North Heights Christian Church, Wichita is described by pastor Rev. Luis Mendez as a family oriented, small church with a big heart of love and welcome, that makes it a point for the congregation to greet and welcome visitors.
No doubt that is a true and accurate description, but the way they work in the community to meet, serve, equip and connect is a tribute to putting in the work.
North Heights is a diverse church with a primarily African American congregation, and they have trained members through two book studies to learn what it takes to be welcoming and inclusive.
Those studies have culminated in community action. NHCC members participate in an outreach ministry project each month. The objective for the ministry is to reach people beyond the walls of NHCC. In January members prepared “Bags of Blessings”, which included hygiene items to be distributed to those in need in Wichita.
This year plans are to enlarge their community garden which will provide a needed source of fresh produce to Wichita residents. And the church also encourages interaction with the local Union Rescue Mission, where on some Sundays, men from the Union Rescue Mission come to worship at NHCC.
To connect and equip within the region, NHCC’s 2022 Women’s Day Congregation event reached out to other DoC women across the region and resulted in networking with women from two different DoC churches in Kansas.
Do the training, do the work, and get the results are the formula as NHCC applies the knowledge from their studies, the Word, and discussions about how God is working in their lives and how the Word applies to their lives.
Editor’s Note: This is the third in a series of articles describing Kansas churches and their mission to Connect & Equip. If you’d like to suggest your congregation for an article, contact Jessica Marston or call 316-775-1236