MyTown Ministries
Pastor Jose Bourget, youth pastor of the Northshore Church, pastor of the Lakeview Church and coordinator of MyTown Ministries, a joint outreach ministry of Andrews University and the Illinois Conference, reports:
“MyTown Ministry had its first outreach weekend. Praise God it was a success!!! The host site was Lakeview SDA Church located near Wrigley Field. It is a highly secular, highly wealthy, and young area. The local church was eagerly awaiting the students and other MyTown participants.
“On a Sabbath morning in October, thirty Andrews University students led by Nestor Soriano and Mike Ocampo loaded an AU bus and headed for Chicago. Once the students arrived they joined our Sabbath Service and prepared to lead our Prayer Theme Worship (Pastor J. Bourget preached).
“Following a healthy and plentiful lunch from the Lakeview Church we gathered the MyTown Participants together for a season of prayer, training, and deployment. Our mission was to go door-to-door in pairs to pray with people and fill out a specially designed door hanger. The door hanger featured encouraging words, church contact info, and a tear off stamped, self-addressed postcard.
“Three hours and 900+ doors hangers later (I received about 15 new contacts) we reconvened at the church for praise, prayer, and testimony. Young adults from Chicago Fil-Am and North Shore joined us bringing our numbers up to about 50. Testimonies from that afternoon were shared with a confidence, joy, and boldness only true to those Touched by and who Touch Everyone for Jesus.
“Several students are already working with MyTown for a return trip! Following the vespers we took the students to Wrigleyville for dinner.. God blessed the territory, the church, and the students”
Encounter at a Vegetarian Restaurant
On Saturday night of September 23rd Luis and I ate dinner in a vegetarian restaurant, Blind Faith Café, in Evanston. We met a Hindu couple, Vivek and Asah, and their beautiful baby girl there. Blind Faith Café provides many vegan and vegetarian dishes as well as desserts. The restaurant is divided into two sections, a self service café and dining area. Many desserts are on display in the self service café that contain either dairy or non-dairy ingredients. It was near the dessert counter that we met Vivek. Pacing back and forth by the counter, he was trying to decide what to eat. Luis and I waited patiently. Vivek was having a difficult time, so Luis gave him a brief description of the various menu items.
After Vivek placed his order and sat down, Luis and I began a conversation with the couple. We talked about their little baby girl, who is only a few months old. And then the discussion turned to vegan/vegetarian restaurants in Chicagoland. We also talked about religion, giving them a brief overview of the Seventh-day Adventist Church and one of the visions that Ellen White had about healthy eating. We emphasized that although there are many benefits from a vegetarian diet, and it is recommended by the church, it is not required. Surprisingly, Vivek was already familiar with the Seventh-day Adventist Church and the Sabbath. His business partner is Seventh-day Adventist and does not attend business functions on Friday nights or on Saturdays. Since the couple seemed interested in knowing more about Seventh-day Adventists and our beliefs, we invited them to lunch the next week after church. 
We familiarized ourselves with the Hindu religion and their diet prior to the luncheon appointment. One of our references was the book "Studying Together" by Mark Finley, as well as research on the internet. I discovered that Hindu's do not eat meat, dairy, garlic, onions, and alcohol. We wanted to abe as sensitive to their religious beliefs as they had been to ours. We called them to confirm the menu for our meal together and learned they would be bringing their son we had not met.
The weather that Sabbath had everyone waiting longer than expected for the Hindu family to arrive. They finally arrived and were introduced to the group gathered there for potluck lunch. They were surprised with gifts we had for their children, giving us hugs of appreciation. We then gathered everyone together to pray and bless the food. The couple participated in the prayer. Everyone engaged in conversation about food, religion, and family.
Although our time was limited with the family, we realized the importance of sharing the Word and fellowship. Our relationship with the family began on common ground, we were sensitive to their beliefs. We need to “Touch Every 1 for Jesus” in any way possible, including people from other faiths.
-- Annette Torres
-- Luis Melendez