By Shana LiVIGNI

For those who haven’t been to church in a while, Crescenta Valley Community Church extends an invitation to come to a service and experience the contemporary setting of the sermons, live music featuring a house band and singers, an accommodating staff and congregation and its community services. Pastor Scott Wood and his wife and co-pastor Kathe have been with the church for the past 13 years. Pastor Scott wants the community to discover this new age feel to religion.

“CVCC is a place for people who are looking for something more…more meaning, more relevance and more God in their lives. We’re all about relationships with people because that’s what God is all about,” he said. “In fact, it is relationships that really matter most. Genuine relationships with Him and with each other – that’s why we exist.”

“I think our culture has it backwards, because our culture thinks everything is based on our performance,” added Rick Whitlow, church pastor of finance and administration. “God designed us to have a relationship with Him, based on His unconditional love for us and his commitment to take care of us. Our existence is to really help people to understand how to obtain a whole soul to serve each other. As God loves us unconditionally, we can love other people unconditionally.”

Among the services CVCC provides, here are a few of its ministries:

• EPICC Youth services – Headed by Youth Pastor Dexter Nocon, this ministry exists to elevate Jesus in worship and lifestyle by providing for the needs of others and inviting students in grades seven through 12  to participate in creating a loving and safe community.  The teens visit nursing homes and homeless shelters to sing, share arts and crafts and socialize with the residents.

• Overflow – This ministry has provided area schools with school supplies and special things for teachers. The CVCC volunteers are currently working with the Samoan churches to send clothing and supplies to the recent tsunami flood victims.

• Touched By an Angel – Provides and delivers meals to anyone in the  surrounding community that is in need.

• Women’s ministries – Tapestry

•Men’s ministries – In The Company of Men (ICOM)

• Kids Place – Parents with children can drop them off before service at Kids’ Place, the church’s children’s ministry, headed up by Children’s Pastor Beth Krausse. Kids’ Place serves children from birth to sixth grade.

Currently underway is the annual 40 Days of Love celebration. Co-pastor Kathe Wood explained about the six week event.

“We started 40 days of love on Sunday, Sept. 20. We are spending these 40 days focusing on what is most important in life – relationships! You can thrive in your career, acquire wealth and reputation, but if your relationships aren’t priority, you can end up feeling successful but lonely. At CVCC we understand that all of life revolves around relationships. True satisfaction only comes as we make relationships most important. Simply put: love God and love people. Everything else is secondary.”

During the week, congregants meet in small groups across the Crescenta Valley in different homes and at different times to grow together in love. The goal of approximately 22 small groups – a total of just under 200 volunteers – is not only to build more genuine relationships but to plan a project where love turns into action, caring for the community.

Sunday, Oct. 25 concludes CVCC’s 40 Days of Love with a special “Love Feast” after its 11:15 a.m. service. The community is invited to a parking lot barbecue when CVCC members will celebrate the things that church members have experienced during the 40 day event by “feasting” together.

Crescenta Valley Community Church is located at 4001 La Crescenta Ave. in La Crescenta.

For more info, visit www.CVCHURCH.com or call (818) 249-5805.