Making champions For Christ, In the home, In
the community, In the world
Pastor Danny Hand
The call
A few years ago, I was driving to work and got the morning call from my son Jordan that I always look forward to. We started with our usual formalities, “How’s school? How’s baseball? How’s your future wife doing?” As we were coming to the end of the conversation, my son asked me a question out of left field, “Hey dad, what’s your vision for the next five years?” It was an unusually piercing question to have my son ask. Defensively, I wanted to say, “Look champ, I’m dad, a coach, & Pastor, are you trying to insinuate that my vision is lacking & I should be doing more?!” But I didn’t, because deep down, once I peeled back my offended layers and heard him carefully, I realized what he was truly saying was this, “You and mom have been giving your all for our mission, now you can give your all to yours.”
For the past 20 years, I have been pastoring a small church in Las Vegas, and running a cleaning business. I am proud of my 25 year marriage, and the parents that Margaret and I have been. I came to Vegas with radical intentions and am now ready to transition into my next chapter and walk fearlessly in faith to reach those, for Him.
The Journey
In 1997, we were Youth Pastors at Wyckoff Assembly of God in New Jersey. It was such a great experience which forged the foundation for ministry and friendships that are still strong to this day. We could sense a shift was coming at the end of our fourth year, and felt that God put it on our heart to go to Las Vegas and disciple the unchurched. I was hungry to see His transformational power in the lives of people who felt lost and broken. I felt called to fight for the underdog! Up to that point in our Christian walk, most of our circle was growing and doing life with other believers within the local church. In January of 1998, we left N.J. and began our journey to the city of Las Vegas, as state side pastors/missionaries.
Sin City here we come! We were excited to come serve along with my father, who had begun the pioneering process about a year earlier. We had no job, no guarantees, very little money, and zero financial mission support, just a hope and a dream. Simply put, we had to trust the Lord, so I set out to find a job like every other working person and made it happen. Full of vision and passion, I remember telling Margaret, “Honey, in six months we will be full time paid pastors and devote all of our time to ministry.” Well I missed that by just a bit. We experienced a culture shock to say the least. It was not unusual to have gang bangers, strippers, ex-convicts, or people that once identified as gay in our congregation.