Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update, Serve the City | by Pastor Justin Keogh

DCC,

We serve our city, because we have been served beyond measure by Christ (Matt. 20:25-28). We are not saved by our works, we are saved by faith (Rom. 3:21-4:8), but saving faith is one that works from the grace we've received (Jas. 2:14-26)!

Last month, we completed our first of three Serve the City events this summer. A huge THANK YOU to everyone who came out! We had 85 participants at Myrtle Edwards for a wonderful early summer day with sunshine, and lots of great work accomplished. See below for some of our favorite snapshots from the day!

Part 2: Mariners' Day of Service on Friday, 6/23

Our second event this summer is in partnership with the Seattle Mariners and will take place next Friday, June 23rd, from 9 am – 12 pm. DCC will be leading the efforts focused on Pioneer Square by picking up trash, painting out graffiti, and landscaping projects. Like our prior event, this will be a great opportunity to get outside, make a positive impact on our city, and serve alongside our neighbors.

While the Mariners team will be traveling, some familiar faces from the franchise as well as many local business owners and city representatives are going to be joining us for the event too. We'll have projects for all ages—so bring the family, coworkers, and neighbors!

Friday?? Yes, Friday.

This event is happening on a Friday, which might be a challenge for folks working a Monday to Friday 9-to-5 schedule, so not everyone will be able to make it. But, did you know that many companies are offering volunteer days/credits for events just like this one? Ask your HR to see if you've got a volunteer option for the morning. Many of those in our church body work on other shifts, or have flexibility on Fridays, so we're still hoping for a fun turnout from DCC as we partner with many others from around the city next Friday, rain or shine! Register today:

Register

Stay Connected

Our Serve the City events are just one part of how we care for our city. You can learn more about our Mercy Ministries HERE, and also join our ongoing focus area groups to hear more regular updates, events, and opportunities to serve:

• DCC Blood Drive with Bloodworks NW on 7/27
• Mercy Focus: Homelessness
• Mercy Focus: Life Project
• Mercy Focus: Refugees

For the Kingdom,
Pastor Justin

One Seattle Day of Service, May 20th, 2023

Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update | by Pastor Justin Keogh

The Mercy Ministry Updates are a regular snapshot of our Mercy Ministries in DCC, where we are working to serve and uphold the value and dignity of God's most vulnerable image-bearers in our city.

For more regular updates in each focus area, please request to join our Mercy Focus groups in Church Center (linked below) and join us in our upcoming service events (details below).

Gospel Framework

As God's inspired word, the Bible displays God's good design and our radical need for a savior, found only in Jesus, and calls us to live out our new identity in Christ as we engage the world around us.

"But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare."
– Jeremiah 29:7

While Israel was in exile in Babylon (as a consequence of their failure to follow the Lord, no less!), God spoke through the prophet Jeremiah to call them to be a faithful presence while they waited for God to bring about their return to Israel. For Israel in exile in Babylon, this was a call to trust God to fulfill his promises and seek the welfare of their city. For us now as Christians in Seattle 2023, this is a call to seek the welfare of our city, knowing that we are 'living as exiles' in the world, looking to the future return of Christ to complete the good work he started in us and the world.

We have already tasted the goodness of our King and begun to experience the new realities of his Kingdom, yet we still await the final fulfillment of all things! So, while we wait, the church is called to act as salt (a preserving force) and light (a guiding force) to our city. In short, we're called to be a faithful presence.

Serve The City

This summer, instead of a single Serve the City event, we're partnering with three different organizations over the next three months to give us various ways to serve alongside our neighbors for the good of our city. These partner events are a great way for us to serve others, and to build relationships with our neighbors as we serve! Our hope in creating multiple smaller events is that everyone can participate in some way over the summer, increasing our impact and building on our previous service events. Save the dates for our upcoming events:

• One Seattle Day of Service – Saturday, May 20th, 9 am to 12 pm | Myrtle Edwards Park
• Together WA Day of Service – Saturday, June 24th, 9 am to 12 pm | Downtown
• Bloodworks NW Drive – Thursday, July 27th, 9 am to 3 pm (30-min slots) | DCC Building

One Seattle Day of Service

The first of these events is only three weeks away, on Saturday, May 20th, from 9 am to 12 pm, at Myrtle Edwards Park. We're partnering with the Mayor's Office and the Seattle Parks Department to lead an effort to beautify the park through trash pickup and landscaping.

