Pastors called to 'simple church'
By Joann Groff joann@theacorn.com

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers DEDICATED TO GOD- Pastor Alan Elliott and his wife La Donna take time out from leading the Olivet Foursquare Church congregation in Calabasas.

After serving as missionaries and pastors in parts of Europe, Asia and other areas of the world, Alan Elliott and his wife La Donna said they got a call to move in the direction of a "simple church," Elliott said.

"The concept is to establish small churches, networks of simple facilities where the emphasis is low on financial budget and the focus is on building people so they can develop to their fullest potential," Elliott said.

Elliott and his wife said they dedicated themselves to God when they got engaged almost 30 years ago. After working overseas for 20 years, they worked as pastors back in the United States before starting Calabasas Olivet Foursquare Church.

The Foursquare denomination represents knowing Jesus Christ as savior, healer, baptizer with the Holy Spirit and coming king. Elliott said although they are part of the denomination, they aren't personally only one denominational.

"We've worked interdenominationally, encouraging and preaching to people in all kinds of different churches," Elliott said.

Now they focus on their congregation of two groups- one in Malibu and one in Calabasas. The church's Sunday morning service is in a Malibu home and Sunday evening they gather in the clubhouse of the Elliott's townhouse complex. They also have Bible studies twice each week, one in each location.

"They are two different groups of people," Elliott said. "It's kind of a funny area. People in Malibu by and large wouldn't come to Calabasas for church, and people over here also find it a bit much to drive over the hills especially in the summer when tourist traffic is high."

Elliott says the goal is to bring church into neighborhoods.

"These days they build these big neighborhoods- just houses and if you're lucky a park," Elliott said. "It's the general attitude of our society to push Christianity out just as fast and hard as they can. What a lot of us feel is that God is preparing us for a time that going to the church on the corner is not going to be easy to do. We are going to see church done in different ways."

Elliott referenced Congressional members with plans to remove the tax exemptions churches are granted, which would make it much more difficult for churches to stay open.

With only about 30 members in his congregation, Elliott says that the vibe is different than a traditional church.

"It's smaller, more personal and intimate," Elliott said. "It's not personal in the way of being pushy. We eat together a lot. It's about sharing and being more involved.

"It's not a fellowship where you're going to be anonymous."

Olivet Foursquare Church is at 26336 W. Plata Lane in Calabasas. For more information, call (818) 871-0560.