Sharing my ministry at the General Assembly

I am a senior at Kansas State University, pursuing a major in Business and minor in Music Performance, I am also a co-principal cellist with the Kansas State Symphony Orchestra. I am a member of North Heights Christian Church located in Wichita, Kansas and leadership fellow of the division of Higher Education and Leadership Ministries (HELM).

I have made a personal covenant through HELM to continue my music ministry. I have performed for many churches locally and would like to branch further into other genres like Jazz, Contemporary Christian and Gospel music. My primary goal through this covenant is to be able to minister to different groups of people in ways that are familiar to them. As an African-American, I have an innate passion for Gospel music and focus on reaching the African-American churches and community through Gospel music on a classical instrument.

Through the Division of Overseas Ministries, Afia Griffith the Associate Director of Resource Development wanted to partner with me at the General Assembly in Portland, Oregon. Afia credits the HELM website for providing her with my "inspiring story" of my music ministry. This was an all expense paid venture for me and a complete blessing to me and my ministry. This event took my music from a local to a national level. While in Portland, I performed for such events as VisionFest, School House Sessions at the Global Ministries booth and their banquet Monday night. The Global Ministries banquet coincided with that of Higher Education and Leadership Ministries so I was not able to attend, but was able to share my talent through a truly awesome experience by providing background music to a sold out banquet hall of over 300 people.

Through the network of the Christian church and family members throughout the Christian church, Rev. Timothy M. James of the National Convocation recruited me, his nephew, to play for the Unity Pray Breakfast. This is was an opportunity for my ministry to reach the African-American church, the Hispanic church, and North American Pacific/Asian church all at the same time. The focus of this breakfast was on prayer so I chose to play The Lord's Prayer and The Lord's Prayer was also used to close that morning's service, with everyone speaking the words of the prayer in their native tongue. I was amazing to literally hear praises to God in so many ways. I was blessed tremendously by this experience and it essentially would not have been possible without the exposure through the Higher Education and Leadership Ministries' website, this website! Thanks HELM for making this possible and for all of the hard work that you do to ensure leaders for the future.

Titus James, Jr., is in fourth year as a HELM Leadership Fellow and is a member of North Heights Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Wichita, Kansas.