Doors open; ready to do God’s will

Three years ago at 3590 Mars, there was nothing there. It was an empty lot and just a dream.

Calvary Chapel Pastor John Jimenez has come full circle and his dream is finally ready to open its doors. Where there was nothing, there now stands three buildings, two office buildings and a residence and the open house will be this Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. They will be serving food and drinks and all are welcome.

“Thanks to the community of Pahrump, we are ready to open our doors,” Pastor John Jimenez said.

Jimenez came to Pahrump three years ago to open up a U-Turn for Christ facility on a 5-10 acre lot at the western end of Highway 372.

His passion for his ministry stems from the fact that he was a product of a U-Turn for Christ in 2001. He was a methamphetamine addict and so he knows firsthand how well the routine works.

He said he was given this second chance and now he is giving back to the Pahrump community in hopes of giving others that second chance.

There are currently 17 other ranches, but according to Pastor Jimenez, the director of the new ranch in Pahrump, this will be the first ranch built from the ground up.

When the residents do arrive, there will be up to 16 of them. They will be taught about God and do work in the community.

U-Turn for Christ is sponsored by Calvary Chapel of Pahrump and is a residential drug and alcohol program dealing with men and women who are seeking restoration from drug and alcohol addiction through God. It’s called a discipleship ministry.

“We change lives, restore families, make people productive and strengthen communities,” he said. Being a discipleship ministry, we bring people back to God. We bring discipline to their lives.”

He explained normal rehab facilities work toward a goal of making you sober. He said U-Turn gets you sober and then takes it one step further.

“We teach people to think with a sober mind,” he said. “The extra step is necessary because people can be sober and still beat their wives.”

He said the first step though is surrendering to God.

“Take a bunch of soldiers in cadence, if you jump out of line that disrupts the marching,” he said. “To get you back in line you might have to do a 180 or an about-face. That’s what we do with people’s lives. We take things to a different level than other facilities by teaching holiness and teaching them how not to give into the yearning of the flesh.”

Jimenez said at the moment they are open for business, but are not at the full capacity.

“We have four beds now, but are waiting for more beds to be built and that takes money,” he said. “Each bed costs about $1,000 to build, $500 for the construction and another $500 for the mattress.”

Jimenez hopes after the funding is available, to set up a women’s ranch in the community too.

Contact sports editor Vern Hee at vhee@pvtimes.com