Pastor Z here! I wanted to take a moment to talk about all the things we have to CELEBRATE here at Dream City Church!

What we are witnessing is so exciting! It’s pretty crazy to think that our church literally started in my living room at home!

Yesterday was an amazing Sunday, and as I looked around, I was reminded of how much we all have to be thankful for!

It truly is a miracle to see how Jesus took a SETBACK for our community and turned it around for our good! In fact, I can honestly say I believe it was a SETUP for God to do something EVEN GREATER—and that is what I see coming to pass!

Yesterday, the head of our Parking Lot team, Gilbert, came to me before church and mentioned that we had almost run out of PARKING space in our lot!

We BOTH started to celebrate!

For anyone reading this, the parking lot of our current location is HUGE!

Gilbert is one of the best people you will ever meet!

What I love about Gilbert is how every week, he celebrates how far Jesus has brought our church and often takes pictures of the parking lot filling up on Sunday mornings. He totally owns it! (I can’t thank Gilbert enough for all he does and how he leads his team every single week! He is 100% IN!)

Honestly, we have so many people who show up every week, just like Gilbert, to make Sundays HAPPEN! It is AMAZING!

Our church IS growing! We are taking steps FORWARD, and there is a determination not to look back because what is ahead is just that good!

There is so much on Sundays to Celebrate!

So here we go!

 This is just a few of the many things we as a church have to celebrate!

The Presence of Jesus! Every single week we gather, we ask Jesus to show up and fill the room with His presence, and every single week, we have never once been let down. Everything we do revolves around this truth: when we gather, He will be there with us, and He is the one changing the hearts and lives of every single person in the room, one step at a time.

Our incredible worship team. This probably goes without saying, but our worship team is absolutely dedicated and among the hardest-working people I know. There is a special unity and, from that unity, anointing that flows every single time they gather to lead us in worship! They never just go through the motions! Each time they play, they show up ready to truly WORSHIP Jesus! That makes a BIG difference, by the way! Our services would not be the same without them! Their energy is contagious, and the way our church worships Jesus is absolutely incredible!

Our Children's and Nursery Ministry. Every week, they are knocking it out of the park on Sundays! These ministries have navigated the incredible task of being flexible across every venue we have met in as a church, whether it was in our living room with 60-something kids upstairs, at a park, or even in a cramped room. They work so hard to provide actual ministry for our kids and toddler-age children. What I love so much about our children's and nursery ministries is that they operate as true ministries. We don't gather children just to babysit them while their parents attend church. Our kids and babies are being taught about Jesus on a level they can understand, in a clean, safe, and fun environment. To make that happen takes lots of work, planning, and sometimes cleaning up. I'm so thankful for these ministries in our church, and I truly believe we wouldn’t be where we are today without these incredible leaders and volunteers. So today, I'm celebrating DC KIDS!

New people and families! If you've been with us since the beginning, you know how we started looks nothing like where we are today. There are so many new faces and families that have joined us, and they are not just attending but also getting involved by volunteering on different teams, giving, and bringing new people with them. One thing I always think about when it comes to Dream City Church is that we are a place where change takes place. As we grow, we will also change as new people come and find their place and calling in our community. That’s a big deal! We are so thankful for each of you who have joined us on this journey, and we celebrate those who are helping us reach our community with the message of Jesus. Let’s celebrate the growth and expansion of our community and extend a warm welcome to our newcomers! We are glad you’re here!

Our Unity! One thing I love about Dream City is that whenever we gather, we usually have to work—setting up tables and chairs, arranging sound equipment, moving speakers, instruments, and drum boxes. All of this isn’t easy and requires faithful people to show up and make it happen. I think what I love about our church is that the unity we share has been forged in the work we are doing for Jesus. Each of us has had to pick up a chair or table, set up backdrops, or move sound equipment from one place to another. During all that, a special bond has formed. I guess they call that fellowship! The fellowship we have before and after services and throughout the week is powerful. I love what Jesus is doing in our church.

All of our incredible volunteers who serve in various ministries—from children's church to hospitality to sound and media. Their commitment, hard work, and passion are making a real difference in our church family.

Generosity. I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who supports the ministry of this house! To those who return their tithes here and to all of our ministry partners! Whether you attend every week or just watch online, or even if you’ve never attended but believe in this ministry, I want you to know that YOUR generosity and investment in the Kingdom of God are making a tangible difference. That’s something worth celebrating!

Our Greeters and Hospitality Teams! This is just another team that I celebrate every single week. Carolyn and her team do a great job of getting up early to set up with donuts and coffee, organizing a breakfast menu for all of our visitors, first-time guests, and church family. We have some of the best coffee in Texas, and every single week they show up to make it happen. Some of the kids even join in, greeting people and making everyone who shows up feel welcome. I celebrate this team! They do an excellent job at helping us provide information and promote events we have going on, always showing up with a smile on their faces!

Our Prayer Partners. Many of you may not know that every Sunday, a group of people gathers before service starts to pray over each seat and every spot in the room where ministry is going to happen. They prepare the atmosphere for God to do incredible things through their prayers. One of the things I love about this team is that it was born out of a vision: that nobody prays alone at Dream City Church! This is a group of incredible people who love Jesus and who pray throughout the week over needs in the church. They also serve as a home base for first-time believers or anyone in the church who needs prayer before or after service. Amy and her team have done a fantastic job of creating an atmosphere of prayerfulness, helping many people get the support they need! So many prayers have been answered because they serve Jesus in this way!

Our NEW Sermon Series! We kicked off our new series, "Don't Call It a Comeback!" with a powerful message from the book of Ruth. This is truly an amazing comeback story found in the Bible. What I love about the series is that everyone in our church can relate to a comeback! Where we started felt so much like a setback, but as I mentioned before, this was all a setup for what God has put together as a comeback story—and that’s exciting! Be sure to join us every week for the series because you won’t want to miss what happens next! Let’s celebrate the Word of God!

SALVATIONS! Last but not least, I want to celebrate how every time we gather together as a church, we do an altar call for salvation, and just about every single week, people are getting saved and confessing Jesus as Lord! Church, that’s a big deal. That doesn’t happen in every church.  Just this last Sunday, we had seven people raise their hands and ask Jesus into their hearts. That’s something we should celebrate! Jesus said that every time one sinner comes to faith and gets saved, the angels in heaven throw a party. At Dream City Church, I want us to make what’s going on in heaven happen down here on earth! Every time one person comes to Christ, we celebrate their next step in the journey of following Him! I'm celebrating those seven people today!

I could literally go on and on about all the exciting and amazing things we have to celebrate as a church, whether it’s from our current location and how God got us here, His blessings on us, or the new relationships we’ve formed.

We feel the anticipation every time we gather—God is doing something special and new at Dream City, and there’s just so much to celebrate.

Each and every person who attends our church plays a role in helping us grow, whether by serving, inviting, or giving. Each of us are showing up, and that’s something I celebrate.

I'm also celebrating...

The person who hasn’t been to church in a while,

The person battling addiction...

The person covered in shame...

The person who was divorced, broken by circumstances, the one who is worried, ands bogged down with anxiety...

The person who has been church hurt and is now struggling in their faith...

I love to celebrate when these people show up because in the presence of Jesus, He begins to change and heal them into who they need to be.

That’s something I will celebrate every single week!

Like I said, there’s so much to celebrate, but I’ll stop here and simply say that I’m thankful for Jesus and His presence in our church!

The best is yet to come! --PZ