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The book of
Acts, is a record of the
1st century church. Documented therein, is persecution of the early
Christians. The
Apostles were being constantly threatened, not to speak in the name of Jesus anymore.
They responded with:
"We ought to obey God rather than men." This infuriated those opposing
Jesus. As a result, they desired to put to death the
Apostles. A Pharisee named
Gamaliel, was a respected teacher of the law. He stood up and said this in
Acts 5:38-39:
"And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it-lest you even be found to fight against God." Prior to
launching, I interviewed a few
Church Planters here in
Los Angeles. One shared with me, that
9 out of 10 church plants fail here in
LA. In just
two and a half years, of him being on the
Westside,
five had failed already.
Studies have shown through the years, that
3,500 churches die and close each year in
America. However, according to
researchers Ed Stetzer and
Warren Bird, that is changing. Recent studies show, that approximately
4,000 churches are birthed in the
U.S. (500 more than are closed) every year. In light of this passage of
Scripture, and these
numbers, time will only tell where we fit in the grand scheme of things...
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| Church Facebook Cover Photo |
December 2013, a month of making final preparations for the
launch of the church. Before opening a
bank account, they required a few items.
Jeff Shelp drew up the
bylaws for the church, we read over them, and then signed them.
Jeff obtained
a
Tax ID Number, and then we were finally able to go to the bank! After opening an account in the
church's name, getting debit cards, and a checkbook...
Jeff set up a bookkeeping system. Through the month, my
brother-in-law Brandon and I, worked on the
church logo. Easy enough right? Wrong! There are so many details! Everything from design, colors, font, size of letters, placement, mixing and matching, etc. So, after countless hours, text messages, e-mails, rough drafts, phone calls, visits, it was finally done! To be honest, we wanted it to be
simple. Something that could stand the test of time, in the face of
trends/fads. Afterwards, church business cards needed to be designed, ordered, as well as creating a church e-mail address. It was all coming together. Finally, the last thing on the list was dealing with
The Electric Lodge. I read, signed, turned in the contract, got the key, and received final instructions for opening day!
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| Inside Twin Towers |
On
Saturday December 21, 2013, I attended the
graduation for
Malachi Dads. Once again, I was blessed to hear every inmate's story of God's grace in their lives. Last post, I mentioned starting to do ministry at
Twin Towers. Due to launching the church, and taking on more
"tent-making" work on
Saturdays...my time at
Men's Central Jail with
Malachi Dads was coming to a close for now. As a result, I was really looking forward to
volunteering at
Twin Towers, in the evening during the week. After filling out the application, turning it in, tons of phone calls, texts, e-mails...the
door closed. On
February 7th, 2014, my appointment with the
senior chaplain was a no show. However, the chaplain who I originally met up with, was so helpful through the process. He tried everything to get me in. Then on
March 18th and
26th,
2014...I received word that this same
senior chaplain, was no longer accepting new volunteers. This was primarily due, to leadership changes within the department. Eventually, I pray I will be able to come back to do ministry there.
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| Eric Flores Fitness Facebook Profile Pic |
On
November 15, 2013, I took and passed my
exam, to become a
NASM (National Academy of Sports Medicine) certified
MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) Conditioning Specialist! This marked my
4th certification. It has now been
9 months, since I started my
business Eric Flores Fitness. I am so fortunate, to be doing something I love and am passionate about, while
attempting to plant this church. My
clients are all
committed, and a real joy and pleasure to work with. The
business has continued to grow, with new clients and the purchasing of new equipment. My goal is to not only be a
great pastor, but a
great trainer.
On
Sunday January 5, 2014, after
2 years and 3 months of living here in
Los Angeles...
Regeneration Church finally
launched! Our
first Sunday Morning service, was held at the
Dance Studio in the
Electric Lodge. In
5 short months,
Jeff and I have been so
joyful, over the work God is doing. From the
very beginning, we have had
3 basic types of people, come through our doors. The
1st type of person, has been the
unbeliever. Not really antagonistic toward the
gospel, but curious and intrigued by it. The
2nd type, would be the
new believer. Men and women, who are still new in their faith and walk with Jesus. The
3rd type, would be the
believer who
hasn't been a part of the church in a while...somewhat lost their way. However, they have recently found their way back to our front step. Our
1st Sermon Series was
Vision,
2ndly was
The Bible: The Word Of God, Or The Word Of Man?,
3rdly was
Codes, Visions, Missions, Statements...??. Currently, we our in our
4th sermon series entitled:
The Pursuit Of Joy: A Study Through The Book Of Philippians.
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| Current Sermon Series |
On
Monday January 6th, I went on the
radio program Light into the Night, on
KGBC for the
3rd time. The host and co-host, wanted to hear about the
launch the day before, as well as our
vision/mission for the
church. Just the next day, on
Tuesday January 7th, I received bad news from the
Electric Lodge. They made a mistake, and were not supposed to rent to us. It came down to noise control and parking in the neighborhood, at early hours on a Sunday morning.
Jeff and I were on the hunt again! We
contacted and
visited office spaces, hotels, theaters, schools, libraries, senior centers, community centers,
recreation centers, all to no avail!
Praise God, the lodge was very sorry and wanting to still accommodate us!
Two weeks later, on
Sunday January 19th, we met in the
amphitheater, located at the lodge. This then, would give us a month to buy time. Part of the problem was...the times that were for rent in both the
dance studio and
amphitheater, already had classes, plays, and rehearsals booked in them. Then
boom! The
basement, was open for as long as we wanted it! We started meeting there by the end of
February, and have been there ever since.
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| St. Joseph Center Slogan and Logo |
Lord willing,
Summer 2014 includes
baptisms, outreaches, building a church website, and much more! As the doors have closed
for now at the
jail, I have been thinking and praying about other avenues, to get involved with the
community of
Venice.
St. Joseph Center, provides many programs to meet the needs of the
community. One, is called
Bread and Roses Cafe. A place that provides
4 star food for the homeless, operating like a restaurant, making reservations, fresh flowers on the table, ordering off a menu, being served and waited on, etc. They serve
150 people everyday
Monday-Friday. I am currently going through the application process. I hope to get involved by the end of
Summer.
In
conclusion, there are so many other
"little things," that have been done in regards to church work.
Jeff and I have been blessed by our
volunteers, families, and church members, serving in the name of
Jesus.
Everyone, just has a heart to
love, serve, and help one another.
I still don't know, what will become of
Regeneration Church as our
1st year unfolds.
What I do know, is
Jeff and I are
enjoying the
journey, and
learning a lot!
Source unknown:
"We are so often caught up in our destination that we forget to appreciate the journey, especially the goodness of the people we meet on the way. Appreciation is a wonderful feeling, don't overlook it."
By His Grace,
Eric
