"My Drug Dealer Led Me To The Lord"

That’s what a stagehand named Billy told us as we met for breakfast one morning. Over 2 decades after his unusual conversion he now helps recruit for a Bible study for others who work at the same show. Last week 2 from our church attended this “between shows” Bible study to see what it looks like to reach out to those whose lives (and schedules) revolve around the hospitality and entertainment industry that drive the Vegas economy. We’ve seen that it takes a certain boldness and sensitivity, such that few have attempted it and even fewer have been able to connect with the workers while doing it. Yet God is at work there. Others have gone before us in establishing this type of ministry, and we long to see what role we might play in seeing it continue. Those working behind the scenes at the many Vegas attractions on the Strip need to see that Christ’s church is not afraid to meet them where they’re at. They too are precious in His sight.

ATL -> STL -> PTL!

This month has been full of travels. Before coming home to Nebraska for Thanksgiving and meeting a seminary roommate at the Grand Canyon (pictured above), I was in Atlanta (the ATL) for a weekend of training. While there I was greatly encouraged to meet many who have been and will soon be supporting God’s work in Vegas in various ways. On the way back I stopped in St. Louis (the STL) to reconnect with old friends while sharing what God has been doing in Las Vegas. I also got to answer some questions from those considering a Vegas visit to see if God might be leading them to join us here. A few told me they were praying for the “A-Team” here [see post: “I (Heart) Atheists”]. The following week I was hanging out with this same group when I witnessed one of them, a professing Atheist, start recruiting her friends to come hear me preach at Christmas. What?! It was a wonderful reminder that God works through people’s prayers. All I can say is “Praise the Lord” (PTL)!

4:44 on 2-20

On Sunday, February 20th at 4:44 PM (tentative time), we plan on launching public worship for City-Wide Redeemer – Paradise. Paradise is a community of nearly a quarter-million people sandwiched between the cities of Las Vegas and Henderson and home to the Las Vegas Strip, McCarran Airport, and the UNLV campus (with its 28,000 students). Of the tens of millions of people that visit Las Vegas each year, most all of them arrive, stay and play in Paradise. If you’ve heard of it, it’s probably in Paradise. What we’ve noticed, though, is that most Christian churches tend to locate outside this region, or maybe on the perimeter. We want to plant a church right in the heart of it.


We are hoping to have monthly “preview” worship services leading up to the February launch. Many we know would come to something like this that are not already a part of ours or any other church. In the meantime this venture will take lots of prayer, preparation, gathering, prayer, networking, fundraising, finding the right place for worship, oh and prayer too. It’s been encouraging to see those who were once uncertain about their relationship with our church as a whole are now eager to do whatever is needed to help launch this new site. This, again, is in answer to your prayers. Thank you again for all your support, and Happy Thanksgiving.

Ordination

After 4 years of seminary and 6+ months that featured 5 exams (each coming in 3 different forms), 3 submitted papers, 2 trips to L.A. and a sermon to boot, I finished the ordination process this past weekend here in Las Vegas. On September 25th we hosted a college of pastors from the Las Vegas and Las Angeles areas (the Pacific presbytery). They are the ones who oversaw my ordination process. Above you can see Rick Schaeffer (another pastor in our presbytery) reading from the Scriptures my charge as a pastor. What followed was my being surrounded by a group of pastors from L.A. and Las Vegas as they laid hands on me and prayed over me as I was ordained as a minister of the gospel, serving with City-Wide Redeemer. At the end I was delighted to have this group of pastors committed to me (and I to them) as a "band of brothers," with one heart to minister to the people God has placed in our midst. A few hours later I got to celebrate the wedding of a couple from our church at a beautiful estate on the outskirts of town. No I wasn't DJing or even officiating (though I can do that now) - just a guest. It was a relaxing end to a big day and I'm glad I was able to share it with my new friends.

Gathering

The theme for our Missional Community this fall is "Gathering." Part of that is gathering people. That's hard to do, though, if you don't meet them first. Recently I've had some very encouraging conversations with people I've met through Meetup groups. These are groups that gather people from around Las Vegas who have common interests or are in a similar life stage (the picture above is from a mini-golf outing with one of these groups). Most of these people are new to Vegas, looking for new friends, and hoping to find a community where they feel at home - a few have even voiced interest in what I'm doing as a church planter. I've also found that I meet someone new every time I go play disc golf at a local park, go watch a Husker game with the Alumni association, or go out to Karaoke "Sweet Caroline" with folks I know from my Improv class. I've been encouraging others in our MC to consider their everyday experiences as chances to meet and connect with people that might one day be a part of the church we're wanting to plant in this part of town.

"Gathering" also means gathering food. We're pursing the possibility of adopting a local Title I (economically disadvantaged) elementary school. One school in particular has over 130 students who qualify for food assistance through a local charity. 30 of them are refugees. A number of them are homeless. But, since the donations are shared among over 200 schools in the district, there is only enough food for less than half of these children to receive their weekly "backpacks" of food that allow them to eat over the weekends. One woman in our MC is a teacher who regularly sees the effect this has on her students. While further donations would be spread out among all 200+ schools, we believe that gap can be made up by local communities "adopting" their neighborhood schools to fill that gap. We're attempting to start the ball rolling here in the Paradise community in the next few weeks.

"We Are Family"

A month ago my mother (pictured on right) and aunt came to visit from Nebraska. It was a great chance for us to catch up and for me to play "tourist" in my own town. After a week of sight-seeing and showing them what my life in Vegas is like my mom took my aunt and I to the top of the Stratosphere (tallest observation tower in the U.S.) for an early surprise birthday and ordination party. As we observed the city below from the 106th floor revolving restaurant I was touched by her thoughtfulness, presenting me with cards and notes she'd collected from relatives in 3 different countries, along with my late father's "Las Vegas" coffee mug (which I hadn't seen for years). Wow! In the end, it helped me better appreciate these 2 wonderful ladies and my new home town even more. Who wants to visit next?!

Growing In Grace

I've been encouraged lately to see how God has been working in our Sunday night Paradise Missional Community. Recently we took time to share with each other what God has been doing in us, around us, or in response to prayer. After some stories of how God had responded to prayer in ways beyond what was anticipated, one couple shared, "Apart from God, we wouldn't be married right now." Another person shared how God was convicting him of his own pride and "haughty" attitude. The sheer honesty was eye-popping, but also a sign that God is at work in their lives, and that they were eager to let His gospel shape them into who He wants them to be.