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Canyon Community Church

Place

Canyon Community Church

610 Paseo Del Rey, Chula Vista

Membership: 150

Denomination: Christian and Missionary Alliance

Pastor: Art Lyons

Age: 59

Born: San Diego

Formation: Vision International University, Ramona

Years Ordained: 30

Pastor Art Lyons

San Diego Reader: What is your favorite subject on which to preach?

Pastor Art Lyons: It would be probably the salvation message — an evangelistic message because that’s the most lasting message a person could preach. It has eternal value for listeners.

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SDR: What is your main concern as a member of the clergy?

PA: If people don’t get an opportunity to hear about Christ and salvation, I think there’s eternal consequences, and that would be the most important thing. I think as far as a social message goes, my concern would be that…society doesn’t want to deal with the poor and those coming out of prison and jail. It mucks up the neighborhood, you know? As we get more affluent in San Diego or whatever city, we want to get the people that are sick, homeless or not seemingly status quo in society — and we want to sequester them.

SDR: Where’s the most surprising place you found God?

PA: Drinking Budweiser and watching Charlton Heston. I was in and out of jail, addicted to alcohol, and pretty messed up psychologically. I couldn’t quit drinking and I couldn’t overcome the fears that caused me to drink. So one night, while watching Cecil B. DeMille’s movie The Ten Commandments, I cried out to God, “I don’t know how you did all these miracles but somehow I believe you did them and I need a miracle!” I think God at that point asked me three questions — three questions that were basically the same: “Why don’t you become a Christian?” Through those questions, I was led to the place where I said, “If you can do this for me and bring peace into my life, I’ll give you my life. I’ll give it a chance.” I didn’t know how that will work and I don’t get it — I thought I’d be bored stiff as a Christian because I was that sort of rock-n-roll long-haired ratty-looking guy. That wasn’t my picture of what Christians were. But that night something had changed in me, I wasn’t sure of what, and the next day I didn’t have a desire to drink; I still had problems, but I didn’t have a desire to drink. Previous to that, I had to get drunk every day.

SDR: What is the mission of your church?

PA: The mission of our church is to reach people for Christ and to disciple them. Also our church is based on the family community more than any other thing.

SDR: Where do you go when you die?

PA: I believe you go to one of two places. You go to heaven or you go to hell. Those who believe in Jesus Christ and what he came to do on this earth go to heaven, and those who reject that message — specifically reject the message of Christ — would go to hell. I’m not going to say that the only people who make it into Heaven have to hear the Gospel story. I think that God has declared Himself and made Himself known to us by nature, by creation itself and its majesty, and miraculous declarations that creation shows us.

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Place

Canyon Community Church

610 Paseo Del Rey, Chula Vista

Membership: 150

Denomination: Christian and Missionary Alliance

Pastor: Art Lyons

Age: 59

Born: San Diego

Formation: Vision International University, Ramona

Years Ordained: 30

Pastor Art Lyons

San Diego Reader: What is your favorite subject on which to preach?

Pastor Art Lyons: It would be probably the salvation message — an evangelistic message because that’s the most lasting message a person could preach. It has eternal value for listeners.

Sponsored
Sponsored

SDR: What is your main concern as a member of the clergy?

PA: If people don’t get an opportunity to hear about Christ and salvation, I think there’s eternal consequences, and that would be the most important thing. I think as far as a social message goes, my concern would be that…society doesn’t want to deal with the poor and those coming out of prison and jail. It mucks up the neighborhood, you know? As we get more affluent in San Diego or whatever city, we want to get the people that are sick, homeless or not seemingly status quo in society — and we want to sequester them.

SDR: Where’s the most surprising place you found God?

PA: Drinking Budweiser and watching Charlton Heston. I was in and out of jail, addicted to alcohol, and pretty messed up psychologically. I couldn’t quit drinking and I couldn’t overcome the fears that caused me to drink. So one night, while watching Cecil B. DeMille’s movie The Ten Commandments, I cried out to God, “I don’t know how you did all these miracles but somehow I believe you did them and I need a miracle!” I think God at that point asked me three questions — three questions that were basically the same: “Why don’t you become a Christian?” Through those questions, I was led to the place where I said, “If you can do this for me and bring peace into my life, I’ll give you my life. I’ll give it a chance.” I didn’t know how that will work and I don’t get it — I thought I’d be bored stiff as a Christian because I was that sort of rock-n-roll long-haired ratty-looking guy. That wasn’t my picture of what Christians were. But that night something had changed in me, I wasn’t sure of what, and the next day I didn’t have a desire to drink; I still had problems, but I didn’t have a desire to drink. Previous to that, I had to get drunk every day.

SDR: What is the mission of your church?

PA: The mission of our church is to reach people for Christ and to disciple them. Also our church is based on the family community more than any other thing.

SDR: Where do you go when you die?

PA: I believe you go to one of two places. You go to heaven or you go to hell. Those who believe in Jesus Christ and what he came to do on this earth go to heaven, and those who reject that message — specifically reject the message of Christ — would go to hell. I’m not going to say that the only people who make it into Heaven have to hear the Gospel story. I think that God has declared Himself and made Himself known to us by nature, by creation itself and its majesty, and miraculous declarations that creation shows us.

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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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