We'll have cleaning and landscaping projects around the park with options for all ages, so this is a great chance for families, friends, and communities to serve together. DCC will lead about eight teams working on various projects, so the registration form asks if you'd be willing to be a team lead, which involves coming an hour early. We'll have the projects mapped out and provide all the tools for the work, so you can show up the day ready to serve. Rain or shine, this will be a great day of working together in our neighborhood! Please register today:

Register Here

Stay Connected

Our Serve the City events are just one part of how we care for our city. You can learn more about our Mercy Ministries HERE, and also join our ongoing focus area groups to hear more regular updates, events, and opportunities to serve:

• Mercy Focus: Homelessness
• Mercy Focus: Life Project
• Mercy Focus: Refugees

For the Kingdom,
Pastor Justin

Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update | by Pastor Justin Keogh

DCC is partnering with Bloodworks Northwest for a blood donation drive on Wednesday, December 7th. Read more below and sign up to donate HERE.

THE HEART

As God’s people, we are loved and saved by Jesus and called to be a new redeemed people who love God with our whole being and love our neighbors as ourselves (1 Peter 2:9-10; Matthew 22:34-40). Scripture is full of encouragements and exhortations for God’s people to act in order to meet the spiritual and physical needs of our neighbors (Leviticus 19:18; Isaiah 58:6-8; Luke 10:25-37; Galatians 6:10; Titus 3:14; James 1:26-27; 1 John 3:16-18). As such, we talk about being a declaring and demonstrating community: declaring the good news of the gospel to meet people’s greatest need to be reconciled with God, and demonstrating the love of God in tangible acts of mercy to meet the physical needs of our neighbors.

The ways in which we serve are shaped by the stewardship of everything that God has graciously entrusted to us as stewards, the particular passions he’s cultivated by his Spirit in our hearts, and the unique needs of those he’s sovereignly placed around us. And it is through these things that we’ve come to partnering with Bloodworks Northwest to host a blood donation drive next week. Led by members of DCC, this drive is an opportunity for us to both hospitably welcome our neighbors, as well as tangibly care for their needs.

THE NEED

Donating blood is a simple, tangible, and life-saving way to bless our neighbors. Blood donations are used to help folks in emergency situations, those undergoing various cancer treatments, and those under chronic conditions.

While there is a perpetual need to maintain a critical supply of blood for emergencies, there are points of greater need when either the demand increases, or the supply decreases. And just this week, in light of the winter weather, a significant number of donations were cancelled or rescheduled—meaning our donations next week are especially important.

THE OPPORTUNITY

As a way of making blood donations as convenient as possible, Bloodworks Northwest hosts pop-up donations around the city, in order to get closer to where people live and work.

Next Wednesday, December 7th, we will be serving as a host and providing blood donors, while Bloodworks brings in the medical equipment and staffing to collect enough blood to serve over 100 people.

Each donor gives about a pint of blood which our bodies naturally replace over the coming days and weeks. The whole process takes less than an hour, with the actual donation taking about 10 minutes. There is a simple health check prior to donation to ensure that a donation will not be detrimental to the donor or the potential recipient.

Click Here To Sign Up

If you are unable to donate on Wednesday at DCC, you can also sign up to donate at another time and location here. Every donation counts!

Let’s pray that we fill every available spot to donate (and then some!), that our space would be full of Christ-exalting conversations while we donate, and that we’d be a tangible blessing to our neighbors through this donation drive.

LEARN MORE

• To learn more about donating blood, check out Bloodworks NW’s Need to Know page or watch this short video (1 min).
• To learn more about other opportunities to serve our neighbors, visit DCC's Mercy Ministries webpage, or join one of the Mercy Ministry Groups on Church Center.

For the Kingdom,
Pastor Justin

Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update | by Pastor Justin Keogh

The Mercy Ministry Updates are a regular snapshot of our Mercy Ministries in DCC, where we are working to serve and uphold the value and dignity of God’s most vulnerable image bearers in our city.

For more regular updates in each focus area, please request to join our Mercy Focus groups in Church Center (linked below) and join us at this Sunday's Mercy Meetup (details below).

