The first Vineyard east of Ontario was birthed in Lr.Sackville in 1987 among a small group of spiritually hungry believers longing for more of God and a new way of doing church. Many of us were from a Baptist tradition, others had just recently come to know Jesus and were experimenting with praying for healing and extended times of intimate worship. The co pastors at that time were Steven and Sharon MacPherson and Larry and Karen Levy. Glen and Peggy Lucas were part of the leadership team.
We began meeting as Good Shepherd Community Church, holding our first meeting March 1987 in Harry R. Hamilton Elementary School, in Middle Sackville. Evangelism and mission work were outlets for the passion the Lord was stirring in us. We established small home groups as places to learn and grow, providing safe places to honestly deal with relationships and sin. Learning to be real, to be transparent, was hard for some, but was life-giving for many of us. We were a growing body, but we needed a "family." In 1988, the pastors traveled to Birmingham, Alabama to attend a Vineyard conference. There the Lord revealed to them that the Vineyard was our family.
Steve invited the Birmingham Vineyard pastor to hold a conference here so the whole church could see what the Vineyard was about. God had other plans, and when the pastor couldn't attend, Kenn and Joannie Gullicksen came to Nova Scotia instead. Kenn was founder of the Vineyard (pre-John Wimber) so it was amazing for us to be able to have Kenn & Joannie here at our new little church. Kenn ran a conference entitled, "The Process of Salvation". A better title would be "There's no way around repentance!" This was a very important issue for us, considering the circumstances surrounding our birth as a church. The need for repentance, and the need to forgive others, is a foundational truth. Kenn taught us not to interfere when the Holy Spirit is dealing with someone's sin, rather pray, "get 'em God." We found out it is better to get messy and free, than stay neat and in bondage to sin. God has led this church through many seasons, and the lessons have not been easy. In the early years, change was the one constant feature!
In 1988, we were "adopted", becoming the first Vineyard Church in Atlantic Canada. We learned to pray for the sick using John Wimber's five step model and we began to see people healed. There is an amazing list of healings that have happened over the years. Praying for the sick, casting out demons, getting free from past sins, all of this God used to build his church out of broken people. We called ourselves wounded soldiers. Most of this healing was happening through kinships. As people get healed, the desire to share God's mercy becomes very strong. The Vineyard attitude is to give away what God is giving you. So in 1990, several men and women trained as sidewalk counselors to reach women at the newly opened abortion clinic.
This was a challenging time as we tried to hear from God about how to rescue the perishing. In 1991 we invited Dr. John White to come to Halifax to lead a conference called Holy Passion. The only location available was the Casino Theatre on Gottingen Street. We didn't know then, but God was moving his hand to move our hearts. Holding this Holy Passion conference in the midst of the night life of north end Halifax, God began to show us His heart for the city. We were being called to a kingdom adventure.
Gary Best, national overseer for the Vineyard, visited Halifax and spoke of his church's ministry to the poor. The Lord gave Steve Isaiah 58 as a mandate for our church, and he began to speak about building a beachhead in the city. After much prayer, we leased a street front office on Gottingen Street, and began Lamb's Lunch. This was a free restaurant where we served hot meals to more than 100 women and children, three days a week. The meals were prepared and served by women in our church, and God provided many opportunities to share the gospel and pray for the sick, lonely and hurting. We continued this ministry for five years. People in the North End grew to see us as friends, and we saw God move in awesome and miraculous ways. (Ex: the bitter stew; Barb's pot always having "a couple more servings.")
God taught us much about his heart for the poor and how to see with his eyes. It was hard work, but this was "boot camp" for many of us who needed to learn what kingdom ministry is really about. It was hard to see people in such difficult circumstances. But we learned the principles of kingdom ministry: to only do what the Father is doing, to show God's love in practical ways, to love what God loves and hate only what he hates, to learn to see with spiritual eyes the real person God sees. (Ex. Marching on McCully Street - later feeding the workers; having a baby shower for a baby saved from abortion.) Women from the Halifax and Truro Vineyards served there week after week, seeing Jesus walk among the poor. We felt so close to the Lord, for serving the poor revealed our own poverty, and in the end, we received far more than we gave. It was an amazing experience. But it was preparing us for the next thing.
