News – California Churches
FRESNO – Ministry Leaders of the CSBC presented preliminary numbers for 2022, many of which exceeded several goals set at the onset of the year. Reports of ministry progress were given related to church matters, evangelism, missions, and church planting. Marc Tempesta, CSBC’s chief financial officer, said giving data through October signals that CSBC “will…
MADERA—Outreach events don’t always go as planned. But they’re still a success when they help a church learn to do better next time. That’s what happened when Thrive Church in Madera held a one-year anniversary celebration this fall. Attendance was low. Pastor Josh Dolarian felt like he was “pounding [his] head against the table” and…
FRESNO—Ross Shepherd, who began planting churches in Montana while in college, retired in September after having served California Southern Baptist Convention as a member of one of the most prolific church planting teams in the Southern Baptist Convention. Even though that chapter ended in mid-September, Shepherd anticipates the next journey God has in store for…
SAN DIEGO—Some pastors lament the lack of lasting fruit from their churches’ outreach events. Sean Beaudoin isn’t one of them. At New Vision Church in San Diego, where Beaudoin pastors, outreach festivals are more than fleeting opportunities for family fun. Thanks to effective follow-up, they’re a surefire way to reach people for Christ and assimilate…
At the end of September, I had the opportunity to attend the 21st meeting of the Chinese Baptist Fellowship of the United States and Canada (CBF) at Crosspoint Church of Silicon Valley. The conference occurs biennially meaning this fellowship group has been gathering regularly for well over 40 years! Now, I have been in Southern…
ROWLAND HEIGHTS—The Los Angeles-area community of Rowland Heights is “hard ground” to plough with the Gospel, pastor Mitchell Perez says. But thanks to a Halloween outreach, it’s gotten a little softer for The Home Church. The event left one single mother in tears of joy. When she and her child arrived at the church’s Fall…
FRESNO—The announcement that California Southern Baptist Convention has become Send Network California with the North American Mission Board was announced to the CSBC Executive Board at the fall meeting Sept. 16. Board members also approved a 2023 proposed budget of $6.3 million which includes a Cooperative Program objective of $6 million, unchanged from the 2022…
BAKERSFIELD—Volunteers from two Central Valley churches and one Southern California church hosted a multicultural block party for migrant families in Bakersfield on Aug. 27. Members of Harmony Missionary Baptist Church in Lamont, Mountain View Southern Baptist Church in Lake Isabella, and Mandarin Baptist Church of Los Angeles in Alhambra came together to host the festivities…
CLEARLAKE—After months of outreach to city employees by First Baptist Church in Clearlake, a city hall worker named Crystal brought her daughter to the church’s Backyard Bounce House Party. She told a church leader, “I came to this event because you have handed out several things at city hall from your church… I decided to…
WESTLAKE VILLAGE–California Southern Baptist leaders from across the state gathered July 17-20 for what most understood to be a traditional Count the Cost training. It proved to be much more. Count the Cost is a church assessment initiative introduced by former CSBC Executive Director, Dr. Bill Agee to help churches measure church health and battle…