Gospel Framework

The Bible, as God’s inspired word, displays God’s good design and our radical need for a savior, found only in Jesus, and calls us to live out our new identity in Christ as we engage the world around us.

"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith."
– Galatians 6:9-10

It's 2022! If we're honest, as the Covid-19 pandemic approaches the two-year mark, many of us may be weary—generally, and also in our service to others. Even while the Galatians faced many challenges—false teachers, ethnic conflict, internal strife, battles with sin—Paul calls them to persist in doing good to everyone as they had opportunity. 

It's helpful to recognize that while the particulars of our situation may be different than the churches in Galatia, many of the patterns are the same. Every season will have many and varying challenges that threaten to keep us from right living before God and right living with others. Our call as Christians, who have received the grace of God by faith in Christ and who have the Spirit of God at work in us, is to not grow weary of doing good.

How are we to persevere in doing good? We do so, not in our strength, but by abiding in Christ and drawing our daily power from him. He has loved and cared for us in the most significant ways by dying in our place to secure our forgiveness and restoration with God. And he continues to love and care for us in the details of our lives by being present with us, interceding for us, and working all things to our ultimate good. So we can look to Christ and be strengthened by his Spirit to live as he did—in radical service to others, by being present with them, interceding for them, and caring for their material and spiritual needs.

Mercy Ministry Meetup: This Sunday, January 23rd

Join us this Sunday, after each gathering, downstairs in the MPR, for our next Mercy Meetup. In this meetup, there will be a brief update from me and our current Mercy Ministries, including more information about how to serve in this season. While many of the ways we have traditionally served have changed in light of Covid-19, there are still opportunities to help now, both individually and with others.

This is an excellent place for those looking to get started, ask questions, meet others, and take the next step in serving with our Mercy Ministries. Registration is not required—just plan to join us this Sunday after either gathering downstairs in the MPR.

Stay Connected

Learn more about our Mercy Ministries HERE. Join the focus area Church Center groups in order to hear more regular updates, events, and opportunities to serve:

• Mercy Focus: Homelessness
• Mercy Focus: Life Project
• Mercy Focus: Refugees

For the Kingdom,

Pastor Justin

Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update | by Pastor Justin Keogh

The Mercy Ministry Updates are a regular snapshot of our Mercy Ministries in DCC, where we are working to serve and uphold the value and dignity of God’s most vulnerable image bearers in our city.

For more regular updates in each focus area, please request to join our Mercy Focus groups in Church Center (linked below) and join us at this Sunday's Mercy Meetup (details below).

Gospel Framework

The Bible, as God’s inspired word, displays God’s good design and our radical need for a savior, found only in Jesus, and calls us to live out our new identity in Christ as we engage the world around us.

"Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."
– Philippians 2:3-8

Philippians 2 is a beautiful reminder of Jesus' humble posture and loving pursuit of us (while we were dead in our sin, even!), which calls us to take a humble posture and make loving pursuit of those around us (who are far from us, even!). Because Christ had set aside his position and all that was rightfully his to be born as a baby, to grow and live as a man, and to die a criminal's death on our behalf, we can be forgiven and restored to God. And as we are forgiven and restored with God, we are also given a new relationship to others—we are called to be like Christ in his love and sacrificial service toward others. While Paul is writing to the church, calling them to love and serve one another, we know that our love and service will extend beyond the church to anyone who we find in need (Gal. 6:10).

Our city has no shortage of God's image bearers who are in vulnerable situations—youth experiencing foster care, women facing pregnancy crisis, refugees fleeing persecution, and many experiencing homelessness. We want to bring the good news of Jesus—in word, and in action—to those who society most readily ignores. God has given them dignity, value, and worth—and we want to consider them more significant than ourselves, by serving their practical needs and sharing the greatest news in the world.

Mercy Ministry Meetup: This Sunday, September 19th

Join us this Sunday, after each gathering, downstairs in the MPR, for our next Mercy Meetup. This brief, informal meetup will be a time to introduce yourself, meet our ministry leaders, learn more about the vision and mission of our Mercy Ministries, and get connected to ways to serve within our Mercy Ministries. Come for a few minutes to check in with one of our focus areas, or stay for the short duration and meet all four of our mercy partners.