We were learning to give away what God was giving us, but we also had to learn to release the people God had given us. For two years, people from Truro had been traveling to Sackville to attend the Halifax Vineyard. In April 1993, Larry and Karen planted the Truro Vineyard, joining a team of about 20 people from the region. It was hard to see people we loved being sent out, but we knew that God had called us to be church planters. When Larry left, we were giving up our only worship leader. But over the years, God blessed us so now we have many worship leaders. Kingdom principles in action. Give and it will be given unto you, for the purpose of giving again. (John Wimber said: "You give, to get, to give.")
In 1993, we moved the church into Halifax, leasing a space next to the Lamb's Lunch. This move caused a few families who were not comfortable with the north end to leave the church. But our numbers would soon increase as God began to pour out renewal. In May 1994 our church experienced the Toronto Blessing as the Holy Spirit fell on adults and children alike. We met every night, and the 50 adults soon turned to 150, as God sent people night after night, and we continued to give away what God was giving us. We were to learn another lesson in kingdom ministry that would be come part of our church's DNA. We were called to be "foot washers for the body of Christ." We were to serve in humility all who came, for it was not about us, it was all about Jesus. We learned to be more discerning, and learned to hear His voice in the midst of the crowd. In the summer of 1994, we sent off another family, Jim and Mary Rennicks, to plant a Vineyard in Ottawa.
By 1997, the Lord began to show us that our time in the city was over. We moved back to Sackville, and began meeting in Millwood High. It felt like we had been wandering in the desert for ten years, only to end up back where we began. We believe God brought us back to Sackville to be better equipped to do the work of evangelism He had first called us to, and to build a strong base for more outreach. Steve and his family moved to Manitoba to explore further ministry opportunities, and Larry and Karen came back from Truro to take over as lead pastors here. Glen and Peggy came on staff as associate pastors at that time.
In October 1997, we hosted a regional Atlantic Vineyard Conference at the Westin in Halifax. The Lord had done a great work in Glen bringing much freedom in his life, and the conference was the result of our desire to see reconciliation between people of different race and background. The Lord had given Larry a vision of building a church of many colors, and breaking down walls between people groups is work the Lord has been preparing for us.
In 1997, we raised the down payment to purchase the land where we now have the family ministry center. In 1998, Larry went on a sixteen day mission trip to India, Nepal and Malaysia, and it stretched our faith to realize we could be part of church planting around the world. This was a strategic time as Larry saw the very beginning stages of a church planting partnership, something that would help later when we began in Rwanda and Burundi.
Before the ministry center was built, we used the original small building and land for community barbeques, family and youth events. That small building saw us pray, laugh, and cry together as we began to grow into a stronger church family. Larry started the School for Equippers and other church training events, and an energetic youth ministry was born in that little building. We filled it with Moms and Tots, and many welcomed the new millenium there with a family celebration. December 2000, we packed it like sardines when our annual Christmas tree lighting turned into the coldest night of the year!
In May 2000, Glen and Peggy had the idea to build an ice cream hut. They simply wanted to meet the people of this community, but the little hut turned into a successful business venture, drawing people from all over the metro area. We began to experience much flavor (or favor) with the community, and we became known as the ice cream church! During 2001, plans for the family ministry center were developed. We longed to make an impact in this community for the Kingdom of God. The concept of outer/inner court (like the temple in the Old Testament) guided our thinking, as we tried to design a non-threatening way for people to come in and glimpse the inner court life of the church. In the fall of 2001, the ground was broken for the Vineyard Family Ministry Center.
As the building went up, everything we had learned so far was tested. But through it all, we continued to make the construction an act of worship as men & women worked hard, and gave sacrificially to make this building a reality. We held our first service in the new sanctuary in Sept. 2002, and on October 20, 2002 gathered pastors and Christians from the metro area, and regional Vineyards to dedicate the building to the Lord. The next year was a year of favor as the Lord began to draw many people to himself, using Alpha's, relationships and the simple hospitality of the cafe and ice cream hut. It was a stretching time for the leaders as we worked to redefine roles and meet the increasing demands of a building, a business and a growing church. But it's all good!
