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| Los Angeles |
In referring to
Los Angeles,
Anthony Kiedis said this:
"Land of a thousand faces." Gabrielle Reece was asked to describe
Los Angeles in 5 words. This was her reply:
"Possibility. Space. Outdoors. Eclectic. Driving." American Poet Dorothy Parker had this to say:
"Los Angeles is 72 suburbs in search of a city." Here are a few other statements about
Los Angeles, by sources unknown:
"Los Angeles is like New York laying down." "Los Angeles is like taking New York up on its side, and letting everything find its way." "Los Angeles: Where the world creates and innovates." A Pastor from
Ethiopia said this to another Pastor in
LA:
"Your city is the seed of the children of the world. Birthing the world's understandings and values through your seed." October 1, 2015, marked
4 years of living here in
Los Angeles...
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| Business Logos |
September 16, 2015, marked the
2 Year Anniversary of my
business...
Eric Flores Fitness. I am truly forutnate to have such great clients! They are generous, accommodating to my schedule, and have all become friends of mine. It has been said,
"If your business makes it the first 5 years, than it will last in the long run." It is exciting and scary all at the same time, in this phase of "building." Part of the reason, I am so driven in my
"secular employment," is to show the people of
Venice, it was never about the money in regards to this
church plant. Paul the Apostle, took
4 missionary journeys in the span of his illustrious ministry career, planting many churches. There were seasons/chapters, where he was fully funded, and other times where he fell back on his trade of
tent-making. It was a traditional principle of Jewish Rabbis that even a student of the law should be able to maintain himself by secular employment; a father was expected to make sure that his son had a trade or profession by which to support himself. In fact, one of the requirements to be able to join the Sanhedrin (Jewish City Council), was to have a trade. Of course, these men would pick a trade they enjoyed. I am so thankful to God that as I pursue my
calling, I have employment I enjoy! I get to experience the best of both worlds.
Venice reminds me a lot of ancient
Corinth, Greece. One similarity, would be that both people groups are skeptical of authority. My ministry partner
Jeff Shelp and I, made a pact early on. It was this...that if the church grew to a place where it
needed or
wanted our full-time attention, energy, and time, then and only then we would quit
"our day jobs." These
Bible Verses capture the heart of
Jeff and I:
1 Thessalonians 2:9: "For you remember, brethern, our labor and toil; for laboring night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, we preached to you the gospel of God." Acts 20:33-35:
"I have coveted no one's silver or gold or apparel. Yes, you yourselves know that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me. I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'" 1 Corinthians 9:18: "What is my reward then? That when I preach the gospel, I may present the gospel of Christ without charge, that I may not abuse my authority in the gospel." I want to also publicly thank one of my best friends
Eddie Sahakian. Not only did he build a business website free of charge for me, but it is pretty legit as well! He spent countless hours all last summer to the end of
2015, preparing for
New Year's Day 2016. Go check it out at ericfloresfitness.net
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| Homeless in Venice |
June 16, 2015, I attended the
LAPD Pacific Division Clergy Council Meeting. These
monthly meetings enable the Clergy,
LAPD, and other Humanitarian Organizations to come together and serve the
Westside, specifically
Venice. In order to become a member...I had to fill out a ton of paperwork, attend 3 meetings consecutively, and submit my fingerprints. One of there main goals, is to reach out to the homeless. Once a month, the officers team up with the Clergy Council to hand out food, hygiene kits, and other items to the homeless in
Venice. Consider these facts, most are
under 30 and 44% are from out of state. This council is proving, that there are good cops out there who care. They aren't the enemy, as many of the homeless think. Serving in this capacity, allows me to have a voice for the homeless and the
LAPD. We are currently looking at ways to serve the officers as well. Our photos
(Clergy Members) are in the hallway of the
Police Station, visible for the officers to see every morning after roll call.
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| 2nd Church Baptism |
Sunday July 26, 2015, marked our
2nd Annual Beach Baptism! We also had our very first
Baby Dedication! The individuals who were
baptized were:
Shelby, Mukari, Kili, and Sherinne. The baby
dedicated was
James, who's mother is
Shelby! It was beautiful to not only witness a brother and sister get
baptized together, but for a mother to get
baptized the same day her son is
dedicated to the
Lord.
Mukari was
baptized as a teenager, but he didn't really understand what he was doing at the time. He told me he now understood, and this time around it would mean so much more.
Sherinne wasn't quite sure if she would go through with it that day. However, as the church worshiped, and the
Gospel was preached clearly...she took a step of faith. While in the ocean,
Jeff looked in her in the eye and asked if she believed. She looked back with a smile, and responded
"Yes!" It was truly a special moment for both
Jeff and I. It was like a page out of the book of
Acts!