This is an excellent place for those who are looking to get started, ask questions, meet others, and take the next step in serving with our Mercy Ministries. Registration is not required—just plan to join us this Sunday after worship.

Stay Connected

Learn more about our Mercy Ministries HERE. Join the focus area Church Center groups in order to hear more regular updates, events, and opportunities to serve:

• Mercy Focus: Foster Care & Adoption
• Mercy Focus: Homelessness
• Mercy Focus: Life Project
• Mercy Focus: Refugees

For the Kingdom,

Pastor Justin

Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update | by Pastor Justin Keogh

The Mercy Ministry Updates are a regular snapshot of our Mercy Ministries in DCC, where we are working to serve and uphold the value and dignity of God’s most vulnerable image bearers in our city. For more regular updates in each focus area, please request to join our Mercy Focus groups in Church Center (linked below).

Gospel Framework

The Bible, as God’s inspired word, displays God’s good design and our radical need for a savior, found only in Jesus, and calls us to live out our new identity in Christ as we engage the world around us.

¹ Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, ² to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. ³ For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. ⁴ But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, ⁵ he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, ⁶ whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, ⁷ so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. ⁸ The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people…¹⁴ And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need, and not be unfruitful.
– Titus 3:1-8, 14

Titus chapter 3 gives us a beautiful summary of the gospel—our nature and need of salvation (v.3) and the gift of God's grace in Christ (vv.4-7)—and connects our salvation with our response of living a gracious life of service to others (v.1, v.8, v.14). We see in these few verses the precise relationship between grace and works: that "he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His mercy" (v.5), which then leads us to be devoted to good works that are excellent and profitable for people (v.8) and in particular cases of urgent need (v.14).

The grace of God changes our hearts and enables us to love Him and others. Jesus summarized the whole law with these two dimensions: first, a whole-life devotion to God, and second, a love of others (Matt. 22:34-40). The apostles James and John reiterate the relationship between faith and works in their letters (as Paul does in his): that saving faith is faith in God's work for us that produces good works to others (James 2:14-26; 1 John 4:7-21). As we reflect and cherish God's grace and mercy to us when we were apart from him, it will motivate us to extend grace and mercy to others.

Mercy Ministry Training: This Sunday, May 2nd @ 1PM

Join us as we look at Scripture's call to serve those in need around us, introduce our current Mercy Ministries, discuss opportunities for us to serve, and pray together for our city. This training will focus on two related topics:

• Understanding more of the complexities of what leads people into vulnerable situations, as well as the complexities that it takes to get out of them.
• And related, how we as individuals and as a church then prioritize and steward our efforts as we serve.

This is an excellent place for those who are looking to get started, ask questions, meet others, and take the next step in serving with our Mercy Ministries. We’ll be hosting this as a hybrid training both in-person and online. Read more and register below.

Register

Stay Connected

Learn more about our Mercy Ministries HERE. Join the focus area city groups in order to hear more regular updates, events, and opportunities to serve:

• Mercy Focus: Covid Response
• Mercy Focus: Foster Care & Adoption
• Mercy Focus: Homelessness
• Mercy Focus: Life Project
• Mercy Focus: Refugees

For the Kingdom,

Pastor Justin

Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update | by Pastor Justin Keogh

The Mercy Ministry Updates are a regular snapshot of our Mercy Ministries in DCC, where we are working to serve and uphold the value and dignity of God’s most vulnerable image bearers in our city. For more regular updates in each focus area, please request to join our Mercy Focus groups in Church Center (linked below).

Gospel Framework

The Bible, as God’s inspired word, displays God’s good design and our radical need for a savior, found only in Jesus, and calls us to live out our new identity in Christ as we engage the world around us.

“Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of wickedness,
to undo the straps of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to break every yoke?
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up speedily;
your righteousness shall go before you;
the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard."
– Isaiah 58:6-8

In this passage in Isaiah, God is rebuking the people of Israel for their platitudes of worship. They had been fasting and "going through the religious motions" without a heart set on God nor a life lived according to his instructions.

Israel was God's chosen people—chosen not because of their works but because of God's grace—and God gave them a clear picture of how he wanted them to live as a shining example among the nations, which was characterized by their worship of God (celebration of their vertical reconciliation with God) as well as their care for their neighbors (a demonstration of love in their horizontal relationships).

