|
|
That two-word phrase encapsulates the journey that has been Palm Vista’s for the last 12 years.
Located on the south side of Bell Road at its intersection with 175th Avenue, Palm Vista lies right between the predominantly senior communities north of Bell Road and the predominantly family communities south of it.
When Palm Vista began meeting at Dysart High School in February 1998, the fledgling church faced an important strategic decision: should it focus on impacting the communities north of Bell Road or the communities south of it? Instead of choosing to focus on one or the other, the members of Palm Vista decided to reach out to both.
Palm Vista has a vision of people of all ages, races, and nationalities coming together to worship God and grow in their faith in Him.
When we moved into our current building in November 1999, the family communities that now lie to our south were yet to be constructed, so our early church enrollment was primarily senior, but things quickly changed.
Surprise Farms became a flourishing family community, and our church collectively renewed its commitment to reach people at “all stages of life.”
In the short time since then, God has blessed our church in amazing ways. We now have two worship times on Sunday morning – classic (9:00 a.m.) and contemporary (10:30 a.m.). Each environment is uniquely designed to ignite people with a passion for God.
Traditional Christian education exists side by side with cutting-edge small groups, and young and old alike worship together in one place. After years of prayer and effort, our vision is becoming reality!
Even more exciting is the new vision God is giving as we move into a new season of ministry. Palm Vista is shifting its focus from the development of a multi-generational church in Surprise to the mobilizing of that church to impact its local community, neighboring areas and the “uttermost parts of the earth.”
Specifically, God has inspired us to reach out in His name to the most at-risk segments of our society – children and adolescents suffering from hunger, homelessness, and exploitation.
We are actively partnering with mission agencies and indigenous church, community, and civic leaders in providing children and adolescents with food and shelter, promoting foster, adoptive, and family services, and preparing children and their families for a better life through Christian education, community development, and micro-enterprise.
From orphan prevention, placement, and care worldwide to feeding programs for children and their families to rescuing exploited children, such efforts have given us a renewed sense of purpose as we personally embrace the Great Commission of Jesus.
We are also seeking to enhance our ministry effectiveness here in our own community through the construction of a new, 16,000 square feet building, which will seat 650 worshipers on weekends and host community services and programs for children, adolescents, and their families during the week.
As wonderful as the growth of our church has been, it is the journey with God along the way that has forever marked us. We have found that the greatest joy is not in the numbers of people but in the individuals that have been changed through the power of a life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ.
We invite you to come and make your story a part of ours.
|
|
