Sonrise Community Church (Unite Service)
September 19th, 2005Website: http://www.sonrise.net/
Church Review
Theology: 2/5
Mission: 2/5
Community: 3/5
Worship: 3/5
Summary: I attended Sonrise Community Church’s Unite service. An evening ‘postmodern’ service for people aged 18-30 years old. What struck me the most at this service was the preaching. In the service I attended, the pastor spent most of the time speaking about himself. He talked about his job as a news anchor, how he now gets paid well to work part time at Channel 8. He talked about how he “closed the deal” in evangelizing a Budhhist. (I’m glad he is evangelizing but part of this should be done in love not to ‘close the deal’.) Over half the message with about him. In fact, he even shared a story about how his wife had to elbow him five times when they had guests over because he was always speaking about himself. He confessed he could “talk about myself for hours”. I’ve got to be honest, this really angered me. Here were a group of 18-30 years-old who were being preached a non-Bible centered message. Just because this guy was a news anchor doesn’t mean he’s qualified to preach at a church. I pray their other services are radically different but even so, the ‘Senior Pastor’ was the person who hired Pastor Miller. I understand a pastor can have an “off night” but to preach the message he delivered, too much is left in doubt for us to recommend this church.
We do not recommend this church because of the low quality of preaching.
September 24th, 2005 at 11:28 am
To Whom it may concern,
While we agree Sonrise Community Church may not be right for everyone, we would like to encourage rather than discourage.
It is our hope, as well as our prayer that anyone “Lost” and seekind God, would not just walk, but run…to ANY local New Testement Church declaring, “Jesus as LORD” and sharing the Gospel daily.
God’s Word says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast.” “Let God be true and everyman a liar”
Our mission at Sonrise is to reach our community for the Lord Jesus Christ and to equip God’s people that they may know how to live and serve Him in their generation.
Sincerely,
Michael and Michelle DeAngelo
Covenent Members, Sonrise Community Church
September 24th, 2005 at 11:49 am
Dear Reviewer,
Have you considered that you may not have enjoyed the “Unite” service at Sonrise because you may not fit into the demographic of the audience that that service is intended for?
Are you an 18-30 year old single person? Generally the person who this sevice is for is IN a very SELF-CENTERED portion of their life (Many living on their own for the first time , no spouse to need to submit to, and no children to sacrifice for). God used the four authors of the Gospels to share the same story in their four different personalities (one a doctor-amazed by the miracles, one a Jew of Jews-well versed in the LAW, one a tax collector-knowing the usefullness and evils of $, and of corse a mystic-fully “IN LOVE” with Jesus and encouraging ALL to love one another. When Jesus talked to fishermen He used fish parables. When He talked to farmers He used farm parables. When He talked to investors He used money parables. It is a good thing that you have had an opportunity to read all four of the Gospels…if you had only read one, and it didn’t speak to you, you may have given the whole Bible a “Not Recommend” label. I challenge you to come back to Sonrise again and dare you not to feel the fully anointed indwelling of the Holy Spirit in that place.
Lord Bless You,
Michelle