clearing up some misconceptions

[Guest LadyC]

i thought i'd open up a thread and let everyone have a chance to ask questions about this city, because there are so many misconceptions, and so many judgements about the laws, about whether or not God is alive and well here, and about the people who live and work here.

so the floor is open... who wants to go first?

[Ddavid from NC]

Is there a strong Christian presence in the city? Are churches commonplace or rarely seen?

[Guest LadyC]

there is a HUGE christian presence here. unfortunately it's probably a bit smaller than the mormon presence, but i suppose when you're this close to utah, that's to be expected. there isn't a place in this city where you wouldn't be in walking distance of a church. there are a number of megachurches here, one of which has nationally televised services (at least i think they're nationally, i KNOW they're locally televised.) the largest one on my side of town is central christian church.

during the time most people recognize as lent, there is always a "seek God in the city" event in which the area churches spend forty days praying for specific neighborhoods, industries, etc. but don't think God's only around here during that forty days LOL. there are frequent city-wide prayer events here, and conferences such, that typically meet at the thomas and mack event center. 18,000 seats, and it's always packed.

here's a little tidbit that i always find ironic. now of course, i haven't been to a whole lot of churches here, because i'm pretty much settled in mine. but i have been to a few, and i always get a kick out of the fact that every preacher i've listened to in this town has said that vegas is the last place they wanted to be... and that they struggled and fought with God about it for a long time before coming here. and yet once they got here, they stayed, because this is where God had called them, and they wouldn't want to leave.

i prefer a small church... we're not a seeker church, we're a recovery church. there are many recovery churches around here, but there really should be a lot more!

[Afal]

i prefer a small church... we're not a seeker church, we're a recovery church. there are many recovery churches around here, but there really should be a lot more!

What is a recovery church?

[Guest LadyC]

i prefer a small church... we're not a seeker church, we're a recovery church. there are many recovery churches around here, but there really should be a lot more!

What is a recovery church?

that's a fair question... it's just a term used to describe the outreach ministry i suppose. just like there are "seeker" churches, that IMO usually give a milky sermon that targets a certain group.

recovery churches, or at least ours anyway, tends to reach out to those who have had a lot of history with substance abuse, gambling addiction, prostitution, homelessness, etc. but the sermons aren't milky by any stretch. there's a lot of meat and substance in the messages, because the attendees really need to hear the whole truth and nothing but the truth. but it's done with love and compassion. nobody's sins are hidden here... not a week goes by that someone isn't giving a praise report on how long they've stayed clean, or asking for prayer for themselves or a loved on who has slipped back into their addiction.

basically, it's a church with a real heart for hurting people. lots of encouragement, lots of prayer, but none of the condemnation towards the individuals. (the condemnation is directed at the activity that destroys one's relationship with God, not at the person who is trying to get their face out of the dirt.)

by the way, just so everyone knows, i'll be leaving soon for the nascar qualifying race, so i may have a lot to catch up on tomorrow!

[Ddavid from NC]

i prefer a small church... we're not a seeker church, we're a recovery church. there are many recovery churches around here, but there really should be a lot more!

What is a recovery church?

that's a fair question... it's just a term used to describe the outreach ministry i suppose. just like there are "seeker" churches, that IMO usually give a milky sermon that targets a certain group.

recovery churches, or at least ours anyway, tends to reach out to those who have had a lot of history with substance abuse, gambling addiction, prostitution, homelessness, etc. but the sermons aren't milky by any stretch. there's a lot of meat and substance in the messages, because the attendees really need to hear the whole truth and nothing but the truth. but it's done with love and compassion. nobody's sins are hidden here... not a week goes by that someone isn't giving a praise report on how long they've stayed clean, or asking for prayer for themselves or a loved on who has slipped back into their addiction.

basically, it's a church with a real heart for hurting people. lots of encouragement, lots of prayer, but none of the condemnation towards the individuals. (the condemnation is directed at the activity that destroys one's relationship with God, not at the person who is trying to get their face out of the dirt.)

by the way, just so everyone knows, i'll be leaving soon for the nascar qualifying race, so i may have a lot to catch up on tomorrow!

Ladies and Gentlemen start your engines...sounds like you need a program for that NASCAR addiction

[Guest LadyC]

LOL, i'm not a huge fan of racing, although it's certainly not my least favorite sport! but one of the casinos sent us free tickets, and i'm quite happy to say that my husband is actually going to ENJOY getting out of the house and doing something with me!

we won't be alone though... our neighbor gave us their tickets, so we're taking two of our friends from church.

[~pearl]

LadyC I am jealous! I am a huge Nascar fan.

It sounds like your church is exactly what is needed around Vegas. What a blessing it must be. I do have alot of sterotypes about Vegas, it IS called sin city. I don't have any particular questions but I hope this thread will clear up any judgement I have. Great idea to start it. Thanks!

Oh and enjoy your day. lucky!

[Richard_yaash]

recovery churches...

I have visited a few, there are some really good ones.

BTW: Good thread LadyC

[Guest LadyC]

yeah, a lot more recovery churches are needed! ours is pretty small at this point, although it used to have about 1500 members. that was before the fire that destroyed the building, and the members scattered to other churches around the valley that had more seating. but for such a little church as we are now, we're certainly active! check out the link to our church website... we have more outreach ministries than a lot of larger churches.

i wish you'd asked questions pearl! but i'll try to answer the ones you didn't ask... the most common ones.

a) prostitution is not legal in las vegas.... or in reno. in fact, it's not legal in clark and washoe counties where the two big cities are located.

it IS however, legal in the state.... if you drive across nevada you'll see the brothels (most of them run down mobile homes, and all of them with red christmas lights burning 24/7). but you'll never see a brothel very close to a populated area. typically, it's about a 30 minute drive to the nearest town with a population of about 500.

b) the mafia no longer runs the industries of prostitution and gambling. those are micro-managed by the state, and i do mean micro-managed.

c) the vast majority of big gambling is done by tourists. lots of locals play, and many of them can't afford to, but they are usually found sitting at a penny or nickle slot machine. that's not to say we don't have our share of locals who are addicted to gambling, because we do... but they are the minority.

oops, gotta go!