Information
Destino NYC is a campus ministry in New York City for Latinos and Hispanics. Our purpose is to raise up a generation of New York City Latino and Hispanic leaders to change the world for Christ.
Our community distinctives:
We are Christian. We believe that God has provided a way for everyone to experience Him in a regular, on-going, and personal way. We believe God has done this through His Son Jesus Christ. We recognize that this simple truth has a deep effect when it is truly believed. We also recognize that every person is in a unique place on their own spiritual journey.
We are culturally Hispanic and Latino. While our community includes many different ethnic backgrounds, our hope is that those with Dominican, Puerto Rican, Colombian, and Mexican roots will feel most comfortable with us.
We are student led, staff and volunteer guided. Students are our primary vehicle for moving our community forward, but we are guided by wise counsel.
We are Destino. Destino is the national network of campus ministries to which we belong. This network connects us to global resources as well as the local church. Learn more about Destino by visiting their website, http://destinomovement.com
An Extended Explanation of DestinoNYC
Who we are…
Destino: noun, (Spanish) 1. destiny, fate, fortune, force
Destino is an arm of the campus ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ. chartered with helping to reach Latino and Hispanic American college students, building them up in their faith, and launching them into a lifetime of living for Jesus Christ. Destino NYC is a unique ministry of this vital movement.
Our purpose is to raise up a generation of New York City Latino and Hispanic college students to change the world for Christ.
- Why this generation? It is a pivotal time in both the church’s history and Latino history. Although Latinos are the fastest growing people group in the United States, within college ministries, they are one of the least reached.
- Why New York City? New York City is the capital of the world and as God revives this city, a ripple effect will touch the whole world. Also the Latino population in New York City is the most diverse Latino population in the world: Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Ecuadorian, Colombian, and Mexican and more.
- Why college students? Because college students are the future world leaders. Only 1% of the world’s population has a college degree. Out of this one percent come the global leaders of nearly every aspect of life, art, commerce and education.
- Why Latinos and Hispanics? Only 10% of the Latino population in the U.S. graduates with a four year degree. They are leaders. Their relational culture encourages a viral gospel: when you reach one, you have the potential to reach an entire family and community. Moreover, because of their physical and cultural characteristics, they resemble and have the potential to reach Muslim nations with the gospel of Christ in ways unparalleled by missionaries of other ethnicities.
Our mission is to start culturally Latino campus ministries and to recruit Christ-centered volunteers committed to Destino NYC. While the city and campuses include many different ethnic backgrounds, our hope is that those with Latino and Hispanic roots will feel most comfortable with us.
Our vision is to see Latinos engage in transformational, Gospel communities that revive the heart, the culture, the city, and the world for Christ. We believe that as the Holy Spirit spreads through the New York City Latino communities, the potential for global life-change can be realized.
We value: 1) An effective, adaptable, Gospel-centered ministry 2) a ministry “locally owned” by students, volunteers, and churches within the community, believing that these values will help drive us to reach our God-given vision.
Prayer
Before we complete any other tasks, we must bathe this ministry in prayer, laying this as the foundation for Destino. We desire to see 1,000 prayer partners nationwide who commit to lift up this ministry in prayer. Through our interactive website (destinonyc.org), prayer partners can keep updated on the latest requests, interact with other prayer partners, and keep informed on the Destino events as they happen. This powerful prayer team will be essential to the success and longevity of Destino NYC. God is asking us to do what hasn’t been done before and we are asking prayer partners to stand in this gap with us.
Learning
As outsiders, we have a lot to learn about this beautiful, diverse culture, and thus we commit to being submissive learners of the Latino community. We also hope to empower and encourage students to learn and embrace their own culture. As we do, we will utilize some tools at our disposal, including books Being Latino in Christ by Orlando Crespo and the national Destino resource Finding Key Leaders. In tandem, we seek to learn the skills of effective local church partnership. Partnering with church leadership from the very beginning will be a vital piece to the longevity of Destino NYC.
The Blueprint
In order to see success regarding this mission and vision, we are working to leave a lasting, adaptable structure for this ministry, one which future leaders can use to effectively grow DestinoNYC. Some key points of this structure include creating a program for training and equipping volunteers, developing a local church network, and continually developing the funds necessary to keep this ministry vibrant.
- Volunteers: Up to this point, volunteers have been an untapped resource for the campus ministry. Volunteers may include: prayer partners, pastors, business owners, professors, college alumni, Campus Crusade for Christ alumni from other movements, current students, etc. By setting up a structure for training and equipping these volunteers, we will empower them to lead this ministry in a way that we, as cultural outsiders, never could. An example of this training is The Grove. We developed The Grove as a 2 day training curriculum which will equip and empower students, volunteers, and churches to not only start campus ministries, but to lead those movements long term.
- Church Network: We hope to connect not only Latino students involved in Destino NYC to churches but also to bring churches onto the college campus in a tangible way. As a campus ministry, our desire is to build up the local church, not replace it. Through church partnerships, we hope to connect students to Spirit-filled, Christ-following, Bible-believing churches throughout New York City. Showing students the necessity of engaging in the local church will help them carry that involvement into the rest of their lives; this is especially important in New York where it is very common for Latinos raised in the city to remain in the city into adulthood. It allows the local church to continue to engage their young people during their tumultuous college years. This will help facilitate ministry longevity as people walk with Jesus for a lifetime.
- Fund development: We hope to create a plan for continued, long-term, and faithful financial support for Destino NYC. This funding will provide scholarships for students to attend Destino conferences, retreats, and summer missions trips. It will also support other resources such as Bibles, Bible study materials, evangelism tools, meeting room rentals, guest speakers, outreach projects and any other special needs that arise.
Transformational Communities
A transformational community is a place where the gospel intersects with peoples’ hearts in a life changing way. It’s a place where:
- lost students are being transformed by the gospel of Christ (Colossians 1:13-14)
- where Christians are being transformed in 'grace and truth relationships' (Ephesians 4)
- where the campus and world are being transformed by laborers who are sent (Matt. 9:37-39)
Not only do we desire this type of grace and truth community for our team, wherein we pray for one another, engage in each other’s lives, and fellowship together, but also we hope to foster this type of community on campuses as well. Whether it be through our church partnership network, The Grove, men’s and women’s small groups. These things will inevitably bring life change to our team and to the college students we minister to, allowing those in our spheres of influence to have the opportunity to see the effects of living by the power of the Holy Spirit.
In conclusion, we believe that God will revive the Latino culture in New York City and ultimately the world through the Holy Spirit. We are trusting God to move in amazing ways, ways never before seen. But we cannot do it alone. Will you join us?
Join Us
So you want to get involved, do you?
Here's how you can:
- Create an account. You will gain immediate access to Destino NYC prayer requests, planning processes, and future direction. You'll meet other members of our community that can plug you in. You can contact others to give input on what you'd like to see happen in our community. You can post a story about a life changed by Destino, either about you or someone you know. You can find great resources on multiple avenues of involvement. You can download media resources... all this and more!
- Come to a meeting. They are relaxed and fun. Visitors come regularly - it's likely you will meet someone who is there for the first time, checking things out, just like you. It's a great way to meet students, other volunteers, or even our staff. Our meetings are also the connection point for everything else that we do, including conferences, retreats, service projects, leadership opportunities, and more. Coming once can connect you to a lot. Stay till the end, when the party really gets started!
- Talk to someone connected to Destino NYC. The best way to do that is to contact us using the form on this site. Expect a prompt reply!
