Special service to commemorate facility planned for Sunday.

[view:node_ad=5]After more than a decade of planning, prayer, and participation, the congregation of Faith Community Church plans to open its new worship center with a Celebration Service scheduled for 10 a.m. on June 29.

 

“This has been a long time coming and we have much to be thankful for,” said Pastor Steve Jackson.  “So many people have played a part in getting us to this point and we look forward to acknowledging their participation.  But more than anything, we’re grateful to God for his faithfulness and we want to celebrate what he has provided for us.”

 

Among the highlights of the Celebration Service will be a special visit by Faith’s former head pastor Craig Miller.  Miller led the congregation for 18 years and was instrumental in guiding the efforts to acquire the site and build the new facility.  He currently serves as senior pastor at Grace Baptist Church in Cedarville, Ohio.

 

Faith Community Church began in 1984 when five families gathered at a home in Valencia with the idea of starting a new church in the fast-growing Santa Clarita Valley.  Miller became pastor shortly thereafter, and the congregation grew steadily, forcing church leaders to find ever-larger meeting spaces over the years.  With each move, acquiring property and building a dedicated facility became a more urgent priority.

 

Twenty-three acres along San Fernando Road that had been the site of a small ranch were purchased in 1996.  Over the next few years, the property was paid off, and plans emerged for a two-story worship center, classroom facility and preschool that would take advantage of the site’s sloping topography.

 

Fueled by faithful giving from the congregation, the first phase of construction began in 2000.  When the structure was completed the congregation moved from rented quarters into modular buildings placed in the parking lots and set about completing the interior improvements.  Months of work weekends saw dozens of church members, painting, laying tile, and making interior improvements to the basement-level classrooms and His Little Lambs preschool.

 

The next step was to finish the main sanctuary.  With a renewed financial commitment from the congregation, the completion of the second floor of the facility, which includes the sanctuary, nursery, kitchen, and infant cry room, got under way in July 2007.  Once again, the congregation pitched in to speed the effort along.  Volunteers framed the stage, installed cabinets, laid tile, and supplemented the work of construction crews however they could.  Eleven months later, the project is complete and the congregation is ready to celebrate God’s faithfulness in providing a functional, beautiful church home they can call their own.

 

The sanctuary features a ceiling that soars 40 feet and is wrapped in tall picture windows that flood the sanctuary with natural sunlight and offer inspiring views of the oak-covered hillsides.  Seating 460 worshippers, the facility is equipped with digital multi-media audio and video along with professional stage lighting.

 

Faith Community Church is located at 24620 Meadowridge Drive, off San Fernando Road, behind the Meadowridge Apartments. More information is available by calling the church office at (661) 259-1741, or visiting www.faithcommunitychurch.com.