News – Initiatives

VICTORVILLE—Brant Jones serves in vocational ministry in Alabama. But he might not be there if a church in Southern California hadn’t used Vacation Bible School (VBS) to help launch him into Christian service. Jones was a teenager at The Gate Church in Victorville, 80 miles northeast of Los Angeles when leaders tapped him to serve…

SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA – CSBC Board members gathered for their annual May meeting at Journey Christian Fellowship Church in San Luis Obispo, May 11-12, where 3 significant votes occurred. Two new staff members were elected to replace two outgoing convention team members, and the membership subcommittee, chaired by Dale Garland, pastor of Hope in…

Fresno—A change of pace and programming occurred during CSBC’s April staff week gathering. The meeting began with worship, led by CFO and Business Services Team Leader Marc Tempesta. Ralph Neighbour III, Church Matters Initiative Team Leader, who had announced his plans for retirement a few months prior, gave an unconventional word for his final time…

FRESNO – March 28-29 marked the monthly CSBC Staff Week for leaders and staff members. The meeting began much like a homecoming for former CSBC staffer Pastor Greg Sumii. Sumii, who was first introduced to the CSBC ministry 35 years prior, preached at Chapel for the CSBC ministry teams. During his message, he recollected his…

Explore the Rim events began over two years ago when the global pandemic forced borders throughout the world to close and prevented our stateside partners from partnering with us here in the Asia Pacific Rim as we have traditionally partnered in the past via short-term mission trips. Although borders were closed, our partners still had…

ALAMEDA – CSBC’s Ignition (NorCal) Student Conference was a resounding success, with rave reviews coming in from 5 students and one leader. The conference, hosted by Gracepoint Church in Alameda, was organized by RJ McCauley, in partnership with SLU’s Lift Tour, and featured a number of dynamic speakers and workshops. The students who attended the…

FRESNO – CSBC ministry leaders and staff gathered for the first “staff week” meetings of 2023. The office welcomed Dave Peugh, pastor of The Avenue Church in Fresno, to deliver the message at chapel. Focusing on Matthew chapter 11, Peugh gave a special word he said God placed on his heart, including insights gleaned from…

ONTARIO – For those who have previously been involved in SBC missions, Missions College is a well-established training event traditionally hosted in Richmond, Virginia. For those who may not know, Missions College is a hands-on training event for pastors, church leaders, mission trip participants, and church members who are engaged in short-term, mid-term, and long-term…

NEWMAN—When Tim Weimer heard about a new network of California youth pastors, he jumped at the opportunity to join. It was worth the effort. In more than a year of involvement in the Youth Pastor Collective (YPC), Weimer, student pastor at a small church in the Central Valley, has attended almost every webinar offered and…

SANTA CLARITA—She had attended Valley Lights Church previously, but a challenging work schedule made it difficult to connect with others in the congregation on a deep level. A women’s holiday wreath event changed that for one occasional church attendee. The woman “said this was one of the very first events where she felt like she…