Lead Pastor Search Update

From Chris Yarco, Lead Executive

From 1957 to 2016, Willamette Christian Church was a single site campus in the city of West Linn. Planted by a group of 40 members of Oregon City Christian Church (and with three years of financial help from churches like Milwuakie Christian and Beaverton Christian), WCC was birthed in the upper room of the Fire Station in West Linn. As we grew, we acquired and built our church on the corner of 10th and 8th Street in downtown historic Willamette. Over the years as our church grew and changed, we added space to that building multiple times, moved our services offsite on Sundays to Rosemont Ridge Middle School (for 8 years), and through the generosity of the WCC family, built our current facility here on the hill – opening in 2009. Since that time, we’ve made three major updates to the building and property to serve the growing ministry here.

Our Church Today

Today, WCC is part of a multi-site church with locations in Beaverton (that same Beaverton Christian Church that helped plant and underwrite WCC in the early days!) and Milwaukie – a combined church that is made up of a church plant called Hope City and a seasoned church called Milwaukie Christian (that same Milwaukie Christian Church that helped plant and underwrite WCC in the early days!). Our history is made ever more rich because of the beauty of unity and investment by other churches in our city who helped WCC get their start. Our Vision to inspire people to know, love and follow Jesus is accompanied by our mission to ensure that we have healthy thriving churches in neighborhoods that need them, and to reach the most people possible, in the healthiest ways possible. The move to a multi-site church model has been integral in helping us live out that mission. And while we diligently pursue the person who will lead the team at WCC and help continue creating a healthy and thriving church here in West Linn, we have the strength of a much larger church team to help serve during this season of transition.

Our Team

Our Worship Team leads out each week at every campus – a team of over 50 musicians who love Jesus and who seek to help us prepare our hearts and minds to enter into truly worshiping our King each Sunday. Our teaching team consists of Lead Pastors Jon Furman, Daniel Knutson, and 9 others who bring education, experience, preparation and enthusiasm to help us learn more about who God is, what He’s asking us to do, and teach us how to do it. We have a local staff at the WCC campus – and a Central staff (individuals who help all campuses and help reduce operational overhead), that lead our “Pillar Ministries” like Community Life, Children’s, Students, Missions, Men’s, Women's and marriages and families. When you combine all this with the hundreds of WCC folks who volunteer to lead and serve ministries, we feel that our new Lead Pastor will join a truly exceptional team.

What’s Next

Our Elders and Executive Leadership team are refining decisions regarding the next season at WCC as we meet and speak with people who we believe will love and serve the WCC campus and our overall church for years to come. We remain focused on hiring a leader who will embody our values of Uncommon Humility, Sacrificial Generosity, and Radical Hospitality, and demonstrates a vision and a passion to engage people at every level in their walk with Jesus. It’s a tall order, but we have faith in our very big God. We are grateful for your continued prayers, your enthusiasm for the ministry, and your trust and faith in God’s Spirit to lead us and guide us. We look forward to sharing more with you soon!

PS, don’t forget to grab your blanket or beach chairs and join us on Sunday, August 27th for our One Service at 11:00 AM followed by a Block Party with Baptisms, Free Food, and Outrageous Music and fun!

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. Hebrews 10:24-26

Respectfully,

Chris Yarco