Last year, I had the privilege of interviewing Chris Hornbrook and Brandon Grant at Expo West. I loved the vision they spoke about that day (to read more about the vision, click here) and wanted to share this update from Brandon with you.
It was 3 years ago that my wife and I sensed the calling to pack up our things, move to San Diego, and start a new church. This came by way of an invitation from Chris Hornbrook – the lead pastor of Momentum Christian Church in Chula Vista, CA (www.momentumsandiego.com). Chris not only invited me to start a new church, but to be a part of a much larger vision – a vision we’ve come to call 10|10|10. The vision is to plant 10 reproducing churches in San Diego along with 10 reproducing churches internationally in the next 10 years. Thus, when we said yes to start Rise City Church (www.risecitychurch.com) in Santee, CA we knew we’d not only celebrate our launch, but also the launch of many other churches. And the first of those many other churches is Grace City Church (www.gracecitysd.com) that will launch this October in the UTC area of San Diego. Grace City Church will be pastored by Randall Tonini, and it’s already apparent that God is moving in powerful ways for this plant to be both successful and impactful.
Leading up to the launch of Grace City Church, Randall joined our team at Rise City Church from February-July 2015. In this time, he was able to get a firsthand experience in the church planting world, and we rallied our church around their launch. In his time of residency, we saw 3 families from Rise City and 4 families from Momentum feel the call to help plant Grace City. Additionally, we witnessed God’s favor in providing a great location for the new church to call home, and the provision of substantial resources to help ensure the church is funded in the first couple years. Additionally, Randall and his wife, Laura, have made numerous significant contacts with people in the community who they have partnered with so Grace City Church can be an active advocate of UTC’s success overall as a city. It’s been extremely encouraging to witness and be a part of!
Randall, Laura, and their entire team have become family to us in six short months, and we (Rise City Church) are honored and thrilled to watch all that God has in store through Grace City Church. We believe it to be an extension of what God is doing in our midst, in the midst of Momentum in Chula Vista, and throughout San Diego at large! Please be praying for the launch of Grace City Church on October 4, 2015 – the 3rd of 10 plants we believe God has in store over the next 10 years in the San Diego region.
Brandon Grant
Lead Pastor of Rise City Church