Keeping Christ Central in All Things.
Saturday Services
6:30pm to 8:30pm
in Hallstrom School
More info.
"They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor." Isa. 63:1
History
Church Leadership
Vision
Worship Team
Forest City Fellowship was started in 1990 by Curt Johnson and a group of believers who were seeking to worship the Lord according to the Scriptures instruction and the Holy Spirits leading. From the beginning, it was recognized that the church is Gods people, not a building. In its early days, the fellowship met in different locations and saw God do many amazing works in their midst. As the fellowship grew, the leadership realized that Scripture presented plurality as the ideal model for church government. The fellowship embraced this truth, and government was administrated through elders and deacons. The goal was to see all believers grow in their God-given gifting such as; prophecy, teaching, healing, and administration.
As with any group of believers seeking the Lord; there were good times and difficult times. In 2005, Curt felt the call to the mission field, and left to pursue that call with the blessing of his brothers and sisters. In early 2007, a brother with whom FCF has had long relationship, Owen Carey of Manchester Christian Fellowship in New Hampshire, began working with the fellowship to re-establish Jesus as central in the life of the fellowship and the people who make it up. A transitional leadership team appointed and currently there are two Elders who oversee the day-to-day workings of the fellowship, striving to see Jesus lead. The goal is to see Christ central in our families, our avocations, and our friendships, and in all of life. We see this as the way in which He is truly Lord of our fellowship.
Owen has helped us repair some broken relationships and taught us how to serve one another. If FCF seems like a fellowship in process, its because we are. We are being transformed into the likeness of Christ, going from glory to glory, by the Spirit of the Lord as 2 Corinthians 3:18 declares.
Forest City Fellowship seeks to emulate the pattern of local church leadership found in the New Testament. The men in leadership at FCF are leaders among the flock (Acts 20:28), and function as a collegial team. There is no senior pastor at FCF. Decisions are made by consensus and the elders share authority and responsibility.
Practically, this means that any of the men on the Elders council can fill the pulpit any given week. The congregation seldom hears the same man preach two consecutive weeks unless there is a special series. Elders operate in their area of gifting and according to need.
At present there are 2 Elders and several men who sit on the Elders council.
FCF's elders are Kelly Moore (kmfcf_yahoo.com) and Brad Welden (bwsailing_comcast.net).
We are a people who have a passion for Jesus Christ. As a part of the body of Christ in the Rockford area we recognize our need to impact the lives of those in our neighborhoods, city, and our nation.
We believe that the Church of Rockford is comprised of all true believers in Jesus Christ. This is one reason we have chosen to call ourselves a fellowship instead of a church.
In seeking to recover the essential elements of the first century Church’s faith, we meet together corporately on Saturday evenings and in homes during the week, for prayer, worship, teaching, discipleship, relationship, exhortation, accountability, ministering to one another, and encouraging growth in each other’s gift as directed by the Holy Spirit.
We desire to love our God with all our hearts, to love our families, and to love this city back to life. We are on a journey, welcoming all who want to come along.
We have three worship teams that supply the worship music at FCF. These teams have a ministry of delevoping new people as worship leaders. If you have any questions about participating in the worship teams please contact one of these men below.
Ryan Welden rrwelden_hotmail.com
Steve Lenox stevelenox_yahoo.com
Kelly Moore kmfcf_yahoo.com
Sat Schedule
News & Events
God Stories
R2HOP
Prayer Blog
We invite you to join us at 1300 17th Street in Rockford, Illinois to worship and hear God's Word every Saturday night at 6:30PM - 8:30PM. Our Children's Church begins after the worship.
SATURDAY NIGHT SERVICES
CALL TO FASTING & PRAYER: February 6 - 10th 7-8:30PM
Meets in the Fellowship Room or Main Auditorium of the Hallstrom Center
This is a corporate call to posture ourselves before the Lord in humility and ask Him to reveal Himself to us. We need encounters with the Holy Spirit that unlock our cold hearts to receive greater revelation of the God-Man Christ Jesus. Whether it is a deeper intimate connection to His emotions or to be awestruck by His glory and majesty. The Father reveals these things to those who are seeking and asking, not those who are satisfied with where they are at. Come and let us seek Him together this week.
FEBRUARY 11th ~ 6:30PM
This service will be the culmination of the week of corporate prayer & fasting. We will end our fast with a meal served during the service. We will be serving serveral different types of soups, breads, salad, & dessert. If anyone is interested in bring a soup please contact Anita Kapfer or the church office.
FEBRUARY 18, 25, & MARCH 3rd ~ 6:30PM WORSHIP TEACHING SERIES
Ryan Welden will be teaching on worship these three services.
PROPHETIC - INTERCESSION PRAYER TIME: Saturday nights at 5-6:16pm
Everyone is invited to attend this intercessory prayer time. It is held in the Lower Level in Classroom #1 (BLUE room) of the Hallstrom Building. Questions can be directed to Curt Johnson.
