

Retreat Greg Johnston

On the weekend of August 22-24, UDM held its 4th annual Children’s Retreat. This retreat served 22 children and 16 teens from two of UDM’s church plants (Norfolk East Church and Peninsula East End Church) as well as a partner ministry on the Peninsula (Newsome Bailey Academy). The retreat was designed to empower these ministries to reach and disciple youth in their communities. The ministries mobilized 18 adult volunteers to serve as counselors and leaders. The theme this summer was “Face to Face with Grace”. Our three chapel speakers (Maurice Lamb, Chris Williams, and Ronnie McAdoo) explored different aspects of how God’s grace came to us in the person of Jesus Christ. We saw immediate evidence of their impact. During cabin devotions on Saturday morning, the campers were all asked, “When did God become more than a word to you.”

One young lady replied, “When that man (Maurice) talked about Jesus last night.” Ronnie’s message on Sunday challenged all of us to depend on God’s grace in Jesus in order to serve Him as He deserves; it also served as a personal mes-sage of exhortation for Brandon and Schylar Harrison. After two years as an intern Bran-don, along with Schylar, were commissioned as UDM mission-aries. We also got to know Sinclair and Jamie Salters, as well as their daughter Jada. This fam-ily from Columbia, South Caro-lina came to camp to get more acquainted with UDM. They have agreed to be part of a team that will be planting a church in Columbia this fall in partnership with UDM. We saw their passion for Jesus and for children as they jumped in to serve as camp counselors. Those of us who were not stay-ing in cabins with the campers missed out on some precious conversations with these kids about how God is making Him-self real in their lives. On the way to the dining hall for Sunday breakfast one teenager talked with our camp director, Greg Johnston, and enthusiastically declared, “You guys are missing out by not being in morning devotions with us in our cabin.”

He went on to explain how God really encouraged him to appreciate his special needs sister. Many people, counselors and campers alike, were greatly challenged and blessed by a 12 year old girl who came to camp for the first time this year. She has total vision impairment, but did not let that stop her from participating in all of the activities – even some that her cabin mates would not (e.g. horseback riding, rock wall climbing, and canoeing). Earlier in the weekend, she expressed her doubts about God because He never answered her prayer to be able to fly; however, later that afternoon she participated in a ranch activity called “The Flying Squirrel,” where individuals are strapped into a harness and hoisted by a cable up into the treetops. She realized that God had heard her all along and sent her to camp to fulfill her dream. At the end of camp, during our testimony service, this young lady stood and spoke in front of more than one hundred people to praise God for answering her long-standing prayer. Then she asked Him if there was anyway He would let her do it again next year!

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Contact Us Urban Discovery Ministries

P.O. Box 6381

Norfolk, VA 23508

Phone: 757.622.1665

Fax: 757.622.1348

udm@urbandiscovery.org

CURT Center

121 E. Virginia Beach Blvd.

Norfolk, VA 23510

Visit us on the web at

urbandiscovery.org

Social Media:

Twitter: @urban_discovery

Instagram: @urban_discovery

www.facebook.com/

urbandiscoveryministries

www.youtube.com/user/

urbandiscoverytv

Fellowship of

Christian Athletes

Camp Brandon Harrison

July 7th—11th, God gave us

an opportunity to take nine

teenage boys to the Fellowship

of Christian Athletes Camp in

Richmond, VA. FCA camp

was filled with amazing

worship, great speakers, and

competitive athletes. The

theme for this year's camp

was "All In," as we

emphasized being all in for

Christ in every area of our

lives. FCA camp challenged

our young men to be followers

of Christ and not just fans. In

addition, one of the

participants gave his life to

Jesus Christ! It was a joy to

see him surrender his life to

the Lord.

Norfolk East Church Update Jamar Skyles

Norfolk East Church (NEC) has truly been blessed greatly by

the Lord over the summer. Our church has been able to de-

velop a small group bible study with a sister located in

Young’s Terrace. In fact, from our first invitation, she was

very passionate about opening up her home for a small group

bible study.

Through our small group bible study we've been able to share

bible lessons called: “The Seven Commands of Christ” and

“Stories of Hope.” As a group we have really been able to see

the Lord working in her and her guests’ lives. We have held

times of prayer, outreach and consolation in the small group

where we make clear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

We ask for your prayers and support as our church continues

to seek the Lord in our fundraising and community outreach

goals.