Dave and Tracey Goss took their ministry outside the church walls, literally. Light and Life Church in Goleta, Calif., holds a weekly meal and a service in the park 10 times per year. Surprisingly, people aren’t resistant to Christianity; they just have no idea what it means.
“They are much more turned off with the word Republican than Christian,” David said.
However, this church doesn’t attract your typical church people. Instead, it focuses on the un-churched from a low socio-economic background.
“It’s just a different kind of ministry,” David said. “I spent years trying to create a church in someone else’s image, but we’ve positioned ourselves to be there for people who are not Christians.”
The church partners with a local business, in this case Chipotle, to provide for their weekly community meal. Chipotle is part of a food share program that gives their leftovers to non-profits instead of throwing them away. For $20 per week, the church has fed approximately 80 people for more than a year.
“As a result, people started trusting us more,” he said. “Instead of being a photo-op church, we were there every single week. The community realized that we were legit and started coming to the church.”
Dave shares how one of many lives has been changed. God got Gabe’s attention when he was high on drugs. He’d been asking questions of all these different religions, but found that goodness is always associated with the Christian faith. He came to their Taco Meal, saw that “goodness” in action and kept coming back.