R2HOP NEWS
R2HOP 12 HOUR BURN: The next 12Hour Burn will be held on Saturday, February 25th. Starting at 6AM and ending at 6PM. Location TBA.
R2HOP SCHEDULE: Held in the Lower Auditorium of Hallstrom Center
Tuesday: 7-9PM Live Harp & Bowl Worship
Wednesday: 7-9PM Live Harp & Bowl Worship
Thursday: 7-9PM Live Harp & Bowl Worship
Friday: 7-9PM & 11PM-1AM
Saturday: 9PM-1AM Streaming from IHOP-KC
Sunday: 9pm-12AM Streaming from IHOP-KC
OMEGA CLASSES: Beginning Tuesday,February 7th, at 9:00PM they will be presenting Mike Bickle's 'Omega' 8 DVD series. The class will last 2 hours each, the first hour consisting of a video teaching and the second hour, a group discussion. Study guides can be purchased through IHOP's website.
Student guide: $10.00
http://store.ihop.org/store/product/4200/Omega%3A-Student-Manual/
PART 1: Positive Trends, People & Event in the End Times (Omega)
PART 2: Negative Trends, People, & Events in the End Times (Omega)
PART 3: The Millennial Kingdom of Jesus (Omega)
PART 4: Armageddon, the Rapture & Jesus' Second Coming (Omega)
PART 5: Putting it all Together Part 1 (Omega)
PART 6: Putting it all Together Part 2 (Omega)
PART 7: The Significance of Israel in God's End-Time Purposes (Omega)
PART 8: How Then Shall We Live (Omega)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Also when the 12-Hour Burn is held in the Main Auditorium of the Hallstrom Center, the Forest City Fellowship's service will then partner with R2HOP (Rockford House of Prayer) for a time of prayer, praise and Harp & Bowl worship. This is a time of strategic corporate prayer and intercession for specific themes. The specific themes will be announced ahead of time.
COMING SOON!! REGIONAL "ONETHING" ROCKFORD
When??? March 23-24th
Where??? Faith Center, Rockford, IL
Calling forerunners to intimacy with Jesus, intercession, evangelism, outreach, and works of justice.
MARY OF BETHANY
Mary of Bethany is my hero. Broken, despised, alone and desperate, Mary throws caution and fear to the wind in order that she might quite literally throw herself at the feet of Jesus. You’ll find the story told in all four gospels, which is unusual. The setting is a dinner given in Bethany (most likely in Lazarus’ home) in Jesus’ honor.
Mary knows that she should not be in the men’s dining room, she shouldn’t let down her hair and she most certainly shouldn’t touch a man in public (each of these actions were extremely unacceptable in their culture). Yet, in this famous gospel story, Mary did all three while weeping and pouring out her life savings as she anointed Jesus.
Why would someone already on the fringe of society take such a great, personal risk? Because Mary had somehow come to understand that in this man-God she might find redemption. We don’t know how many or which teachings of Jesus Mary had heard, but she had obviously heard enough to convince her that this last desperate attempt to express herself to him was the best thing she could do for her life. She literally gave away to Jesus everything she had left of her life.
I believe that hope was born in Mary as she listened to Jesus. Somehow she understood that His words, his astounding message of grace and forgiveness could change her life. In fact, she was beginning to believe that He even loved her! In spite of her wretched past, He loved her and had come to ransom her!!! This was incredible news to her. No wonder she did what she did that evening.
And Mary alone seemed to understand that what Jesus was going to do would be very costly. Hence, Jesus’ response to her anointing when the disciples became irate at her behavior: “When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her” (Mt.26:12,13). For all time? Really? This woman’s actions? This woman with the terrible reputation?
Faith, surrender, hope and passionate worship. As I spend time in the prayer room, I meditate on Mary of Bethany. I wonder at her boldness to love and worship Jesus so publicly, so ardently. So I come like Mary did, offering all that I have – brokenness and hunger. And I pray that God would grow passion in me for Him.
Have you sat, quietly, at His feet lately? Have you given Him the sweet offering of your surrender, devotion and trust? Come spend time with Him – He waits for you.
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REFLECTIONS ON PRAYER
This is the first of a series of ‘reflections’ I would like to write for our FCF webpage. They will be brief thoughts on reasons why it’s good to spend time in the prayer room.
“The man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as He was walking in the garden in the cool of the day…” (Gen.3.8). Can you imagine such closeness, such intimacy with God that they could actually HEAR Him walking (and they were so familiar with this that they recognized the sound!)?
In fact, that is what we have been made for. We were created for fellowship with God. He loves all of mankind and is jealous for our friendship (Ex.34.14). The prophet Zephaniah declared that in the Day of the Lord the whole world will be consumed in the “fire of His jealousy” (Zeph. 1.18). It is God’s great longing that all would know Him and be found in Him (Isa. 45.22).