Jesus, when asked about the greatest commandment, replied similarly, saying that the first thing we must do is to love God with our whole being, and the second thing, inextricably linked, is to love our neighbor as ourselves (cf. Matt 22:34-40). We too, as God's adopted sons and daughters, freely given grace upon grace, are called to love others, even our enemies, in word and deed, as an overflow and reflection of God's love for us in Christ.

MERCY MINISTRY TRAINING: This Sunday, January 17th @ 1PM

Scripture is full of imperatives for us to serve others—not to earn God’s love, but in response to God’s lavish and gracious love for us. But how exactly are we to go about serving those around us in our city? With so much need, where do we start? How can we serve in this challenging Covid season?

In this training, we’ll look at the imperatives in Scripture to serve others as a response to God’s love for us in Christ. We'll introduce our current mercy ministries, discuss ways to serve and pray for those most vulnerable in our city.

If you’ve not had a chance to connect to our Mercy Ministries yet, or perhaps want to learn more about how we’re serving in this challenging season, this training is for you! This will be a live, virtual session, so please register below.

Register

CARENET FUNDRAISER: Through Saturday, January 23rd

This year, coinciding with our annual focus on the sanctity of human life, we are hosting a fundraiser to support our pro-life partner Care Net of Puget Sound—to help assist with the essential needs and services they provide to women facing unplanned pregnancies. Contributing to Care Net helps them operate their many services, from ultrasounds and STD screenings, to prenatal and parenting classes (and much more!)—to anyone who needs them, free of charge.

Our prayerful hope is to be a tangible blessing to Care Net through this fundraiser, helping them as they seek to help women facing unplanned pregnancy choose life for their babies.

Donate

All contributions are tax-deductible, and Care Net will receive 100% of your donation, less any processing fees (if applicable). Please select CareNet Fundraiser as the fund when you donate. A gift acknowledgment will be included in your year-end giving statement.

Stay Connected

Learn more about our Mercy Ministries HERE. Join the focus area city groups in order to hear more regular updates, events, and opportunities to serve:

• Mercy Focus: Foster Care & Adoption
• Mercy Focus: Homelessness
• Mercy Focus: Juvenile Detention
• Mercy Focus: Life Project
• Mercy Focus: Refugees

For the Kingdom,

Pastor Justin

Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update | by Pastor Justin Keogh

The Mercy Ministry Updates are a regular snapshot of our Mercy Ministries in DCC, where we are working to serve and uphold the value and dignity of God’s most vulnerable image-bearers in our city. Each update highlights one of our focus areas and current prayer requests across all of our focus areas.

Gospel Framework

The Bible, as God’s inspired word, displays God’s good design and our radical need for a savior, found only in Jesus, and calls us to live out our new identity in Christ as we engage the world around us. 

“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be bless in his doing.” (James 1:22-25)

God’s Word instructs every aspect of our lives so that we may more fully glorify him and enjoy him forever. Here, in his letter to the early Christians, James is calling us beyond mental assent or cultural acceptance, inviting us to a life that displays the truths of God’s Word. He goes on to connect this with the call to “visit orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (James 1:27b). Here, we see that the call to be doers of the Word envelopes our whole lives, both in our hearts and minds, and in how we love and serve others. We do not have to prove ourselves or earn our salvation through works because we have been made his children through Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. And because of Christ’s work on our behalf, we can live and serve others joyously and generously for their good and God’s glory.

Mercy Focus Highlight: Mercy Ministry Training

Scripture is full of imperatives for us to serve others – not to earn God’s love, but in response to God’s lavish and gracious love for us. But how exactly are we to go about serving those around us in our city?

This year we are hosting a Mercy Ministry Training on various topics every quarter. We had our first one last Sunday with a great turnout of folks who were eager to learn more about engaging with our city in terms of mercy. Please save the date for the next one–Sunday, February 9th at 11 am. More details will be posted on our Mercy Ministries website.

Partner Prayer Requests

Please join us in praying for the people impacted and involved in each of these focus areas.

Homelessness and UGM

• Pray for the homeless that they will be kept from physical and emotional harm and that they might find hope in Christ through UGM’s outreach and recovery programs.
• Pray for us to be welcoming and loving people to all of our neighbors as God’s image-bearers.

