The Evangel Dean Basic Training Resource Handbook

A PPENDIX • 145

Overview of The Urban Ministry Institute’s Structure and Strategy

Our Structure The Urban Ministry Institute is a ministry of World Impact, an interdenominational Christian missions organization dedicated to sharing God’s love in the inner cities of America. As a missions organization, World Impact seeks to evangelize the urban poor, disciple them in the Word of God, and plant churches cross-culturally in urban neighborhoods where no evangelical church exists. The Urban Ministry Institute, as a training arm of this unique ministry, exists to equip leadership for new, emerging, and existing urban churches, especially among the poor, to advance the Kingdom of God. While traditional theological education and seminaries have been the mainstays of most Christian leadership development, the urban poor are often overlooked or completely ignored in their programs. As successful as traditional seminaries have been in raising up qualified leaders for churches, traditional theological education is simply too cumbersome for the development of leaders among the urban poor. Its programming is too expensive, usually offered far from the context of urban need, tends to be inaccessible to the poor because of academic qualifications, and, in large part, remains culturally distant from their experience and work. Since 1995, The Urban Ministry Institute (TUMI) has served both the national ministry of World Impact as well as Wichita area Christian workers, pastors, and urban missionaries by providing inexpensive and excellent theological and ministry training geared to the specific needs and context of city dwellers. Since our inception, we have taught more than one hundred seminary-level courses, conferred our academic Certificates and Diplomas upon graduating classes of local students, and provided ongoing resources across the country to Christian leaders involved in urban outreach and ministry. We seek to make these resources as affordable and culturally sensitive as possible. Moreover, all of our courses, conferences, seminars, and workshops are facilitated by our experienced TUMI faculty, ordained Christian academics with many years in pastoral care and urban ministry. Our Strategy The staff and faculty of The Urban Ministry Institute wholeheartedly believe that God is raising up in significant numbers men and women among the urban poor who serve his Kingdom in extraordinary ways, all across the nation. We desire to provide the most excellent, affordable, and accessible training that will result in a new generation of equipped

The Urban Ministry Institute exists to equip leadership for new, emerging, and existing urban churches, especially among the poor, to advance the Kingdom of God.

Our focus is on providing missionaries, lay

pastors, ministers in training, and urban church leadership with the necessary

resources to do effective urban ministry.