By Lori EhdeThere’s a new man at the helm of the tri-state’s New Life Celebration Church, and he says he’s up to the challenge of growing the fledgling congregation started only two years ago.He said he views his new job as a "challenge and opportunity," especially considering it’s his first foray into true contemporary worship and a small-group church."God has placed a vision in my heart for quite a long time," Olsen said. "I’ve been looking for a way of doing church differently … returning to a First Century model described in the New Testament."For example, he said Acts 2:46-48, describes a sense of community, worshipping and learning together in small groups."Jesus taught, ‘Reach out to the least among us.’ For too long we’ve turned inward and taken care of each other within the church when Jesus commands us to go out," Olsen said. "There’s got to be balance between evangelism and community-building."His personal views blend well with the vision of New Life Church: "To discover God’s call and purpose for living."Olsen said, "A question that New Life Celebration Church must constantly ask is, ‘How do we empower people to discover God’s purpose for their lives and live out that purpose every day?’"New Life’s mission statement is: "To worship joyfully, to live prayerfully, to love unconditionally, to reach out intentionally, to fellowship with others regularly, to make disciples naturally, to celebrate God’s grace openly."Olsen preached a few sermons earlier this year to the New Life congregation, which meets for Sunday services at 10 a.m. in the elementary school in Beaver Creek.His official start date was Nov. 1, and he said he’s looking forward to forming friendships and partnerships with area pastors and church leaders.Olsen was ordained in 1993 through the Presbyterian Theological Seminary at the University of Dubuque.He most recently served as pastor of the United Presbyterian Church of Christ in Le Mars, Iowa.He and his wife of 30 years, Marti, have three grown children.New Life Celebration office is located in the Brandenburg Gallery building on East Main Street in Luverne.Plant a seed, nurture itand watch it growOlsen comes to New Life Church at a time when its congregation is establishing a place of its own among organized churches in the tri-state area.New Life Celebration Church is a "daughter congregation" to Luverne’s American Reformed Church and started primarily with ARC members in July 2002.Since then it has grown to include more than 400 members, with 150 worshiping regularly.Rev. J.R. Henderson works for the Reformed Church of America as a "church plant missionary."Following the Acts 2 worship model, he said his churches look for ways to involve the otherwise "unchurched" in the community and to do that in very practical tangible ways."We want our ministry to be relevant to people in the 21st Century," he said. "People want the benefits of spirituality without the barriers of established religion."With New Life Church now thriving here, he said it’s time to move on."We’re giving birth to two more churches," Henderson said, "one in Fairmont and one in Prior Lake."He said he’ll miss the members in New Life, but he doesn’t get possessive about the churches he plants. "We prefer to view this as a passing of the baton," Henderson said. "It’s not my church. … Anything that is alive grows and changes."