Get To Know Us
Our vision.
A place to belong.
Bringing more of heaven to our city.
Our mission.
KNOW.
LOVE.
SERVE.
For 10 years we’ve carried the call to care for and love Playa Vista and the surrounding community.
With each year, the vision sharpened and we can now see God’s calling to create pathways for community in our city. Our community will be one centered on Jesus but focused on others. Our community will be invitational. We will be a place of belonging for you, no matter where you are in your journey with Christ. We’ll be here - whenever you’re ready.
Our Heart
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Our view of God comes out of Exodus 3, when God calls Moses and shares clearly who He is.
“I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey…”
God reveals His heart and character by sharing that He is a God who sees us, hears us, is concerned about us and gets involved. All four of these realities are essential in our understanding of who God is.
We see this tangibly lived out in Jesus. Through His teaching and His life Jesus shows us how to love and care for others and then invites us to live in very much the same way. In doing so, we become a part of bringing His Kingdom of Heaven here on Earth.
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In the Gospels, we see Jesus share what the Kingdom of Heaven is like. From these teachings we get an incredible picture of the world He created before sin: one full of love, mercy, compassion, forgiveness, peace.
Yet, it wasn't simply a future picture of heaven that Jesus wanted us to focus on. He made clear that a part of why He came down to Earth was to begin ushering His Kingdom in the here and now.
When Jesus’ disciples ask Him to give a model of prayer, He responds in Matthew 6 by saying:
"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
Our prayers are for His Kingdom to exist here on Earth. Through our prayers, Jesus invites us to join Him in this work: to be a people and community who seek to bring His Kingdom, His love, His peace, His compassion, His justice, and His mercy in our cities and communities.
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We believe Church isn't a building or place, but a community of people gathered together where His radical love, compassion and truth are tangibly displayed through our lives by the power of the Holy Spirit.
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God created humanity in His Image and His desire for us was to live in perfect harmony with Him and with one another. Sin entering into this world caused a fracture in both of those relationships.
Yet God had a plan to redeem humanity and bring us back in perfect relationship to Him. This plan involved a sacrifice: the spilling of blood to cover our sins once and for all. Therefore God sent his only Son into this world to dwell among us and give His life as a ransom.
Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, sin and death were defeated and now we can walk in freedom.
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In the book of Romans Paul says:
"If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."
Paul is reminding us that salvation is a gift from God. That there isn't anything we can do to earn it, but a gift that God gives freely to those who believe in His name.
This gift impacts our past, our present and our future in eternity. This gift tells us that we are no longer defined by our mistakes, our brokenness or our sins. Instead He sees us as holy, pure, blameless and calls us His sons and daughters.
The invitation we have is to step into this truth and to live in a manner reflecting what is already true of us.
Our Core Beliefs
Our Essential Beliefs
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The entire Bible is the inspired Word of God and that it is without error. It is the final authority for faith and life.
There is only one God, eternally existing in three distinct persons, equal in power and glory. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
Jesus Christ is God, both 100% God and 100% man. He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, performed miracles, and died on the cross for our sins. The shedding of His blood is 100% sufficient to cleanse humanity of all sin. He rose from the dead on the third day, ascended to the right hand of the Father, and will return again in power and glory.
The Holy Spirit is God and God’s active presence in the world to do God's work. When a person opens his or her heart to Christ, he or she is born again by the Spirit. At Salvation the Holy Spirit comes to live in the new believer’s heart. The Holy Spirit makes it possible for us to be with Jesus, to live in God’s presence. The Holy Spirit helps us become like Jesus by transforming us from the inside out. Finally, the Holy Spirit empowers us to go into our world and do what Jesus did. This is what it means to live a Spirit filled life.
God created humanity in His image and without sin. However, Adam and Eve freely decided to rebel against God’s rule and brought sin into God’s good and perfect creation and now exist alienated from God, under His wrath, both spiritually and physically dead.
We believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, as a representative and substitute for us. Jeuss shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation.
We believe salvation is a sovereign gift of God and is received by humanity through faith alone in Jesus Christ. We believe salvation is open to all when we confess with our mouth and believe in our heart that God raised Jesus from the dead. We are made righteous, born again by the spirit of God, receiving eternal life through His eternal redemption.
Staff
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Since moving to Los Angeles in 2005, I've had the pleasure of serving and pastoring in Los Angeles in a variety of roles. In 2014, after my wife and I moved to Westchester, we felt a unique and distinct call to love and serve the city we were in, while simultaneously helping lead a church in Pacific Palisades. That call led us towards praying, dreaming and slowly working towards what it could look like to build a community in Westchester, Playa Vista and the surrounding communities.
Michelle and I have been married for 10 years and she has worked as a school psychologist for LAUSD and Charter Schools the past 13 years.
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I grew up as a pastor's kid here in the South Bay. Over the years I have had the privilege of serving in the church in multiple areas. After I graduated high school I attended Life Pacific University in Virginia and earned an associates degree in Ministry Leadership. I then had an opportunity to serve in a residency in Chicago before pursuing full time ministry. I have been able to serve in the church as a Youth Pastor, Worship Director and Associate Pastor.
My wife and I were recently married in April of 2023 and have the joy of expecting our first baby this coming November.
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As a young adult, I was an atheist and struggled with severe anxiety and depression. It was the kindness of believers and the unrelenting love of Christ that wooed me to His heart back in 2017. Now, I’m passionate about representing Christ and His life giving love to others around me.
In July of this year, my husband Jake, daughter, and I moved to LA from Appalachian Virginia, stepping out in faith on a call from over seven years ago.
Serving in several youth groups, VBS teams, teaching middle schoolers, and directing all school plays, I’m always so excited to see Jesus through the eyes of children. It’s my passion to watch their love for Him bloom and grow. I’m so honored for each child I’ve been able to help shepherd along His path.
On my days off, you’ll find me sipping a cup of coffee, reading, and singing “Baby Shark” with my toddler.
Email Me |
Pastoral + Leadership Council
Through this season, we have been blessed to have a variety of pastors and leaders walk with us, pray for us, and give us wisdom and council as we move forward as a church.
We are very thankful for these leaders who have committed to walking with us in this season and help provide oversight and accountability.
Mark Ambrose | Pastor | Pacific Coast Church
Zack Barker | Pastor | Foothills Bible Church
Derek Eitel | CFO | Community Church Playa
Amy Pendergraft | Pastor | Malibu Pacific Church
FAQs
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We are meeting at Playa Vista Elementary School every Sunday morning starting at 9:30AM for coffee and Worship beginning at 10AM.
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First, please reach out to us! We'd love to connect with you. Second, you can come to one of the events listed on our website. Lastly, we need your help! Be a part of the team helping setup and organizing our events.
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Please join us in praying for our new church community. Pray for the people, finances and resources we will need to continue moving forward. Pray for the people in/around the Playa Vista area to join us and be a part of the community we believe God is building here. Pray for our city as we seek to be a light and be a part of bringing His Kingdom here in our city.
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Community Church Playa is a non-denominational independent church. We are not affiliated with any denomination or church.
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We meet consistently with a solid group of pastors and church leaders who provide wise counsel and prayer.. We have an independent accountant and bookkeeper oversees our finances. We have outside organizations that provide insurance, HR, and payroll.