Join us for worship Sundays at 10:30 am
740 North 70th Street Lincoln, NE 68505
(402) 489-5400
Our Pastors
Dr. Connie Dawson became the lead pastor of Radiant Church in 2011. Pastor Connie is known for her straightforward, high impact preaching and teaching with divine revelation, which brings the Scriptures to life, and generates a hunger for more of His presence. Believers are established in foundational truths as she delivers powerful insights from the Word of God. She is an intercessor who seeks to have a deep and personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and the anointing she experiences in ministry is an overflow of her time of intimate prayer, worship, and waiting on God. Pastor Connie has a MA in Theology, a Master of Divinity, a MBA from the University of Colorado, and a Ph.D. in Renewal History and Theology from Regent University, VA Beach.
Dr. Dawson and Bruce served as missionaries in China for five years where Connie worked with church leaders and taught in the underground Bible schools, and Bruce taught in government universities. They also served for five years in the Philippines at the Asia Pacific Theological Seminary where Bruce worked as the assistant business administrator, and Connie ministered with local pastors and traveled as an international conference speaker and teacher.
Currently, in addition to pastoring, Dr. Dawson is a professor for Global Awakening Theological Seminary where she teaches Church and Revival History. She is an ordained minister with the Apostolic Network of Global Awakening. Before entering full time ministry, she was the founder and administrative director of Cardiology at Saint Elizabeth Medical Center here in Lincoln.
Pastor Connie and her husband Bruce have two married sons and six grandchildren.
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Dr. Connie & Bruce Dawson
Lead Pastor & Associate Pastor
Check out this video interview of Pastor Connie by Global Awakening CFO, Randy Clark.
R.C. and Julia Fries joined the staff at Radiant Church in the summer of 2021 as associate pastors. They met while attending Nebraska Christian College, where they both graduated with associate degrees in ministry. Julia went on to graduate with her bachelor's in ministry from Oral Roberts University. At 18, R.C. had a radical encounter with God, which brought him to salvation and received a call into ministry. Having grown up in Lincoln, R.C.'s heart is to see the city of Lincoln saved and brought into revival. Julia felt God's call to serve the church from a young age and even gave her first sermon at seven while serving in Mexico. Having grown up as a pastor's kid, Julia received Christ as a child.
Both R.C. and Julia have a great love for the body of Christ and a desire to see the lost saved. They serve in many areas of the church including administration, worship, youth and connect groups. R.C. and Julia have three young kids. They love to build, garden, camp, and worship together as a family.
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R.C. & Julia Fries
Associate Pastors
David & Lynn Burrows
Assistant Pastors
Pastors David and Lynn Burrows, along with their son Levi have been in ministry for 15 years. They have been pastors in northern Lincoln for 13 years. They have been instrumental in bringing unity among various pastors in Lincoln through fellowship and prayer.
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Pastor David has been filled with and led by the Holy Spirit for 45 years. David is devoted to prayer in order to find the mind of God. David’s desire is for the body of Christ to become one and fulfill the calling of God. David has a heart for evangelism and outreach wanting to reach all he can for the kingdom of God.
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Lynn has been filled with the Holy Spirit for 35 years and has various giftings in administration, organization and prayer.
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Their heart is to join Pastor Connie and Radiant Church for growth, both in numbers and in the development of the members and their various gifting, in order for the body become strong in the Lord. They have a desire to see the body of Christ healed and whole.
Rachel Gaarder
Children's Pastor
Rachel was born and raised in a Pentecostal church and began ministering to children as a young teenager. Rachel holds an associate degree in Multimedia design and a Bachelor's degree with emphases in Media Arts and Administration. In addition, she and her husband Bradley attended Christ for the Nations Institute in Dallas where they both earned a degree in Practical Ministry Theology. Rachel and Bradley have been members of Radiant Church under Pastor Connie Dawson since 2012.
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Rachel has a desire to lead children to discover who they were created to be and to connect them with a more intimate relationship with Christ.
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