Placer: a deposit containing valuable material such as gold.
In 1849 thousands of people left their homes and lives behind and made the journey to northern California in search of a better life, in search of gold. They did this because a year earlier a Placer of Gold was found outside a small town known today as Placerville.
Placerville is strategically located between Sacramento and South Lake Tahoe. With the intersection of State Highway 49 and U.S. Highway 50, Placerville is along one of the most traveled corridors in the state. As county seat, Placerville is the hub of El Dorado county and is surrounded by many small to medium sized communities with an estimated population of 95,000 in a 20 mile radius With it’s many festivals, parades and active downtown Placerville is a true community with a family feel. For this and a multitude other reasons many young families feel they’ve struck gold in Placerville.
However this is not the whole story. Over 80% have no church affiliation.
Homelessness, poverty, and substance abuse are a few of the known issues facing this community. While the pain and brokenness of many is obvious, there are countless others who are suffering in silence. The pain of broken relationships, mountains of debt, depression, anxiety, confusion and families in crisis is eating away at their souls. And then there are those who are unaware of their need lulled to sleep by their familiar comforts and yet there is a twinge they can not shake, a dull emptiness of chasing things that really don’t matter.
There are some who look at Placerville and that’s all they see, tourism or trouble. But we believe that Jesus sees so much more. He sees people rising up from the ashes, overcoming addictions, recovering dignity and value. Jesus sees the single mom surrounded by a community of love and support. He sees men filled with boldness stepping up to be husbands and Fathers. He sees a community transformed and a church the city loves because the church genuinely loves the city. When Jesus looks at Placerville he sees what’s under the surface. He sees gold and so do we. There’s still gold to be discovered in Placerville, it's the people.
Who We Are: OUR NAME
VantagePoint Church: Life from God’s Perspective
The # 1 thing people need today is perspective. Most of us see our lives through the lens of our surroundings, our current circumstances, trials and triumphs, the culture we live in, and the daily grind. This view effects every aspect of our lives and shapes our expectations for the future. We believe when people see their lives from God’s perspective, His vantage point they are surprised and forever changed. We desperately want people to see their lives the way God does. He sees people as more than just numbers but as individuals of great value, their work has purpose, their struggles have meaning and their families have a future. We believe when people see as God sees nothing can stop them from doing as God says.” At Vantage Point Church we are helping people to see their lives from God’s perspective and inviting them into a deeper relationship with Him.
What We Are About: OUR PHILOSOPHY
Less for More
Relationships are key to life change. Relationships take time. We will not overchurch our people so they have no time or energy to engage their neighbors in real relationships
We don’t Compete, We Come along side
We will partner with our community to be a blessing to the city and in the process connect our people with their neighbors who have similar passions and yet don’t know Christ.
Everyone is an Evangelist
Evangelism isn’t a personality or a program. It’s a broken heart. We are broken hearted because we are seeing what Jesus sees when He looks at our neighbors. We as individuals and collectively as a church will do everything in our power to help people see what Jesus sees and start a relationship with Him. This is the heartbeat of our church.
Circles are better then Rows
We are committed to connecting people into small groups where relationships flourish
and real growth is fostered through accountability.
We is better then Me
Ministering as a team is more fun, more effective, and more biblical
Doing is better than Talking
We believe discipleship & leadership development is 1 part impartation and 3 parts implementation. We will create and encourage practical steps for connecting, giving, and serving; the sooner the better.
We don’t Hand off, We Hand up
We don’t just delegate tasks and responsibilities, but in everything we do we are reproducing ourselves and releasing the power to minister.
The Future is Now
Children are the future of the church; then we must start reaching them now. We will aggressively pour our resources into reaching children, teens, and their parents. Strong families—strong church
Experimentation is better then Stagnation
We will never stop innovating and attempting great things for God. Our mission is timeless but our methods will always be on the table.