LifeBridge Takes the Acts 2 Journey

LifeBridge Community Church in Fresno, Calif., is one of six satellite campuses of Canyon Hills Assembly of God in Bakersfield, and Kevin and Ellen Foster have pastored LifeBridge since it opened in 2005. The church is in an ethnically diverse part of northern Fresno that is 92 percent unchurched.

In December 2017, after 12 years of meeting weekly in temporary locations (schools and banquet halls) in Fresno, the LifeBridge congregation moved into a newly constructed facility, their first permanent building.

Over the years Pastor Foster has led LifeBridge in developing ministries that are as diverse as the community the church serves. In addition to community outreaches, the church has focused on reaching out to children in Fresno’s schools. Currently, LifeBridge conducts multiple outreach events each year at as many as 12 elementary, middle and high schools. (Ellen is a schoolteacher at William Saroyan Elementary in Fresno, and Kevin has volunteered as a crossing guard for the school.)

“Churches everywhere need what is offered through the one-year Acts 2 Journey. This is such a priceless resource. Thank you, AGTrust partners, for your faithful giving, which is helping us at LifeBridge learn new ways to make an eternal impact on our community.”

–Pastor Kevin Foster

Recently, Canyon Hills AG requested that Pastor Kevin and a leadership team from LifeBridge, along with pastors and teams from Canyon Hills’ five other satellite campuses, participated in four Acts 2 Journey cohort sessions being sponsored by the Southern California AG District. (The Acts 2 Journey Initiative, a one-year process to help churches pursue better health and growth, is directed by Alton Garrison, assistant superintendent of the U.S. Assemblies of God.)

“Although LifeBridge has consistently demonstrated a firm commitment to outreach through the years, the church had a definite need for discipleship and growth,” Kevin says. “The Acts 2 sessions caused me to realize the need to significantly empower our LifeBridge lay leaders to be released in the areas of their ministry giftings.”

LifeBridge will start the one-year Acts 2 Journey in the next few months, but Kevin and the leadership team have already started implementing principles they learned from the four Acts 2 sessions with the district, and the church is seeing positive results.

“Our Sunday morning attendance has increased from 300 to 400,” Kevin says. “In addition, we are starting a lot of new ministries and seeing growth in our core discipleship groups. We are focusing on building up and empowering leaders, and as a result our Team LifeBridge volunteers have increased in number from 100 to 160.”

LifeBridge Community Church in Fresno, Calif., conducts multiple outreach events each year in the community and at as many as 12 elementary, middle and high schools.

This group of respite night volunteers from LifeBridge Community Church ministers to families with special needs in the Fresno community.