For 15 years, we had been moving from place to place as a 'tent' church, and we're glad to finally have a home base. We see this family ministry center as a place for gathering people and resources, ready for the next adventures God calls us to. In 1991, this church received a prophetic word that we were a fishing vessel. Some people come to church expecting an ocean liner experience, where they can sit back and enjoy the ride. But the Halifax Vineyard is called to be a working fishing vessel. It's going to take every hand on deck to bring the fish in. Glen wrote a rap song that says, "we're doin' the stuff in Jesus name, givin' sight to the blind and healing the lame, seeking the Lord each and every day, 'cause we're doing the stuff in God's own way..." and it can be a lot of fun as we do it together.
The nations have become an increasing focus for our church, a natural progression as we have given ourselves to being light and salt in our own community. In the fall of 2005 we sent Pat, Val, Joel and Brendan Finnerty to church plant in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda. We have a Sending Team that oversees this mission, raising awareness and funds, to ensure the health and development of the Finnerty family. As well, Beth Wood has joined us, as she works with our national development group, Developing Community Among the Poor, and imparts to us God’s heart for all people, drawing from her experiences in Brazil and Angola. She is helping us to take further steps into building relationships with the poor, something that was strong among us when we were in the north end, and now is emerging in new ways in our present setting.
In January 2009, we continued to grow and expand in our mission, with a new vision statement “we are a people with stories to tell…” and a new discipleship process to help people “Know God…Join His story…Change the world”. Our ice cream hut and café continues to draw people from the community and acts like a ‘front porch’ to our missional family. We have developed a busy ‘parent and tot’ indoor playground, which has become another ‘access point’ for those from our community to interact with folks from our church family.
During the latter stages of 2010 and into 2011 we saw the launching of a new church plant led by Todd and Lisa Brousseau, the BLT Community Church (reaching out to the communities of Beechville, Lakeside and Timberlea). We continue to work towards build bridges of understanding with the Native community, and specifically My People International and it’s leader Terry LeBlanc. There is an energy that has come with all the young families and many young ones running around in our midst – we’re excited for all that God has for us in the future It’s our heart to simply hear and obey His voice. It’s how we started, and how we want to continue.
We began meeting as Good Shepherd Community Church, holding our first meeting March 1987 in Harry R. Hamilton Elementary School, in Middle Sackville. Evangelism and mission work were outlets for the passion the Lord was stirring in us. We established small home groups as places to learn and grow, providing safe places to honestly deal with relationships and sin. Learning to be real, to be transparent, was hard for some, but was life-giving for many of us. We were a growing body, but we needed a "family." In 1988, the pastors traveled to Birmingham, Alabama to attend a Vineyard conference. There the Lord revealed to them that the Vineyard was our family.
Steve invited the Birmingham Vineyard pastor to hold a conference here so the whole church could see what the Vineyard was about. God had other plans, and when the pastor couldn't attend, Kenn and Joannie Gullicksen came to Nova Scotia instead. Kenn was founder of the Vineyard (pre-John Wimber) so it was amazing for us to be able to have Kenn & Joannie here at our new little church. Kenn ran a conference entitled, "The Process of Salvation". A better title would be "There's no way around repentance!" This was a very important issue for us, considering the circumstances surrounding our birth as a church. The need for repentance, and the need to forgive others, is a foundational truth. Kenn taught us not to interfere when the Holy Spirit is dealing with someone's sin, rather pray, "get 'em God." We found out it is better to get messy and free, than stay neat and in bondage to sin. God has led this church through many seasons, and the lessons have not been easy. In the early years, change was the one constant feature!
In 1988, we were "adopted", becoming the first Vineyard Church in Atlantic Canada. We learned to pray for the sick using John Wimber's five step model and we began to see people healed. There is an amazing list of healings that have happened over the years. Praying for the sick, casting out demons, getting free from past sins, all of this God used to build his church out of broken people. We called ourselves wounded soldiers. Most of this healing was happening through kinships. As people get healed, the desire to share God's mercy becomes very strong. The Vineyard attitude is to give away what God is giving you. So in 1990, several men and women trained as sidewalk counselors to reach women at the newly opened abortion clinic.
