The Slavich Family
Danny Slavich
Danny Slavich IS THE HEAD PASTOR FOR Cross United Church IN Lighthouse Point. WE ARE HONORED TO PARTNER WITH HIM AND THE CHURCH COMMUNITY BEGINNING IN 2018.
How have you seen God working in your life?
One of the kindest things God has done for me in recent months is forcing me to embrace more actually, functionally and existentially what I confess to believe about him. The character and conduct of God for me in Christ has become oxygen in a profound way. Planting a church comes with a built-in temptation to want to impress other people and somehow “prove myself.” It’s also a fairly “risky” venture. This means that I have been battling both pride and fear about my identity (can I do this?), my reputation (what will people think of me?), and my security (what if we lose everything?). But God has graciously been reminding me that I am united to Christ by faith. And therefore his word to me is, “My Beloved with whom I am well-pleased. You are not what you do, and you have nothing to prove. You are not what people think or say, and you have no one to impress. You are not what you have, and you have nothing to lose.” In other words, God has used the pressures of planting a church to accelerate his sanctifying work, the process of me actually “getting” the gospel.
How have you seen God working in your family?
My wife, Laura, and I were anticipating the pressure of planting a church upon our family in all the “expected” ways: financial, emotional, relational, and spiritual. Planting a church has definitely strained us in these ways, but it has also provided unexpected and beautiful ways to deepen our trust in God together in all of them as well. It has provided opportunities for us to work together in ministry like never before, trusting and serving God, tasting our desperation for his goodness and provision. Likewise, our kids get to see God provide people and partners “in real time,” directly answering prayers they have prayed. Every morning, they pray with us at 10:02 a.m. from Luke 10:2, “Lord, the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few, please raise up co-laborers for your harvest.” When we meet a new family willing to join the mission, they see the Lord answering their prayers. When we get word that a financial partner we've been praying for has committed to partnering with us, they rejoice in God's provision. What could be more thrilling than seeing the character and ways of God for us in Christ coming to life before their eyes?
How have you seen God working in your church?
Planting a church has been a strong reminder that this is God's work! One verse that has encouraged our team is 2 Samuel 7:10, "I will designate a place for my people Israel and plant them, so that they may live there and not be disturbed again." Here, in the LORD's promise to David, ultimately fulfilled in and for Jesus Christ, we see foreshadowed the promise of Jesus himself: "I will build my church" (Matthew 16:10). Jesus has been meeting us on the frontline of his mission, what Lesslie Newbigin called, "that frontier between the kingdom of God and the usurped power of the evil one." We have been seeing Jesus show up--in the lives of people, in providential connections and provision, in a group of people start to become a family of faith. The sheer depth of our need for him to show up is a beautiful opportunity to trust him and know his presence.
Church Mission & Vision
God created us to experience fullness of life. Jesus said, “I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance” (John 10:10). We believe that we find life like God intended at the intersection of relationships and mission. Cross United Church is committed to helping people find life like God intended by bringing people to God and bringing people together through the cross of Jesus Christ. When we are connected to God in worship, connected to others in community, and engaged in a meaningful mission in the world, we experience joyful and abundant life.
Northeast Broward County, Florida (Lighthouse Point/Deerfield Beach) is a densely populated, ethnically and economically diverse community. Well over 65,000 people inhabit our target area (approximately 2 miles east-west by 4 miles north-south), centered at Sample Road and N. Federal Highway. The east side of Federal Highway (closer to the ocean) tends to be more Anglo and wealthier. The west side tends to be more ethnically diverse (Anglo, Haitian, Latino, African-American) and economically diverse. We long to see “both sides” of Federal highway brought to God and brought together through the cross of Jesus Christ.
If you would like to learn more about Cross United Church please visit their website at www.crossunited.org.