Our Story
And they devoted themselves to the Apostles teaching,
to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers.
And awe came upon everyone… Acts 2:42,43 (Itallics centered)
The families that started Christ Church had moved here from other locations; First 2 couples, and then 12 families met and agreed to commit their time and resources to starting a new church. The first worship service was held in rented space on February 11, 1990.
The church originally affiliated with a Congregational denomination. Our first pastor, Len Silvester, began July, 1990. The new church grew. Our outreach focus was to those new to the area and to the “non-churched.”
We developed a style of worship that focused on praising God, prayerful and friendly, with warm hugs and welcoming words. Christ Church became known in the community for our Needs Ministry (our compassionate outreach arm) which, through “tithing” church offerings and volunteer service provided for some emergency needs of people in the area and events such as the Christmas Eve Dinner for those in need of a meal and companionship.
After a 3-year search, God provided land at our present location. At purchase we donated 7+ acres to the East Greenwich Land Trust for open space to be part of a park system, while the church retained the buildable acres. By 1995 our small church was looking for a new pastoral leader and a clarity of direction.
A God-directed search process led to calling a new pastor. Lyle Mook’s name first surfaced when he was working as a director of a Hospice program in Rhode Island, having previously been the pastor of West Kingston Baptist Church. Lyle accepted the call to become pastor in July 1997.
Two Churches Coming Together
Christ Church was being renewed, and we needed a new affiliation, more compatible with our identity. We felt led to explore a relationship with West Bay Covenant Church, an Evangelical Covenant church with a similar history. They had begun as a “church plant” of Riverside Covenant. The founding pastor, Robert Anderson had also been led to move after many years of fruitful ministry. West Bay Covenant was also in need of land and was seeking God’s next steps. This process led us to the Covenant denomination as a place of partnership. There was clear leading to bring the churches together with a new vision. Worship together began in December 1997, and we formally affiliated with the denomination as Christ Church, Evangelical Covenant in June 1998.
God had created a new Christ Church. The church grew and on Easter of 2000 we added a second service which helped prepare us for the explosive growth about to occur. After a building campaign in which over $1 million dollars was given, we moved into our own building on Post Road (Main Street) in July of 2000. With God’s blessing Christ Church has grown rapidly. A third Sunday morning service was added in 2001 along with Tuesday Evening Worship, focused on prayer, weekly Communion, and healing prayer.
Expansion and Vision
2003 brought more growth and new direction for expansion and vision. We added a new service on Sunday evenings called Santuary that is especially reaching the “emerging culture.” In 2005 The Next Steps Team and Elders began to explore interim growth plans and longer term needs related to the vision God has given. Hundreds of people were attending worship and ministry programs each week. In April 2006, we began a new kind of service, a video venue called Christ Church @ Cole (Jr. High) – simultaneous to the “Main Street” 10 am service. In 2008, we purchased a large office condo space on Cedar Avenue to allow for our expanding staff and more classroom space, while turning our former offices into children’s ministry space. In late 2008, we welcomed Herb Frost as our Sr. Executive Pastor to help develop our staff and ministry leaders and on-going strategy for growth
Multi-site and Next Steps
In November 2009, we began Christ Church - North Kingstown, meeting at North Kingstown High School. This was to both handle our overcrowding and to grow through multi-site 'campuses.' After one year, we have re-gathered and are planning to return to a new Cole Jr. High coupled with new Children's Ministry space that will allow for immediate growth and strengthening of our family ministries. Our on-going vision includes enlarging our current sanctuary and program space and to continue to impact the region as God leads us to launch new communities who will not only be transformed by Christ, but also bring hope and transformation. We want to continue to reach out with the Good News of Jesus in innovative ways to diverse people all over Rhode Island and the surrounding region. We desire to live prayerfully, humbly, and gratefully as God works in and through Christ Church. Glory to God!