Foster Care & Adoption

• November is National Adoption Awareness Month. Pray that God would continue to draw families to foster care and adoption, that the church would live out God’s concern for vulnerable children.
• Pray for families to be equipped to care for the children they’ve adopted long term with all the various issues and trials that will come.

Refugees

• Pray that as the nations come to us, that we as the local church would make the most of every opportunity to make Jesus’s name known and great among them, so that they may be glad and rejoice in the good news of the Kingdom (Psalm 67:3-4).
• Pray for our brothers and sisters that are being persecuted around the world for their faith in Christ. Pray specifically for countries such as North Korea, Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya, and Pakistan.

Juvenile Detention

• Pray for the youth currently in detention, that they would not be defined by their incarceration status but find their identity as a child of God.
• Pray for godly volunteers willing to serve as mentors, pointing youth to Christ.

Life Project

• Pray for a full-time nurse for the CareNet mobile unit, so they can expand into downtown Seattle. Ultimately, Care Net is in need of more staff nurses, ministry wide.
• Pray for those who have chosen abortion(s) and are now understanding their ongoing trauma and feelings of shame. Pray specifically for those seeking care/recovery from Care Net and that the staff/volunteers can help these women process through their choice of abortion, hopefully leading them to Christ. Praise that some of these women seeking care are also now choosing life for their current pregnancies.

Stay Connected

Join the focus area city groups in order to hear more regular updates, events, and opportunities to serve.

• Mercy Focus: Foster Care & Adoption
• Mercy Focus: Homelessness
• Mercy Focus: Juvenile Detention
• Mercy Focus: The LIFE project
• Mercy Focus: Refugees

Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update | by Pastor Justin Keogh

The Mercy Ministry Updates are a regular snapshot of our Mercy Ministries in DCC, where we are working to serve and uphold the value and dignity of God’s most vulnerable image bearers in our city. Each update highlights one of our focus areas, as well as provide a listing of upcoming events, and current prayer requests across all of our focus areas.

Gospel Framework

The Bible, as God’s inspired word, displays God’s good design and our radical need for a savior, found only in Jesus, and calls us to live out our new identity in Christ as we engage the world around us.

“For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe. He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.” Deuteronomy 10:17-19

In Deuteronomy 10, God tells Israel about his great love and awesome glory. But he does more than simply tell them; in his wisdom, God reveals his love for them and his power over all things by weaving into Israel’s story a sojourn in and rescue out of Egypt. Israel’s time in Egypt, and their redemption by God out of Pharoah’s hand, serve as undeniable, historical declarations of God’s love and might. These attributes are rooted in his character, and he weaves them into Israel’s story, and then he calls them to love the sojourners in their midst. The same is true for us as it was for Israel. God’s love for us and power for us are just as profound, bringing life to dead sinners, bringing those who were far off into unity with God in Christ (Ephesians 2). Like Israel, we were sojourners, apart from God. Like Israel, we have been given God’s love and grace in Christ. And like Israel, God calls us to live a life that is transformed by his love, a life that glorifies God in the way we love others.

Mercy Focus Highlight: Refugees

As a church we support and partner with several mercy ministries and want to share and highlight their on-going work.

Over 30,000 refugees live in Washington, making Washington one of the top 10 refugee-receiving states (representing 0.4% of WA population). Refugees arriving to the US often come with nothing but the clothes on their backs, often fleeing persecution and face political, cultural, and linguistic barriers as they seek a safe refuge and better life. For those that are provided entry into the US, restarting can be a very lonely and challenging experience. Organizations like World Relief Seattle aim to meet those refugees who’ve become our neighbors through practical material assistance, legal and economic programs, and meaningful relationships. Through partnerships with local churches, World Relief Seattle connects Christians to these arriving refugees in various ways, enabling the love of God to be tangibly expressed and received.

Join us this Sunday, 5/5, at 1pm, to learn more about what makes someone a Refugee, how they come to our neighbors in Seattle, and how we can serve them alongside organizations like World Relief. You can also join our Mercy Focus: Refugee group in Planning Center.

Upcoming Events

Not all events are sponsored or hosted by DCC, but serve those in our focus areas. See linked details for each.

