What is The Urban Ministry Institute of Los Angeles?


Our Purpose
The Urban Ministry Institute is a training institution that exists to equip leaders for the urban church, especially among the poor, in order to advance the Kingdom of God.

Each part of this statement has profound importance to us:

To Equip Leaders
Although we live in a culture where leaders are often openly disrespected and the very idea of leadership is sometimes sees as oppressive and restrictive. We believe that leaders are of fundamental importance in all of human life. Nowhere is this more important than in the life of God’s church.

The Urban Ministry Institute of Los Angeles (TUMI-LA) exists to equip leaders who are serving and investing in others.These leaders may be formal or informal, pastors or lay leaders, men or women. They may be mothers or fathers, evangelists, missionaries, Sunday school teachers, worship leaders or those who visit the sick. We are interested in anyone whom God has gifted and called to lead in His church at any level of responsibility.


For the Urban Church
Believing strongly that effective ministry cannot take place from the body of Christ, TUMI-LA is committed to enriching the life and outreach of urban congregations and their servant-leaders. All of our programs and materials are designed to equip men and women effectively to serve in the context of local assembly. Applicants must be actively participating in a church body in order to be considered for acceptance into our programs.

Half of the people alive today live in cities, and that number is constantly growing. This calls for a special focus on urban churches, especially in those areas which have historically been neglected, or have large concentrations of people living in close proximity but have no understanding of what true community looks like.

The Urban Ministry Institute is a non-denominational, evangelical training center for people who minister in and through the urban church.

We teach Bible, theology, and skills for mission and ministry.

TUMI Los Angeles is a satellite campus of our main institute in Wichita, Kansas.

We focus on developing lay and pastoral leaders who can effectively disciple others, especially among the urban poor.


Especially Among the Poor
We believe that God has chosen those who are poor in the eyes of this world to be rich in faith and to inherit the Kingdom which He promised to those who love Him (James 2:5). Whether you are rich, poor, or somewhere in between, we believe that Jesus has given all believers a theological mandate to prioritize the poor in their life and ministry.

By the year 2025, one out of every three people on the planet will live in urban poverty. We believe that God is raising up leaders who will go to the unreached millions among the urban poor, both in America and around the world. More importantly, we believe that God is raising up dynamic leaders from among the urban poor who deserve access to quality theological education. If either of these descriptions applies to you, we are deeply interested in helping you prepare for leadership.


In Order to Advance the Kingdom of God
The church of Jesus Christ is vitally important to God’s will because it is the agent of the Kingdom of God, charged to function as salt and light in the midst of a decaying and corrupt world. The freedom, wholeness, and justice of the Kingdom of God is be embodied and proclaimed by the church. A church community is responsible to show visibly what the “Rule of God” looks like when it is embraced by people who acknowledge Christ’s lordship. TUMI-LA is dedicated to helping churches make God’s reign visible in the dimensions of Christian community life, and in its ministry to the needy in the city.

Our Ministry Objectives
In light of these commitments, The Urban Ministry Institute of Los Angeles embraces the following ministry objectives:

  • To equip urban Christian leaders who will evangelize and make disciples in urban America.

  • To provide excellent and affordable ministry education that is sensitive to urban culture.

  • To facilitate the multiplication of healthy, reproducing urban churches, especially among the urban poor.

  • To promote and apply a biblical understanding of freedom, wholeness, and justice for the city.

  • To provide a forum for discussion, research, and publication that compassionately addresses the aspirations and challenges of the city.

  • To stimulate dialogue and cooperation among churches and urban ministries who seek to serve the city.

Program Goal: Wisdom
We believe that the end goal of Christian leadership training is wisdom. “Everything is permissible for me but not everything is beneficial” (1 Cor. 6:12). Therefore, those who train Christian leaders must, like Paul, “proclaim [Christ] admonishing and teaching everyone with, all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ” (Col. 1:28).

Christian leadership training is intended to contribute to the formation of men and women who possess godly wisdom and Christ-like character. In helping to prepare these leaders, the goal of TUMI-LA is not just that they become “smarter” leaders. Our deepest prayer to God is that they might become wiser leaders, able to discern the leading of the Holy Spirit, to possess the mind of Christ, and to apply the teaching of the Scriptures in their own unique ministry context.