When you come into the prayer room with the intention of sitting before God, you are doing what you were made for. Our highest calling is to know Him and glorify Him. This earthly life that claims so much of our attention and affection is actually just a rehearsal for the real thing – eternal life. How is your rehearsal going? How are you doing, sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening and learning? How is the tenderness of your heart towards God and His priorities? Are you ‘hearing the sound’ of the Lord walking in your life?
Come to the prayer room to quiet yourself from the busyness of your daily life and to hear God. Come to the prayer room to be reminded of your high calling. You need Him. Your spirit is thirsty– come to the prayer room and drink.
Home Group
What Is A Home Group?
FCF 's Home Group/small groups meet weekly. They are located throughout the city, and much of the life of the church is centered on these smaller groups.
In a practical sense, FCF small groups operate as smaller versions of church - with worship, fellowship, growth and mission as central focuses. The groups all have elements of worship, prayer and teaching, sometimes in the form of discussions or group studies. Additionally, practical nurturing of needs and support comes to FCF members largely through the small group to which they belong.
A place of worship
The focus of FCF's small groups is the Lord Jesus Christ, and their ultimate objective is to worship and glorify Him. We are called as individual believers and as small gatherings of believers to grow in our knowledge and love of our Lord. It is in this context that both the fruit of our lips and the fruit of our lives become worship to the Lord.
A place of growth
The small group provides an ideal environment for the ongoing maturing process of the Christian life. Through discipleship, teaching, and relationships of mutual accountability, each person is challenged and helped to grow in his personal experience of the reality of God in his everyday life. And in a small group setting, each member is allowed to grow in his gifts of service to the body, as well as his sensitivity to the manifestations of the Holy Spirit for the common good.
A place of mission
The small group serves as an ideal place of exposure to the reality of God's Kingdom for unbelievers, friends, neighbors, family and co-workers. Therefore, each member of the small group is encouraged to develop and maintain a lifestyle of friendship or relationship evangelism.
HOME GROUPS
This Home Group is open for all ages:
Leaders: Steve & MaryJo Schrader
Jim & Andrea Koepsell
Hosted at: Jim & Andrea Keopsell's home
Meets: Every Tuesday evenging at 7:00PM
(Expect for the 1st Tuesday of the month,
then it meets at 6:30PM starting with a
Potluck dinner.)
For more info contact the chuch office.
This Home Group is a younger group:
Singles, Young Marrieds, People with Children
Leaders: Thad & Stephanie Mack
Laban & Mackenie Hoover
Hosted at: Laban & Mackene Hoover's home
Meets: 2nd & 4th Thursday of each month at 6:30PM
Babysitter's home: Thad & Stephanie Mack's home
For more info contact the church office.
MONDAY NIGHTS 7:00-8:30PM Meets in the Cafe
We want to invite you to meet Jesus in a new way as we walk through the gospel of Luke this coming year. The study will be divided into three parts: fall, winter and spring. We will dig deep and unearth many Biblical treasures in this Spring portion.
We will be using a LifeGuide Bible Study: Luke-New Hope, New Joy by Ada Lum. If you would like to have your own study guide it can be purchased at local Christian bookstores or Amazon.com. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Anne Pearcy at anne.pearcy_comcast.net or FCF's office at 815-394-0155.
BLUE (Believers Living United Everyday) is the youth ministry from Mosiac Rockford and Forest City Fellowhip for teens in 6th - 12th grades. The teens meet every Wednesday night from 6:30 - 8:30PM. The classrooms #1 & 2 are located down in the Lower Entrance of the Hallstrom Center. They meet for Bible Study, games, fellowship, and worship. Come join in the fun! Any questions or need more information please contact: Stephanie and Thad Mack
Check out Mosiac - Blue on facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/Mosaic-BLUE/116762605058281
NEXT MEAL PREPARATION IS FEBRUARY 15th
Every month FCF has the chance to furnish one meal on the third Wednesday of each month. This is a hot meal that is made and delivered to 75 physically and spiritually hunger children and teens. This is probably the only hot meal these children received throughout their week. After the children are fed with food they receive the gospel to feed their spirits.
Each month we will meet at 2pm in the FCF kitchen. The recipe will be picked and the food items are waiting on us. All we need to do is put some hands to the task. If this something you are interested in helping out with please contact the church office at (815) 394-0155.
~THANK YOU NOTE FROM ROCK HOUSE KIDS~
Hi FCF,
I failed to thank you for the fabulous meal you provided last week. The kids scarfed it up! They enjoyed the meal so much they kept coming back for seconds and thirds, and some even wanted fourths! We started giving out a normal portion to all the kids but had to give out smaller portions because we had a long line of children coming in at different intervals. All of the children received a hot meal and all talked about how good it was! So thank YOU for what Forest City Fellowship does for Rock House Kids. We appreciate what you do for us. God bless you!!