• Thursday 5/2 | Night of Prayer – We will be setting aside some time this evening to pray for REST’s ministry and for those who are being exploited in the sex trade. If you are interested in joining to pray, please email Micah at for details.
• Friday 5/3 | All Our Friends Fest – REST is hosting an upcoming art show and auction featuring many local artists. All proceeds will go to benefiting REST and the clients they serve.
• Sunday 5/5 | DCC Info Session – Refugees – We will be hosting an info session this Sunday after the 11 AM gathering to grow in our biblical understanding of God’s love for the refugee and how that impacts us today.
• Saturday 5/18 | A Night with NuHope – REST is partnering with NuHope for a fundraising event which will serve REST’s ministry and provide a fun opportunity for support!
• Saturday 7/13 | Serve the City – Mark your calendars! This year’s Serve the City is scheduled for July 13th! We’ll have the gift of joyfully serving together at Gatewood Elementary in West Seattle!

Partner Prayer Requests

Please join us in praying for the people impacted and involved in each of these focus areas.

Homelessness and UGM

• Pray for our city leadership, to be able to make wise and helpful legislation that ultimately serves those experiencing homelessness in Seattle.
• Pray for those going through the UGM programs, to find healing and recovery through faith in Jesus. Pray that we would be a welcoming people to those who are struggling and homeless.

Foster Care & Adoption

• Pray for more foster and adoptive families willing and equipped to take children with special needs, especially high medical needs. Pray for the families already taking medically fragile children that they would have a support community and receive rest.
• Pray for the children to not be defined by their diagnosis but as a child of God.

Refugees

• Pray for mutual love and edification between U.S.-born and immigrant sisters and brothers in the American church.
• Pray that the church in America will be unified in loving and caring for immigrants so that together, we can testify to God’s love for all of us through his son, Jesus Christ.

Sex Trafficking and REST 

• Pray for the growth of REST’s recently established Integrated Health Clinic, which provides medical, mental health, and chemical dependency care to those in need. Pray for the clients that will be helped and cared for through the IHC.
• Pray that God’s truth and love would be made known on every street in our city, and that he will bring freedom and peace to those who are being exploited.

Juvenile Detention

• Pray for the youth currently in detention, that they would hear of God’s love through Christian mentors serving them.
• Pray for the families of youth, to be safe and stable, so that youth leaving detention can return to healthy environments.

Life Project

• Pray for their abortion-minded clients; that they ultimately chose life for their child — pray for positive influence from family and their community that will support them and encourage them to continue in their pregnancy, and support them when children are born.
• Praise that CareNet has been able to find a new facility, and pray for the plans to offer extended hours in Seattle through this location and the mobile unit!

Stay Connected

Join the focus area city groups in order to hear more regular updates, events, and opportunities to serve.

• Mercy Focus: Foster Care & Adoption
• Mercy Focus: Homelessness
• Mercy Focus: Juvenile Detention
• Mercy Focus: The LIFE project
• Mercy Focus: Refugees
• Mercy Focus: Sex Trafficking

Ethnic Harmony, Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update

The Mercy Ministry Updates are a regular snapshot of our Mercy Ministries in DCC, where we are working to serve and uphold the value and dignity of God’s most vulnerable image bearers in our city. Each update highlights one of our focus areas, as well as provide a listing of upcoming events, and current prayer requests across all of our focus areas.

Gospel Framework

The Bible, as God’s inspired word, displays God’s good design and our radical need for a savior, found only in Jesus, and calls us to live out our new identity in Christ as we engage the world around us.

“Thus says the LORD of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart.”Zechariah 7:9-10

God speaks through Scripture to his people, calling them to faithful action to care for the most vulnerable people around them. Often in these instructions, we see four populations listed – the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, the poor – as a description of those who were most vulnerable in their midst. And we also often see these instructions intermingled with instructions to care for brothers and sisters (“one another”), which is to say, the love that we have for those who are vulnerable is not some “out there” love but a “from here” love that starts in the family of God, rooted in God’s love for us. We love because he first loved us, and has given us the commandment to love others. (1 John 4:19,21). This is good news for us because it means we can put the love of others into practice right here in our church and in our city.

Mercy Focus Highlight: Understanding Disproportionality

As a church we support and partner with several mercy ministries and want to share and highlight their on-going work.

