New church campus takes a different approach

By Diana Cox

Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2008 | 1:23 p.m.

Gary Gann remembers being wary as a teenager to invite his friends to church.

"I was worried that people would look down on them," he said. Now the pastor at the new campus of Central Christian Church, which began meeting at Desert Oasis High School Sept. 7, Gann said he appreciates the approach the nondenominational mega-church takes in its ministry.

At the Green Valley-based church, it's OK not to be OK, according to the church's motto. That attracted Gann.

"It's wrong to look at someone and say, 'You should be better,'" Gann said. "Our concept here is to connect people to God, it is about peeling off the labels that come with a given denomination."

Gann's congregation is the third campus of Central Christian Church. The second, in Summerlin, meets in Palo Verde High School and draws an average 3,000 people per week. The main Green Valley campus, which is planning an expansion, draws 12,000 people in five services every weekend.

The church also began an online church on Sept. 7, offering podcasts and video of sermons and discussions with other people interested in faith. On its opening weekend, the Web site — www.centralchristian.com — recorded hits from 38 states and seven countries, including Italy, Austria, Mexico and Korea. It crashed temporarily because of the heavy traffic, Central Christian spokeswoman Melissa Gullickson said.

The third campus at Desert Oasis was opened to provide members in the southwest part of the Las Vegas Valley a closer place to worship, Gullickson said. The first Sunday services drew more than 700 people.

Gann, who moved with his wife and two daughters from Missouri to take the position with Central Christian, said he loved the idea of a church that is about meeting people where they are at in life and accepting everyone.

The different approach was evident when the lights went down in the Desert Oasis auditorium, and a band began playing upbeat music on the school stage. Gann took the stage and after an opening prayer told the crowd, "They say what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. Well, I believe that what happens in Vegas can change the world."

Larry Nowak attended Central Christian Church for the first time on Sunday after he said he was turned off by the message of his former church.

"For a long time I had friends who attended (Central Christian), and I heard great things about the message, so I thought I'd give it a shot, and I'm glad I did," he said.

In a room separate from the adults, the teens were getting the same message, but it was delivered to them in a way that speaks to a younger crowd. A band was playing, and a giant wall covered with butcher paper had been erected for them to write messages on.

Matt Varietta, the student pastor, said the idea of a separate sermon for the younger crowd was to give them "a place that they feel like is theirs."

Varietta, 21, moved from Franklin, Tenn., to Las Vegas to work at Central Christian. He had a great experience with a youth ministry and wanted to pass that along in Las Vegas, he said.

Diana Cox is a reporter for the Home News. She can be reached at 990-8183 or [email protected].