By DAVID TELLER
Staff Reporter
Cheney teens and young adults now have a place to go that is risk free.
Last January, Jason and Mindy States opened the doors to The Rock, a Christian outreach center at 1404 First St.
“We desire to show them that there is a God that loves them very much and wants to see them succeed,” States said.
He added it's definitely not a church, it is a place where ministries from a church will happen.
States explains the outreach center, saying society is in a post-church era and he and his wife are trying to create an atmosphere similar to a Starbucks, where people can feel comfortable coming into the center and not being bombarded with Christian topics.
The Denver native said a majority of students he ministers to did not grow up in a home where their family attended church weekly and they did not grow up in a culture where parables about God, Jesus and the Bible were taught to them at a young age.
“Unlike previous generations where there was already a foundation to build on, we start from scratch with most of our students,” States said. “The simple concept that there's a God, and that God loves you; that's new to a lot of them.”
States had his own personal challenges to overcome; most of it inspired by boredom. He said when he was a teen he mixed with the wrong crowd. He describes them as a party crowd where he experimented with drugs.
“I had successfully screwed up my life,” he said.
A turning point came during the summer of his sophomore year of high school. He went to a youth Bible camp and experienced a personal breakthrough.
“I finally saw myself the way that God saw me and that is with immense love but at the same time (God asked)‘Why are you doing this? Why are you this way?'”
States realized this was not what was meant for him. He stopped secular goals and directed his time and energy toward the ministries.
His wife of five years, Mindy was the exact opposite, describing her self as a good, typical church girl. Her calling to the ministries was much clearer.
“This is what I was called to do in my life. And it was confirmed several times over,” she said.
The States moved to Cheney three years ago. They were doing youth ministries through Cheney Nazarene Church. When the church got a new pastor, States presented him with the idea of an off-site outreach center. The new pastor responded enthusiastically.
The Rock is a ministry of the Cheney Church of the Nazarene, but is not a church. States said the point of the outreach center is to get away from the tendency of churches to hide within their walls.
He said Wednesdays are when the teens come, usually early in the evening. Students are welcome to come in and do homework, which is followed by activities and games. Next is a topical discussion about issues teens are facing. The discussion comes back to the guidance from scriptures.
Afterward is the music, which is contemporary Christian performed by an all-youth praise band. One of their influences is a professional recording group called Fly Leaf.
Sunday night is The Next Level, which is a young adult (18 to 30 years old) emergent type of worship, which States said is a new type of thing happening in the Christian community
He said emergence is coming from a more traditional culture group that wants to go beyond post-modern to new work in a new generation. States stresses this is not deviation from church, but an alternate experience.
States said he wants to provide a form of coming in contact with God that would be foreign to most people that grew up in the church. The experience is more open-ended. He said he encourages people to do what makes them comfortable or however they best feel they would like to worship.
Being more proactive is something States encourages. He tells people to not stand and watch a band and expect it to lead you into the presence of God because it's unrealistic most of the time.
David Teller can be reached at [email protected]
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