Benny Perez Asks for Holy Spirit Renewal as ‘Greatest Days for the Church Still Ahead’
Benny Perez, pastor of The Church LV in Las Vegas, believes the greatest days for the church are still ahead. In a letter addressed to pastors and leaders, he says, “We need renewal from the Holy Spirit and fresh encounters with Jesus so we do not grow weary and lose heart.”
Perez points to a number of disheartening statistics, including that 1,500 pastors leave the ministry every month because of “moral failure, spiritual burnout or contention in their churches.” Half of all churches in the U.S. did not add one new member through conversion growth, and between 3,500 and 4,000 churches close their doors each year.
Perez has been in ministry for 23 years, and it has been 10 years since he started The Church LV with his wife, Wendy.
“As I reflected on the various times, seasons, challenges and victories over the years, I began to ask this question: ‘What are the attributes and qualities of Pastors, Leaders and Churches that make a ministry Built to Last?’” he writes.
Perez says the 2013 Church Conference will answer that question. He’s hosting the conference, with the theme “Built to Last,” Nov. 5-7.
“Day sessions will focus on the time-tested, biblical principles of successful leaders and churches,” Perez says. “Night sessions will be focused on renewing our spirits through worship, ministry and God’s Word. We are not after hype or the latest ministry trends—but rather building leaders and churches that can overcome every setback, obstacle and hardship that may come!”
In addition to Benny and Wendy Perez, the church’s co-founder and chief creative officer, the Church Conference will feature pastor Casey Treat of Christian Faith Center in Seattle; Stovall Weems, founder and lead pastor of Celebration Church in Jacksonville, Fla; Tommy Barnett, senior pastor of Phoenix First Assembly of God in Phoenix; and Gini Smith of the City Church in Seattle.
“Now, more than ever before, we need to build pastors, leaders, teams and churches that endure and succeed—despite setbacks and challenges—and become all God intends us to be,” Perez concludes. “Don’t quit. Don’t give up. Let’s come together and build with the future in mind!”
The Church LV began at the Perez home with just 28 members in 2003. Now the congregation consists of more than 3,000 members.
