There would be no way I could have the peace, joy, and freedom to fully embrace my new position here at Hope Church in Las Vegas if it were not for the blessing and gift of Pastor Christopher Stites and his acceptance of the call to replace me as the Senior Pastor of The Movement Church in Oakland.

Christopher has now served in the role of Senior Pastor for a little over 3 months, and last week we had the opportunity to catch up in a conversation that lasted about 3 hours. I couldn’t be more thankful to hear about all that God is doing through him and the church!

In an effort to praise God, and publicly acknowledge and appreciate Pastor Christopher, here are 10 reasons why I’m super proud of and thankful for him! In just 3 short months, Pastor Christopher has…

Smoothly stepped into courageously leading the staff and pastoral teams.
Boldly decided to make significant Spirit-led changes.
Wisely discerned the changes that shouldn’t immediately be made.
Lovingly connected with key leaders and new families to the church.
Passionately persisted in sacrificially serving Oakland public schools.
Effectively sustained a life-giving preaching ministry.
Humbly absorbed unfair criticism and slander.
Significantly increased the number of people engaging in the weekly prayer meeting.
Proactively joined a coaching cohort that will greatly impact his leadership ability.
Joyfully submitted to the God-sized task of shepherding, equipping, and empowering a faith family for the mission of Jesus!

Only other Senior Pastors know the true weight and burden of being a Senior Pastor. And after having served as one for 8+ years, of this one thing I’m sure…Pastor Christopher is carrying this weight with grace, skill, courage, and humility and The Movement Church is a better church because of it!