Our Neighborhood
At Grace Chapel, we believe that God has placed us strategically in the Near South and Everett neighborhoods to be a Kingdom presence. He has graciously provided ways for our lives to become engaged in the lives of our neighbors here. How can we use our gifts to impact our neighbors? How might we be changed by our friendship with them? We believe that a good way to start is through prayer, place and partnerships.
Questions?
Prayer
“Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16
This building and our work is first and foremost a provision and a work of God. All that we do is a result of his outpouring of mercy to us. As his people in this physical neighborhood, we ask for his guidance over all we do.
See below some practical ways we pursue prayer, but also look through the rest of the Neighbor Love section to see various initiatives that would benefit from your prayers.
Prayer boxes
We currently have one prayer box on the corner of 16th & A. Our hope is to place prayer boxes around the neighborhood for residents to share their prayer requests with us. We regularly empty the prayer boxes and pray over the needs of our neighbors. We are looking for volunteers to help pray for those prayer requests.
Prayer Walks
We schedule prayer walks in the neighborhood and invite anyone to join us. We seek to pray specifically for the needs that we see and desire our own hearts to be softened as we pray along neighborhood streets.
Place
“For we are God’s coworkers. You are God’s field, God’s building… [The] Foundation is Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 2:9, 11b
The Grace Chapel building is the Lord’s gift to us and to the neighborhood, and we steward it as such. The categories below are the ways we endeavor to give our building back to the Lord and to this neighborhood.
Basement
We want our basement to become a place where our neighbors can build relationships with us and one another. The dream is to develop a kind of community center where groups from our neighborhood can gather. Whether that be pick-up basketball games in the gym, art classes, or an after school tutoring program, we want Grace to be known as a safe place to be in community throughout the week.
Drop In Hours
Monday to Thursday, 1:00-3:00 pm, we open our doors to the community. We offer simple food or drink if needed, provide access to our help closet, pray with whomever is willing, or refer on to neighborhood resources.
Help Closet
The Help Closet is available during Drop In Hours. It contains basic necessities like hygiene items and simple food.
Partnership
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Juniper Refuge
Juniper Refuge exists to show the love of Jesus to refugees by fostering meaningful relationships and providing resources and support through the local Church and trusted community partnerships. Grace Chapel hosts an English class through Juniper Refuge weekly in our building. We can support the work of Juniper Refuge in many ways. One way is to join a team of 5-6 people to mentor refugees in a year long commitment.
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Atlas Lincoln
Atlas bridges the gap between those who are hurting and the Church, and serves as a space for people to come for healing in their time of need. Connect here if you would like to know more about becoming a mentor through Atlas.
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Randy and Cathy Harris
Randy and Cathy Harris serve with missions organization Pioneers and are focused on the refugee and immigrant populations in Lincoln. With extensive experience ministering overseas in Thailand and North Macedonia, the Harris’ are eager to bring churches along in the hospitality ministry of turning strangers into family.
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The HUB
The mission of The HUB is to provide unconditional support and programming for young people as they become productive, independent, and active members of the community. We have provided space in our building for HUB cooking classes and sent a team to serve during a Grace Chapel work day.
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CenterPointe
CenterPointe specializes in co-occurring mental health and addiction treatment for low income and homeless people. They offer a continuum of care for recovery including crisis response, treatment, rehabilitation, housing, and peer support. Grace Chapel provides a monthly enrichment class at CenterPointe that alternates between music therapy and financial skills.
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The Gathering Place
The Gathering Place is a soup kitchen where people from all walks of life can be in fellowship with one another. Evening meals are served every day of the week from 5:00pm-6:00pm. Grace Chapel has a team of volunteers that serves on the first Saturday of the month and as needed.
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Families Together
Families Together is a professionally- supported, church-powered movement that supports parents in crisis by providing care for their children. Connect here if you are interested in learning more about becoming a short term host home for children in crisis.
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Transformations Thrift Store
Transformations is a volunteer-operated, nonprofit thrift store providing financial support to Atlas:Lincoln (see above). Transformations offers clean, gently-used items at low prices and provide opportunities to work and grow in a Christ-centered environment. Volunteers from Grace Chapel regularly support Transformations by sorting clothing and meeting staff needs.
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Neighborhood Schools
Grace Chapel hosts a soccer club at Everett Elementary and seeks to support our neighborhood schools in many ways. If you would like to know more about how to encourage teachers and staff at Everett, how to join the soccer club in various capacities or how to partner with our local schools, contact Crystal at crystal@gracepca.com
Current Needs
These are current needs in our neighborhood that need to be met. If you would like to get involved in any of these opportunities, contact Crystal at crystal@gracepca.com.
Serving at the Gathering Place
Interested in serving dinner at the Gathering Place 6 times/year? This neighborhood soup kitchen has been running for 40 years and doing a fantastic job.
TeamMates at Everett
Everett Elementary School is looking for volunteers to become TeamMates. This would mean one hour/week spent at school with a kid who wants to connect with a caring adult. The activity is up to you! basketball, tutoring, puzzles, talking, whatever!
Prayer Team
Would you like to be added to the neighborhood prayer team? Help us host prayer walks and pray specifically for our neighborhood.
Juniper Refuge
Juniper Refuge needs mentorship teams for refugees. Consider joining a small group of mentors that would share the load with you. Ideally 5-6 people commit to giving 1.5 hours every week.