Racial Disproportionality, that is, the underrepresentation or overrepresentation of a racial or ethnic group compared to its percentage in the total population, is a reality in every one of our mercy focus areas (Life/Abortion, Foster Care/Adoption, Juvenile Detention, Sex Trafficking, Homelessness, and Refugees). This means that people, families, and communities of color are more affected than white people, families, and communities (in King County and nationally). So as we care for the most vulnerable populations in each of these areas, we should seek to understand this reality so that it can inform our care. Other types of disproportionality also exist in many of our mercy focus areas, such as the economic disproportionality of women seeking an abortion, and even some interdependencies between them, such as children in foster care and juvenile detention, or juvenile detention and sex trafficking. Similarly, those whom we seek to serve in these areas have, without question, experienced trauma, which likewise informs how we understand and care for them.

These factors lead us to understand the complexity and scope of sin’s impact on our world. In turn, this should also lead us toward increased empathy and informed care for those we serve and increasingly see the measure of Christ’s gift to us in our salvation. As we simultaneously see the depth of sinfulness and brokenness of the world around us and the height of God’s love for us in Christ, we will move toward others in love as he has loved us.

Upcoming Events

Not all events are sponsored or hosted by DCC, but serve those in our focus areas. See linked details for each.

• UGM Women’s Recovery Program Graduation – Jan. 23
• Foster Care Support Group – Jan. 25
• REST Volunteer Training Day – Jan. 26
• World Relief Sea-Tri-Kan Info Session – Jan. 27
• Northwest Health and Human Rights Mental Health Provides Training and Info Session – Feb. 2
• Immigrant & Refugee Advocacy Day – Feb. 5

Partner Prayer Requests

Please join us in praying for the people impacted and involved in each of these focus areas.

Refugees

• Praise God for answering the prayers of World Relief and others, as the federal government announced that it will continue working with all of the organizations that work to resettle refugees in the U.S.
• Pray for those seeking entry into the US, with the recent drop in federally allowed refugees, and elsewhere – that they would be provided for and cared for by the church globally.

 Foster Care & Adoption

• Kids in extended foster care – if a child doesn’t have permanency at the age of 18 then they can apply to be in extended foster care, a program for 18-21 year-olds. Pray they would learn the skills they need for independence, and that they might not lose hope of having a family and a place to call home. 
• Kids aging out of foster care – this is one of the most vulnerable populations of kids. They leave foster care without support and are susceptible to a variety of different dangers from sex trafficking to drug and alcohol abuse to homelessness. Please pray that God would move in the hearts of those families that He wants to adopt the children aging out of foster care.

Sex Trafficking & REST

• By God’s grace, REST has seen their ministry grow significantly over the last few years, and with that has come to the need for new office space. Please pray with REST as they search for office space in Seattle for their administrative team so that they can continue to serve the survivors they work with as effectively as possible.
• As we enter 2019, let’s also be praying for God to transform hearts throughout our city and area. Let’s pray that God will bring many people out of brokenness and into faith and relationship with Him, and let’s pray that He works in and through REST for His glory and the good of many!

Homelessness & UGM

• In 2019 we want to double the number of mentors in our men’s recovery program, going from 20 to 40. Please pray that God would call the next cadre of mentors to the Mission.
• Safety and protection of our homeless neighbors during the wind, rain, and cold of the winter months.  

Juvenile Detention

• Please pray for God to comfort the children that are away and have been away from their families and loved ones during the holidays and who may be feeling particularly lonely and without hope. 
• Please pray that God would open the eyes and hearts of these children to see the real hope they have in Christ despite the circumstances in front of them and for the Lord to put people in their lives that can encourage them to place their trust in Jesus and grow to be more like Him.

Life & CareNet

• Continued favor in the Communities CareNet is serving – For open doors with the social services agencies and health facilities, that these agencies will see the benefits they offer to clients
• New Mobile schedule in 2019 – For direction and provision as they expand their schedule to include DCC and more hours in current locations 

Stay Connected

Join the focus area city groups in order to hear more regular updates, events, and opportunities to serve.

• Mercy Focus: Homelessness
• Mercy Focus: Juvenile Detention
• Mercy Focus: Orphan Care
• Mercy Focus: Refugees
• Mercy Focus: Sex Trafficking
• Mercy Focus: The LIFE project