Team/church update - 1 year in

This is from Sarah Bodie - she is the furthest one to the right in the photo. Thanks Sarah!

In October 2005, I read the words of Jesus in Mark 1, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” Without a lot of direction, Jesus simply said, ‘Follow Me’. I heard a similar offer when I decided to move to LA. I’m not certain of the where He’s leading, how we’ll get there, or what exactly it will look like, but I’m more certain that He is trustworthy of following. Perhaps the main reason He lead me to LA was to teach me just how worthy of my trust He is.

How do you plant a church? I asked this question a year ago, and I ask it again today. I’m fairly confident that there is no outline, but as I look back over the previous year, I see that God has first planted my life. As I look back over the past year, I see roots of a tree growing deeper. The sprout above ground may still be short, but the roots are growing; shifting and changing the soil as they intertwine with other roots. The roots of my life and those of my team, are a little more planted in the soil of Los Angeles .

I’ve spent the last year learning who God is in this vast country. LA is a place of a thousand languages and worldviews. The metaphorical noise of the city screams loudly everywhere I go. Among all the noise of LA, I do believe that Jesus loves and seeks the hearts of all men and women. I often think of these words by Augustine, “God has made us for Himself and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Him.” Some days I look out my window at work and think, ‘I am living in one of the most influential places on the planet’. No one can deny the powerful voice of Hollywood , speaking into and influencing people world-wide. I can’t help but believe that our very presence in this city is significant. I believe in God’s design to redeem and express Himself through the arts and media poured out of this city. I am reminded of our God, “the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts…in the face of Jesus Christ.” We want our lives to be so fully ablaze in the fire of the reality of Jesus that people are drawn to Him.

Our church is going public in the fall. We have a community of people who are with us. When I say ‘with us’, I mean there is a group of people who have figuratively joined their lives with ours and said, ‘I’m committed to seeking God with you.’ In July we’ll begin a time of training as a core-team of Westside Faith. Well cover doctrine and values, all the while attempting to create space for those who don’t know Jesus personally yet. There are also dozens of others in our lives who couldn’t be further from starting a church. Many of our friends have never stepped foot in a church, and many others did years ago and then swore to never enter one again. We believe God is drawing these people to Himself.

So a year later…

Westside Faith is a community of friends and family that previously wasn’t there. We pray for our city and will continue to do so until its all said and done. We are committed to seeking God’s fame through Jesus Christ here and around the world. We want people who are broken and estranged from God to encounter His pursuing love and respond with, “yes, that’s amazingly good news.” We are committed to being the church among people who don’t yet know this love.

Many of you play a very big part of what God is doing here; thank you for praying, giving, and believing. This is only the beginning.


sarah