CrossTown Ministries

CrossTown is an under-resourced neighborhood near downtown Orlando, FL. The community was given this name by its residents, so you won’t find CrossTown on any maps or official documents. But you will see it tattooed on arms, etched on basketball courts, and written in people’s hearts. Built on the other side of Division Ave, the effects of segregation and racial prejudice have created multi-generational poverty. However, it is by God’s providence that this neighborhood, long plagued by poverty, drugs, crime, and hopelessness, would have the very source of hope in its name...the Cross.

We hear a lot of times “I’m a product of my environment.” It means our neighbors are more likely to fall prey and become a part of this negative environment that shaped them. This is a cycle that repeats itself over and over again.

We believe that what we do flows directly out of who we are, so we don’t have a mission statement, we have a BEING statement. This answers not only what we want for our community but what we want for ourselves.There is not an us and them…only us.

WE ARE MADE IN THE IMAGE OF GOD. BEAUTIFUL.

WE ARE DAMAGED BY THE EVILS OF THIS WORLD. BROKEN.

WE ARE FREED FROM CAPTIVITY. REDEEMED.

WE ARE BEING MADE ANEW. RESTORED.

WE ARE WHO GOD SAYS WE ARE. LOVED.

AS LOVED PEOPLE, WE ARE CULTIVATING A GOSPEL ENVIRONMENT, WHERE LOVED PEOPLE, LOVE PEOPLE.

We envision one place where our community can be developed holistically.

Isaiah 61 calls us Oaks of Righteousness. It says we go from those who are poor, broken hearted, and captive to hearing good news and being set free, to being firmly planted oaks. And those same oaks go on to rebuild and restore their own city. This is what we long for at CrossTown Ministries.

Oak trees need a healthy environment to grow in…good soil, water, oxygen, and sunlight.

The Gospel Environment at CrossTown Ministries seeks to do the same. We want to surround the oaks in our community with the elements they need to grow. We are building this environment out one initiative at a time. We currently have a private school, an after school program, mental health initiative, and a men’s discipleship program. In the future, we look to add to this environment with vocational training, spiritual community, and more.