New Destiny bridges technology, faith
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Posted by DW Editoron April 27, 2012in Faith
by Sarah Grano
Mike Teeter, pastor of New Destiny Community Church, uses video, blogs and Facebook.com to reach out to his congregation and beyond. (Sarah Grano/DW photo)
DENVER – New Destiny Community Church found a permanent home in January. Now, its pastor is focused on sending the message of God’s love through all mediums possible including sermons, Facebook, Twitter and podcasts.
“It’s about loving God and loving people, and people knowing when they come to our doors and spend time with us that we’re going to love them as a person, and we care about them,” said pastor and church founder Mike Teeter. “It’s about a community.”
The church was founded in early 2009 by Teeter and his wife, Melissa. Initially, the Teeters used a trailer to move church supplies such as sound equipment to temporary locations. They’ve had services at East Lincoln High School, their home and Westport Country Club.
“We really appreciate the club at Westport,” Teeter said. “It really helped us amp up and get connected more to the Denver area.”
Getting connected to the Denver area is what Teeter wanted to do.
“I just felt a desire, God’s call, to plant a church, and I was looking in this area,” he said.
The church found its home this winter at 626 N.C. 16 S. It has about 30 members and meets at 6 p.m. Sunday. It also holds prayer meetings on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. or 7:30 p.m.
“Church is about people,” Teeter said. “You don’t have to have a building, but it sure is nice to have a home, and we’re thankful.”
Services at the church include video clips and dramas. Teeter also regularly sends out tweets, posts on the church’s Facebook page and updates his blog with video podcasts.
During his years as a youth pastor and associate pastor, his church had a bulletin every Sunday and a newsletter, but things have changed.
“That’s all good then, but now it’s easier to do a two-minute video or twitter post or email,” Teeter said. “A high majority of people, they don’t want a piece of paper anymore.”
He believes people can be reached through technology.
“It’s an avenue to people who are looking for a church, but also those who, even if they never come, they’ll be ministered to from the podcast from the website.”
New Destiny Community Church also reaches out to people in other ways. Its members have made twisty balloons at Denver Days and handed out water during Denver’s fireworks display.
“We want to be part of the community,” Teeter said. “We’re not out there preaching. We’re just out there being part of things in the community.”
He said New Destiny Community Church wants to make connections with other Denver churches even if there are differences in Christian denominations.
“We still can agree on the foundation of things that are true to the Christian faith, and we can both grow, and we can both be connected to God and we can be connected to each other,” Teeter said.
Want to know more?
For more information, visit newdestiny
denver.org, email info@newdestiny.org or call 704-947-3829. The church is located at 626 N.C. 16 S., a mile south of the intersection of N.C. 16 and N.C. 73.