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| Regeneration Church Celebrating 2 Years! (Pastor Ruben Vasquez in the Mix) |
January 3rd, 2016,
Regeneration Church had its
Second birthday! It is going by so fast. Typically in
Church Planting, the first
2 years are a time of laying the foundation. In certain parts of the
United States, and the
globe, attending
weekly Sunday Church Services is part of the culture. I was speaking with a friend not too long ago, who had spent over a year in
Charleston, South Carolina. He told me at his job, his co-workers had
2 things in common.
One, they were all
non-believers.
Two, they all had a
church they regularly attended every
Sunday Morning! He noted, that it was just so
ingrained in the culture of the
South...
AKA the
Bible Belt. Well, here in the
Westside of Los Angeles, specifically in
Venice, it isn't. However, that is mainly why I came here. To plant a
Gospel preaching, Bible believing, Bible teaching, Jesus loving, welcoming Church. The work is
slow, but steady. In the
Fall & Spring, we have
Men's Studies Thursday nights. In the
Winter & Summer, we have
Prayer Meetings. Every
Sunday and Thursday, people faithfully come together no matter what. It is
Biblical, historical, and practical.
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| Pastor Dave Shirley (Board Member) |
Romans 16 style shout outs again!! Thank you to these
Worship Leaders who helped us in
2015:
Ray Reyes, Art Reyes, Daniel Bergquist, Josh Wagner, Edith Pinero, Liza Pinero, Jasmine Alnutt, Alina Krishcko, Joanna Sagrero, Danielle Hogan, Ashley Hollander, Jackie Gutierrez, Melissa Barris, and Kyle Delos Santos. I also want to give a big thank you to the
Guest Speakers who brought the
Word in
2015:
Pastor Dave Shirley, Pastor Ruben Vasquez, Mike Turner, Pastor Will Bredberg, Pastor Larry Powers, and Pastor Daniel Flores.
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| Pastor Sammy Martinez (Secretary) |
January 18, 2015, we had our
1st Board Meeting.
Jeff and I wanted to wait a full year, before assembling a
Church Board.
John Dalberg-Acton rightly said:
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." A great quote, when considering
Church Government. I serve as the
Chairman,
Jeff the
Treasurer,
Pastor Sammy Martinez (Calvary Chapel Moreno Valley) the
Secretary,
Pastor Ruben Vasquez (Calvary Chapel Landers) a
board member, and
Pastor Dave Shirley (Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa) a
board member. Honestly, I truly am humbled and blessed by all these men. They really do love Jesus, His Church, and the work in
Venice. I am the youngest on the board. I did this intentionally. I wanted different ages, experiences, personalities, and good friends. They are not
"yes" men, and challenge
Jeff and I in various ways. They are invested in this
venture of faith through the giving of their time, energy, prayers, moral support, and finances. They also understand, that
Venice is not like their churches in the suburbs, therefore giving
Jeff and I great freedom to minister accordingly.
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| Venice Beach Boardwalk |
In conclusion, if you just focus on
Sunday Morning Church attendance, you are tempted to think God isn't doing much. Every
Sunday,
Jeff and I truly don't know who will show up. It feels like we are launching a new
Church Plant every week!
However, I enjoy talking to people in our
church, who tell me they are constantly sharing the
Gospel with neighbors, classmates, friends, and co-workers. They are out in the
world meeting people, forming relationships, and building friendships. They even invite them to services and
church functions/events. Some come, most do not. I personally, have even delighted to talk about God, and the things of God with my clients. Some will ask about the
church and its progress, ask questions about spiritual things, respect what I am doing, but will never come. That's okay, because seeds are being planted and watered. Take for example last
Summer in 2015,
Jeff's son
Tucie and I hit the
Boardwalk, almost every
Friday morning. We passed out food, hygiene kits, clothes, prayed with people, prayed for people, and shared the
Gospel (Good News) of Jesus Christ with them. We formed relationships with
homeless people, musicians, artists, vendors, skaters, and street performers. We listened to their stories, saw their tears, and the reason they were in
Venice Beach. Of course we invited them to
Church, not one of them came. You know what, they may never come. That's alright, because we don't want people to get the impression that strings are attached, when acts of kindness are done in the name of
Jesus. However, the invitation
will always be extended, and we will keep on meeting twice a week! The
Real Miracle is...
2 years later people are still showing up every
Sunday Morning and
Thursday Night!
By His Grace,
Eric
