Our Story
Three years ago, it was all a dream. A dream for the church to be multiplied throughout Prince George, BC. A realization that acknowledges God longs to restore what is broken. God longs to heal what is sick. God longs to reconcile what is fractured. And God is moving throughout Prince George.
We were sitting at a Crossroads, literally and figuratively. I was meeting with Curtis Reimer (Pastor of College Heights Baptist Church) – a pastor/mentor/friend – at CrossRoads Tap & Kitchen, and God put a crossroad before both of us that we were not expecting. God brought our paths together for a specific reason. Our conversation began by catching up on the last few years since we had seen each other. It led to dreams and aspirations for the future. I shared with Curtis my enjoyment of pastoring a church and teaching at a college in Alberta, yet I believed that one day, God would re-ignite a longing for church planting in me. Curtis paused, stared deeply into my eyes, and asked, “Have you ever thought about planting a church in Prince George?” Instantly, heaviness for the city and for friends and strangers who do not know Jesus washed over me, and I replied, “Yes!”
Our conversation ended with a commitment to prayer for the following months. I shared it with my family, my spiritual director, and other key mentors, and after months of prayer, we decided to share this conversation with the elders of College Heights Baptist Church. Our family decided to commit to church planting, and we developed a church planting proposal for the elders of CHBC and the BC Baptist Association. It was well received and launched us into the next step of the journey. Affirmation after affirmation came, and we continued to step forward in faith.
Stepping forward in faith was a cost greater than we could have imagined. For me and my family, there was a relational cost of leaving friends and family. There was a financial cost as we left reliable paychecks. There was a cost of security as we stepped into the unknown. There was a cost of comfort as we took on something we had never done before. There was a cost of vulnerability as we left our established support systems. There were countless other costs we are still processing.
There would also be costs for the sending church, College Heights Baptist Church. There was the cost of stepping out to do something that had never been done. There was the cost of looking beyond themselves instead of strengthening within. There was a cost of time and energy for the leaders committed to creating a sending church culture. There was a financial cost of supporting a new church plant. There was a relational cost of sending some of their members.
However, we agreed that Jesus is worth risking everything for. A life of discipleship must be one where we do not fear risk and can courageously follow Jesus into the unknown and uncertain. As God calls us, we recognize that it is into a dynamic and adventurous life of faith. David Platt’s words in his book Radical speak to this: “Do we believe He (Jesus) is worth abandoning everything for? Do you and I believe that Jesus is so good, so satisfying, and so rewarding that we will leave all we have, we own, and all we are in order to find our fullness in Him? Do you and I believe Him enough to obey and follow him wherever he leads…?” We do believe Jesus is worth abandoning everything for – wherever He leads. God was clearly leading us to step forward in church planting.
In May 2023, CHBC Elder Chair Chris Bowler presented this to the congregation regarding stepping forward in church planting: “In truth, this idea has been in place long before the past year. When CHBC was planted 50 years ago by Fort George Baptist, the idea was always to plant again once the doors were full. Over the decades, the idea was revisited by various boards and elder councils, but something always seemed to impede making this a reality. But we believe that we’re in a time of flourishing and welcoming so many new people into our church family. The time feels right to us to take this step of faith.” The congregation agreed and is committed to supporting the church plant and taking on the responsibility of becoming a sending church.
On February 17, 2024, Garden City Church will have its first interest meeting. In this meeting, it was communicated that we are planting a new church so that new leaders are empowered to create a movement, new people are engaged with the gospel, and new church cultures are established to reach the city.
We launch GCC on September 15, 2024. Who God has brought to the team, and continues to bring to the team has been remarkable. We are a mix of established followers of Jesus, brand-new followers of Jesus, and people who have not yet made the decision to follow Jesus. We are diverse people from many vocations: health care, youth gang prevention, spiritual directors, trades, pharmacists, correctional officers, chaplaincy, stay-at-home moms, sales, project managers, educators, students, and others. We are all trying to figure out what it means to be followers of Jesus and influence our city from the vocations God has called us to. Seeing more Kingdom outposts of the gospel multiplied throughout a city that desperately needs to know Jesus has been beautiful.