This was a challenging time as we tried to hear from God about how to rescue the perishing. In 1991 we invited Dr. John White to come to Halifax to lead a conference called Holy Passion. The only location available was the Casino Theatre on Gottingen Street. We didn't know then, but God was moving his hand to move our hearts. Holding this Holy Passion conference in the midst of the night life of north end Halifax, God began to show us His heart for the city. We were being called to a kingdom adventure.
Gary Best, national overseer for the Vineyard, visited Halifax and spoke of his church's ministry to the poor. The Lord gave Steve Isaiah 58 as a mandate for our church, and he began to speak about building a beachhead in the city. After much prayer, we leased a street front office on Gottingen Street, and began Lamb's Lunch. This was a free restaurant where we served hot meals to more than 100 women and children, three days a week. The meals were prepared and served by women in our church, and God provided many opportunities to share the gospel and pray for the sick, lonely and hurting. We continued this ministry for five years. People in the North End grew to see us as friends, and we saw God move in awesome and miraculous ways. (Ex: the bitter stew; Barb's pot always having "a couple more servings.")
God taught us much about his heart for the poor and how to see with his eyes. It was hard work, but this was "boot camp" for many of us who needed to learn what kingdom ministry is really about. It was hard to see people in such difficult circumstances. But we learned the principles of kingdom ministry: to only do what the Father is doing, to show God's love in practical ways, to love what God loves and hate only what he hates, to learn to see with spiritual eyes the real person God sees. (Ex. Marching on McCully Street - later feeding the workers; having a baby shower for a baby saved from abortion.) Women from the Halifax and Truro Vineyards served there week after week, seeing Jesus walk among the poor. We felt so close to the Lord, for serving the poor revealed our own poverty, and in the end, we received far more than we gave. It was an amazing experience. But it was preparing us for the next thing.
We were learning to give away what God was giving us, but we also had to learn to release the people God had given us. For two years, people from Truro had been traveling to Sackville to attend the Halifax Vineyard. In April 1993, Larry and Karen planted the Truro Vineyard, joining a team of about 20 people from the region. It was hard to see people we loved being sent out, but we knew that God had called us to be church planters. When Larry left, we were giving up our only worship leader. But over the years, God blessed us so now we have many worship leaders. Kingdom principles in action. Give and it will be given unto you, for the purpose of giving again. (John Wimber said: "You give, to get, to give.")
In 1993, we moved the church into Halifax, leasing a space next to the Lamb's Lunch. This move caused a few families who were not comfortable with the north end to leave the church. But our numbers would soon increase as God began to pour out renewal. In May 1994 our church experienced the Toronto Blessing as the Holy Spirit fell on adults and children alike. We met every night, and the 50 adults soon turned to 150, as God sent people night after night, and we continued to give away what God was giving us. We were to learn another lesson in kingdom ministry that would be come part of our church's DNA. We were called to be "foot washers for the body of Christ." We were to serve in humility all who came, for it was not about us, it was all about Jesus. We learned to be more discerning, and learned to hear His voice in the midst of the crowd. In the summer of 1994, we sent off another family, Jim and Mary Rennicks, to plant a Vineyard in Ottawa.
By 1997, the Lord began to show us that our time in the city was over. We moved back to Sackville, and began meeting in Millwood High. It felt like we had been wandering in the desert for ten years, only to end up back where we began. We believe God brought us back to Sackville to be better equipped to do the work of evangelism He had first called us to, and to build a strong base for more outreach. Steve and his family moved to Manitoba to explore further ministry opportunities, and Larry and Karen came back from Truro to take over as lead pastors here. Glen and Peggy came on staff as associate pastors at that time.
In October 1997, we hosted a regional Atlantic Vineyard Conference at the Westin in Halifax. The Lord had done a great work in Glen bringing much freedom in his life, and the conference was the result of our desire to see reconciliation between people of different race and background. The Lord had given Larry a vision of building a church of many colors, and breaking down walls between people groups is work the Lord has been preparing for us.