May the Lord bless you today,
Barbara Seaworth, Secretary
Rock House Kids
On August 9th, 2011, FCF’s Home Group and Mosaic of Rockford sponsored a “Back-Pack Give-Away” to help the families in our Hallstrom Community to prepare their children for school this fall.
Each backpack was filled with all the necessary school supplies they will need to start their grade. They filled 100 backpacks and each one went home with a delighted child. While the families were waiting in line we served ice cream as a treat!
All the parents were so grateful and thankful for these pack-pack gifts. We are trying to make a difference to our Hallstrom Community and to let them know we care and love them. Next year we are planning to double the amount of back-pack we will give away!
This year Forest City Fellowship, Mosaic of Rockford, and Greater Faith Ministries hosted their annual community picnic for the Hallstrom Neighborhood. This picnic was the ending celebration of the Mega Sports VBS Camp that had taken place the week before.
Our focus for the picnic was to share the love of Jesus with our neighbors. We had over 350 people show up to participate. We had a free dinner that consisted of hotdogs, hamburgers, and tables full of assorted food dishes. For the kids we had had many activities for the kids to enjoy for example, a dunk tank, inflatable jumping houses, a duck pond, snow cones, cotton candy tent, balloon animals made from a clown and much more!
Our children from the Mega Sports VBS Camp provided entertainment along with a Mosaic’s worship team band, “Silver” who played. At the end of the picnic we gave away bikes and many other donated items from the community. We look forward to this activity each year and hope to see you there next year!
FUTURE DATE FOR THIS YEAR'S MEGA COMMUNITY PICNIC : JUNE 23rd, 2012
On Saturday, June 18th, FCF, Mosaic, and Greater Faith Ministries hosted their 4th “GARAGE SALE GIVE AWAY” for the Hallstrom Community. You read it correctly! Everything was FREE! We gathered items which we thought would bless someone else and set up two rooms in our lower auditorium. We notified the neighborhood by passing out flyers. Then starting at 8AM the people started showing up. We had close to 400 hundred people walk through our doors and found household items, furniture, or clothing that helped them out. We also set up a hotdog stand with drinks to accommodate everyone waiting in line. Why do we do this? To share the love of Jesus with our neighbors!
Shoe Drive
Woman's Ministries
BLUE Youth Group
More Details
Back Pack Drive
Mega Picnic
Give Away
Mission Support
Ron Gartner/Refuge Ministries
Grounds for Life
Rockford Rescue mission
Carly/IHOP Kansas City
Rockford Renewal Ministries
Rockford Area pregnancy Care Center
Danny Curle/Good Friends Ministry
Owen Carey/New Testiment Christian Fellowship
Rock River House of Prayer (R2HOP)
Love, Inc.
NOVEMBER'S UPDATE:
November 11
Carly and her team are currently in Nairobi, Kenya. They are leaving tomorrow to travel by bus to Northern Kenya for a two week outreach. The bus will be traveling across mostly desert, so please pray for a safe journey free of breakdowns. The team will be ministering in the very northern tip of Kenya to mostly Mu*lim villages. Please pray for the effective working of the gospel to penetrate the hearts of the people they encounter. Carly and some of the team are in need of some healing. She currently has a fever, sore throat and a rash.
Prayer points: 1) Safe travel to northern Kenya, no bus breakdowns
2) Healing for Carly and sick team members
3) Open hearts to receive
4) Signs and wonders to follow the preaching of the gospel.
NOVEMBER 7TH, 2011
Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ! I hope you are all doing well!
The Lord is really moving here in Uganda! We have seen so many people come to the Lord both here in Tororo and on the various outreaches we have done. It is so encouraging to see people so ready to receive Jesus!!!
My team has been doing amazing! I am so proud of these student missionaries! Despite no electricity for the past 5-6days, and no water the last 2 for cleaning, washing, bathing, drinking, and the much need - toilet/squatty potty flushing.... despite this we are pressing on! :)
I can’t wait to update you about the street boys i have been working with. Already a few of them I have helped to get off the streets! Praise the Lord! Be looking in update #3 for these stories!
Please be praying for us as we make plans to go to northern Kenya.
It is a very dangerous area right now (watch the news on it).
But we feel the Lord directing us to go and help with relief work with the Somalia refuges, ministry to the underground church's, and hopefully evangelism to the Muslims.
Please, please pray! We need wisdom from the Holy Spirit as we take our team into areas around the war zone.
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OCTOBER'S UPDATE: Leaving for Uganda
I'm so excited and ready to see what the Lord has in store for my team in Uganda! I am believing for BIG things to happen! I am praying for hundreds on salvation's, for church's to be planted, and for the local believers to be encouraged and strengthened.