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Our Vision: Growing Together for Renewal
Growing
Practicing the Way of Jesus as Apprentices who order our lives around 3 goals: to be with Jesus, to become like Jesus, and to do what Jesus did.
Together
Building missional communities to intentionally connect people and families and institutions to the life-changing presence of God.
For Renewal
Playing our part to build more than a great church but a great city. A city where people are introduced to Jesus and fulfil their call of extending God’s kingdom.
Our Name
A STORY THAT BEGINS IN A GARDEN...
...AND ENDS IN A GARDEN CITY. The name of our church community is rooted in the story of the Bible, a story that starts in a Garden and ends in a Garden City. It’s the story of God rescuing and redeeming broken people and renewing broken cities, and we believe we're being called to plant a church that will embody this story in every corner of the city.
Garden
In the beginning, God created a beautiful cosmos and placed humanity in a garden. The garden was a place where humanity could experience deep joy in relationship with their creator and creation. A place where they could discover purpose, meaning, and value as beings made in the image of God. A place where God gifted them with the responsibility of ruling and reigning over this world. God left the earth full of potential for humans to create, manage, invent, and take care of this sacred garden. It was a beautiful state of humans experiencing peace (shalom) with God, others, self, and creation. Everything was right. Everything was beautiful. Everything was good. Yet, it would not remain so. Humanity would decide to rule and reign this world as they determined – deceived by an evil entity that proclaimed the lie – God was keeping good from us. They would reject God’s wisdom and direction for life and choose their own. Resulting in evil, injustice, disharmony, and brokenness. The perfection of the garden needed restoration.
City
Restoration would need to come from the creator. God’s future redeemed world and universe is depicted as a ‘city’. Abraham sought the city ‘whose builder and maker is God’ (Hebrews 11.10). The end of the story of Scripture (Revelation 21-22) reveals the future redeemed world as a city. A city that has developed from the garden at the beginning of the story (Rev.21:1-3; Gen. 2:8-10). The Garden was never supposed to stay a garden; it was always supposed to become a garden city. This garden-city of God is the Garden of Eden cultivated and enhanced the way God originally desired. Heaven and Earth are united. Sin and brokenness are no more. All things made new. God’s people ruling over creation with increasing wisdom, skill, and creativity. Living the peace (shalom) of God forever and ever. It is everything humans were created for and everything we long for.
Church
The church exists between these two worlds – the Garden of Eden and the Garden City of New Creation. It exists between what was lost in the Garden of Eden and what is longed for in the Garden City. In the middle of these two realities the identity and mission of the church is rooted in King Jesus and his kingdom. King Jesus has come to bring redemption, reconciliation, and restoration to humanity and to this world through his life, death, burial, and resurrection. Now the risen King calls the church to participate with him in this mission. This is done through the church – God’s people – through God’s powers to further God’s rule and reign. This calling of the church is rooted in Jesus. We cannot be who we are called to be and we cannot do what we are called to do apart from Jesus. Growing in Jesus is the foundation of the church. As we look to Jesus – the author and perfecter of our faith – we begin to look like him by taking our time, talents, and treasures and developing them for the good of the world and the glory of God. All of our existential questions: What does it mean to be human? Why do we exist? What are we here for? What’s our meaning? What’s our purpose? All of the answers are found in discovering that we were created to rule over the earth – to work it, to take care of it, to rule, to subdue, to wrestle, to fight, to explore, and to advance the garden project of creation as an act of service and worship to the God who made us. That’s our meaning, our purpose — it’s why we exist. In the beginning God created; so now shall we! We create places for spiritual practice and prayerfulness (Ps. 48:1-2). We create places to proclaim the gospel (Acts 13:44). We create places for sin to be dealt with (Jam. 5:16). We create places for refuge and rest (Matt. 11:28-30). We create places for mercy and justice (Micah 6:8). We create places of freedom and healing (Gal 4:26). We create places of beauty (Phil. 4:8). We create to join God in his mission of salvation and restoration (Acts 3:19-21). We create for the glory of God (Matt. 5:16, Jn. 15:8). We create for the good of the city (Jer. 33:9).