In 1997, we raised the down payment to purchase the land where we now have the family ministry center. In 1998, Larry went on a sixteen day mission trip to India, Nepal and Malaysia, and it stretched our faith to realize we could be part of church planting around the world. This was a strategic time as Larry saw the very beginning stages of a church planting partnership, something that would help later when we began in Rwanda and Burundi.
Before the ministry center was built, we used the original small building and land for community barbeques, family and youth events. That small building saw us pray, laugh, and cry together as we began to grow into a stronger church family. Larry started the School for Equippers and other church training events, and an energetic youth ministry was born in that little building. We filled it with Moms and Tots, and many welcomed the new millenium there with a family celebration. December 2000, we packed it like sardines when our annual Christmas tree lighting turned into the coldest night of the year!
In May 2000, Glen and Peggy had the idea to build an ice cream hut. They simply wanted to meet the people of this community, but the little hut turned into a successful business venture, drawing people from all over the metro area. We began to experience much flavor (or favor) with the community, and we became known as the ice cream church! During 2001, plans for the family ministry center were developed. We longed to make an impact in this community for the Kingdom of God. The concept of outer/inner court (like the temple in the Old Testament) guided our thinking, as we tried to design a non-threatening way for people to come in and glimpse the inner court life of the church. In the fall of 2001, the ground was broken for the Vineyard Family Ministry Center.
As the building went up, everything we had learned so far was tested. But through it all, we continued to make the construction an act of worship as men & women worked hard, and gave sacrificially to make this building a reality. We held our first service in the new sanctuary in Sept. 2002, and on October 20, 2002 gathered pastors and Christians from the metro area, and regional Vineyards to dedicate the building to the Lord. The next year was a year of favor as the Lord began to draw many people to himself, using Alpha's, relationships and the simple hospitality of the cafe and ice cream hut. It was a stretching time for the leaders as we worked to redefine roles and meet the increasing demands of a building, a business and a growing church. But it's all good!
For 15 years, we had been moving from place to place as a 'tent' church, and we're glad to finally have a home base. We see this family ministry center as a place for gathering people and resources, ready for the next adventures God calls us to. In 1991, this church received a prophetic word that we were a fishing vessel. Some people come to church expecting an ocean liner experience, where they can sit back and enjoy the ride. But the Halifax Vineyard is called to be a working fishing vessel. It's going to take every hand on deck to bring the fish in. Glen wrote a rap song that says, "we're doin' the stuff in Jesus name, givin' sight to the blind and healing the lame, seeking the Lord each and every day, 'cause we're doing the stuff in God's own way..." and it can be a lot of fun as we do it together.
The nations have become an increasing focus for our church, a natural progression as we have given ourselves to being light and salt in our own community. In the fall of 2005 we sent Pat, Val, Joel and Brendan Finnerty to church plant in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda. We have a Sending Team that oversees this mission, raising awareness and funds, to ensure the health and development of the Finnerty family. As well, Beth Wood has joined us, as she works with our national development group, Developing Community Among the Poor, and imparts to us God’s heart for all people, drawing from her experiences in Brazil and Angola. She is helping us to take further steps into building relationships with the poor, something that was strong among us when we were in the north end, and now is emerging in new ways in our present setting.
In January 2009, we continued to grow and expand in our mission, with a new vision statement “we are a people with stories to tell…” and a new discipleship process to help people “Know God…Join His story…Change the world”. Our ice cream hut and café continues to draw people from the community and acts like a ‘front porch’ to our missional family. We have developed a busy ‘parent and tot’ indoor playground, which has become another ‘access point’ for those from our community to interact with folks from our church family.
During the latter stages of 2010 and into 2011 we saw the launching of a new church plant led by Todd and Lisa Brousseau, the BLT Community Church (reaching out to the communities of Beechville, Lakeside and Timberlea). We continue to work towards build bridges of understanding with the Native community, and specifically My People International and it’s leader Terry LeBlanc. There is an energy that has come with all the young families and many young ones running around in our midst – we’re excited for all that God has for us in the future It’s our heart to simply hear and obey His voice. It’s how we started, and how we want to continue.
