About Us

Our Story

Early in 1944, fifteen family members chosen farms east of Chilliwack and also created our church. In a few weeks the rented out hall could not accommodate all who would certainly come. Weekly more benches had to be built. It appeared we required our own building, a structure large sufficient to fit our praise events. One guy gave an acre of his farmland, others offered their labour and all provided what they could. Our very first structure was finished as well as we organized as a Mennonite Brethren Church on January 6, 1945.

Prior to the end of 1947, a goal was developed in Laidlaw, a Holy bible School was organized with 58 signed up students and a new church was begun around on Broadway Street with 60 family members. And by 1953 we had a brand-new structure that significantly enhanced our capacity for prayer solutions.

Yet all was not well. Our enthusiasm for God was decreasing. Our following of Jesus had a tendency to be more an issue of maintaining looks and also doing the “best” thing instead of a vibrant relationship with God in which we worked with him to transform our globe. Our absence of authenticity as well as passion was showing and also our actions began to look significantly hypocritical to a younger generation. Much of them left. Customs had become extremely crucial to us and we quarreled over the challenging issues of language and Mennonite heritage. Without recognizing it, we had actually ended up being a “fortress” to preserve a way of living. The practices had actually come to be more important than the function of calling people to comply with Jesus. We were not delighted. It has been observed that these were the years that God began to drink us loose from our past, relocating us from our fortress mindset of preservation to a very early glance of what God desired us to come to be. In time we moved to English services, we involved a pastoral team (for years priests were volunteers) and constructed our existing church in the area. Each transition postured its difficulties.

Although we experienced modest growth as well as ended up being more available to the “churched” community, lots of desired much more. In the late 1990’s, a church crisis that virtually destroyed us brought us back. The pain of conflict, our very own powerlessness and also the call of God integrated. A new humbleness arised. We laid aside our individual choices. Dave McFarlane’s leadership tested our brand-new desire to endeavor forward in reaching individuals for Jesus. This brand-new enthusiasm led to most of us finding and also adhering to Jesus in a fresh as well as powerful way.

In late 2002, a “ReFocusing” procedure happened in which we as a church took time to mirror, clarify and also settle God’s contact us. He has actually taken us back to our origins. Today there is no doubt in our minds. We have to be an area of faith noted by love, mercy as well as truth where browsing people locate hope in Jesus as well as find their location in the bigger story of His “wild” love. It is our petition that God will increasingly change us into a secure, passionate individuals that are affecting thousands of lives as we quietly give up to the call of Christ. We wish to be a risk-free church for all that are wanting to follow Him. He alone gives hope and toughness for the trip of life!