Seeking Partners!
Fifteen years ago, Dallas International Street Church began in downtown Dallas on a "shoestring". Some thought we would not make it. I remember one of my pastor friends who allowed me to come to his church and share the vision God had placed in my heart to open an inner city church, told me that after I had spoken at their church 15 years ago, he told his wife that "they will eat that poor white woman's lunch". He only shared his doubt that we would make it when I ran into him recently. He stated that he was amazed at what God had done at DISC in that most of the visionaries he had known 15 years ago were gone and I was still standing! All Praise be to God!
God has been so faithful. He has been with us through "thick and thin". For our many partners and friends, we have been a conduit of reaching the most broken and needy of our society - those who nobody thought were salvageable. As has been proven, over the years, a significant number of lives have been turned around and individuals have come "back to God, family, and society - in their own homes, working jobs and serving the Lord! Watch for our upcoming "hall of fame" of "lives changed" which will be posted on our website shortly! You, partners, will be blessed and totally amazed at the large number of lives changed and to see where your "hard-earned" dollars have been going - saving souls and restoring lives!
Now, back to where we are today. As we move into 2013, we are seeking partnerships to help us reach more people. We conduct church services every night, Tuesday through Friday; pick up approximately 50-60 people per night in addition to our regulars; service hot meals following each service - feeding approximately 200 people per day. Throughout the days at DISC, we have continual classes and work going on to prepare the people for life healing; we operate three discipleship homes in Dallas as well as our 36 man facility in Kaufman County. We network with other agencies such as City of Dallas Gateway Housing Program for transitional housing, Bridge Builders Job Training; as well as Christian Women's Job Corp for the skill training of our women, Our Glory Thrift Store is in full operation and we are planning for it to become a serious part of our support for the ministry - hours of operation - Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m to 7 p.m. In the near future, we will be opening our food distribution center for the community.
Dear Partners and Friends, your investment in souls in the inner city is not wasted. The Dallas International Street Church is good ground to seed into - as we are seeing this "tree" bear fruit. For every person we are able to transition off the streets, we are not only saving the city and county resources; one source suggested that the average $ amount per year to take care of one homeless person was $40,000. This figure includes basic use of shelters, emergency rooms, mental health services, and jails. At the Dallas International Street Church, your investment dollars are actually bringing the people who once were living in the streets, back to life to become productive members of society. We are not only saving lives, saving valuable resources, but saving souls for eternity.
Please consider adding the Dallas International Street Church to your missions giving this year. Go to our website, www.karendudleyministries.org, and make your secure donation through our paypal account - or you may send a check made payable to The Dallas Interational Street Church, P.O. Box 151461, Dallas, Texas 75315.
Thank you and God Bless!
From the Heart of the City,
Karen Dudley
Founder/Sr. Pastor
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