Our History
Having been deeply impacted by the Holy Spirit during a Vineyard conference in May 1985, Hart & Louise Loewen began meeting with a small group in their home in May 1986. The sense was that, “since God has done so much in our lives, how much more does he also want to do in other people’s lives”. They had a strong vision to see people come to know Jesus, and to experience the healing and freedom that the Holy Spirit brings. After 33 years of leading the Penticton Vineyard, Hart retired in 2019. Mike Fornwald is our new Lead Pastor; we are excited to continue to walk with Jesus under his leadership.
Along with a real emphasis on worship, the church has continued to press in to doing the words and the works of Jesus. We have had the privilege of seeing numerous people come to faith in Jesus, and experience physical and spiritual healing from the Father.
Since its inception, Penticton Vineyard has grown and as a result has met in seven different locations. We have been in our present facility since March, 2003.
We count it a real privilege to be one part of the larger body of Christ in Penticton, and see ourselves as serving along with the rest of the city pastors and churches to see the Kingdom of God advanced in Penticton and area.
The Vineyard Movement
In one sense, Vineyard Christian Fellowship was born out of repentance. In 1976 Carol Wimber began to develop an insatiable hunger for God. She saw her own religious expertise and opinions in the light of his truth and began to seek him. Carol retreated to her bedroom for weeks on end, weeping, repenting, crying out to God. Soon she left her place of hiding and sought those who she had wronged through harsh and misdirected instruction. Not long afterward, many of these people began to meet together to worship God and pray. This small group seemed innocent enough, but God had given Carol a vision that these people would one day be a mighty church.
As this small fellowship began to grow, their home church became alarmed and the growing group was asked and blessed to leave. Knowing only that they had a new heart for God, they decided to make an organizational effort to begin formal services and on Mother’s Day, 1977, Bob Fulton led the first meeting in Yorba Linda. Soon Carol’s husband, John, resigned his position at Fuller Evangelistic Association to lead the fellowship. By 1978 their first facility was too small, and the group began meeting at a Junior High School.
Early on the church became part of the Calvary Chapel system. It was a young church then, with the median age around 23. Calvary Chapel Yorba Linda, as they were then called, began to develop a reputation as being a church that was a little “out of control.” God had already instilled within them the priority of worship. As worship songs were sung, sometimes for an hour, people wept, raised their hands and knelt on the floor. Not only was worship slightly outside the norm, but soon the church began to experience God’s supernatural power. It became evident that the church was going in a different direction than the Calvary Chapel philosophy. They made an amicable change to the name Vineyard Christian Fellowship, the name used by a small group of churches originally started by Kenn Gulliksen.
The church at this time began to grow in an astounding way. God began gifting them with evangelism. During 1978-79 approximately 1,000 people were baptized and by the time they moved to Anaheim in late ’83 they had already filled their new facility with 2,000 people. As Anaheim became their home, the priority of sending began to take effect.
What began as a small group of 15 people was truly becoming a movement as the few initial Vineyards quickly began to multiply first on the west coast of the U.S. then across the country, into Canada, England and eventually throughout the world. Since that time the movement has grown and matured. In 1995, Canada was the first nation to be released to their own National Association followed by England in the spring of 1996. This marked the beginning of a new stage of development in the Vineyard: the forming of a consortium of nations joined together by God for the common purpose of extending the Kingdom of God in every nation.
The central ingredient in experiencing this favour in the past and present is also the key to the future a hunger for God that was nurtured in Carol’s heart in the privacy of her bedroom. If we will keep that focus as our primary concern we can be assured of his continued mercy and blessing.
The Vineyard In Our Nation
The first Vineyard in Canada began on the west coast in a suburb of Vancouver called Langley. In the fall of 1984, approximately thirty adults were blessed and released by an independant church to plant a new church in Langley. It was clear to the leadership team of this new church that God had implanted the Vineyard vision in their hearts and that was confirmed in John Wimber’s as well. As a result the first Canadian Vineyard emerged in January of 1985. Within a year a second Vineyard was established in the Vancouver area and the movement had begun.
Within a few years more Vineyards began to spring up across the country first in Southern Ontario then Atlantic Canada and then the Prairie provinces. By the time of the release of the Association of Vineyard Churches Canada in the summer of 1995 and the appointment of Gary and Joy Best as National Director of Canada, there had been fifty Vineyards established across the country. We believe that there is a particular call upon the Canadian Vineyard to be a model of the mosaic of diversity within unity that Jesus desires to establish in his church. In spite of the challenges of distance and regional diversity, the Vineyard in Canada has been marked by a developing and encouraging unity and teamwork both within and across geographic areas. We also eagerly desire to share resources and strengthen one another.
As is the case with all Vineyards, we are committed to a church planting vision within Canada so that we can play our part in the larger body of Christ in making disciples throughout our country. We also expect to increasingly participate in Christ’s mission around the world as we go into many nations with the Good News. We have a big vision but we are encouraged by the fact that the One who has called us is faithful!