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Our History

God has done amazing things in our church family. We were once only a handful of people; now there are multiplied thousands of us. In the past, we only spoke one language. Now, on any given Sunday, we hold services in multiple languages. We once had only one meeting place, The Prayer Chapel; now there are three campuses filled with buildings. Here are a few key milestones and statistics if you're interested in our legacy. They help define what God is doing in our midst and serve as a testimony to increase our faith.

MOMENTS IN TIME THAT HAVE FORMED US

1926
A group of Bible College students held tent meetings near our present location.

1949
Construction began on Sherman Way, now The Prayer Chapel.

1951
A charter was granted—the First Foursquare Church of Van Nuys.

1969
Rev. and Mrs. Howard Carson had faithfully pastored the Van Nuys Foursquare Church for ten years, but a serious illness required them to take a season off to recover. So, Jack Hayford was asked if he would temporarily “help out on weekends and with the midweek services” of the tiny Van Nuys Foursquare Church. Even though Jack was still serving at LIFE Bible College, this new opportunity to “help out” sounded exciting. Jack & Anna Hayford were introduced as interim pastors in March to the congregation of 25 people.

Pastor Jack spoke about the vision to build big people, not necessarily a big church: “I see us as becoming a truly ministry-minded church. The Lord Jesus Christ is our center. The Word of God is our base. The Holy Spirit, filling us to extend the servant-life of Jesus outward—that’s our objective . . . This will not be a pastor-centered ministry, but a people-centered ministry.” The Lord spoke very specifically: “You must not think too small, or you will get in My way; for I have set Myself to do a great work.”

The next Sunday, the congregation nearly doubled and continued to grow in spiritual perception. The Holy Spirit was enriching their understanding about their ministry to: the Lord in worship; one another in fellowship; and the World in stewardship. Later, that autumn, the Lord gave us our slogan name: “The Church On The Way.” There was steady growth and in two years’ time the congregation increased in number to about 100.

1971
The first Saturday evening of the year, Pastor Jack was about to leave the church and noticed the sanctuary was filled with a silvery mist. There was no natural explanation for it. His mind probed for an answer: “This isn’t dust or smog, is it?” But in his heart, he knew and the Lord confirmed his conviction, “It is what you think it is.” It was the Shekinah Glory, the radiant, visible Presence of the Lord of which the Bible speaks. He was deeply moved by the words that followed: “I have given My glory to dwell in this place.” The next morning, there were more than 160 worshipers in the service! There had been no special promotion or program to explain this sudden increase.

1974
The Prayer Chapel was expanded with a new wing, increasing seating capacity to 400.

1980
The attendance exceeded 3,500, requiring five services every Sunday. The burgeoning congregation was in the process of building a new sanctuary (The Living Room), which God had spoken would be a “Fountainhead” of blessing to the City and World. During the construction, the congregation prayed over the site, planted Bibles in the foundation, and wrote scriptures on the walls.

1981
The new building was dedicated on Pentecost Sunday, June 7. Our new sanctuary was able to seat over 2,000, still requiring multiple services.

1987
The West Campus properties, formerly the First Baptist Church, were purchased. This was the Possessing Our Future project. Our first Sunday in the West Campus Sanctuary, The King’s Place, was October 16. Today, it is the location of many of our morning worship services in Spanish, more than half of our staff offices, and nearly all of our evening services. During this time we entered our Sure Footings project to renovate the campus and make it a safe place. This acquisition released a new era of God’s blessing and ministry possibilities. Having this additional space enabled the fulfillment of Pastor Jack’s vision to have a formal Bible training institute, and The King’s Institute was born and has now developed into The King’s College and Seminary, offering both undergraduate and graduate degrees.

1994–1995
We were able to expand our East Campus parking when we purchased the Human Resources Development offices between The Prayer Chapel and The Cornerstone Building on our East Campus. It was our People Spaces project!

1997
The Church On The Way took over the responsibility for the Cross Over L.A., located in the hills above Hollywood. It is now perpetually maintained by an endowment established through the generous gifts of the friends and members of our congregation.

1998
In June, during our annual Conference On Spirit-Filled Living, the Holy Spirit spoke prophetically through Joy Dawson, Pastor Jack, and Pastor Jim Tolle that we were entering a new season at The Church On The Way—The NEW Church On The Way.

1999
In October, Pastor Hayford passed the baton of leadership to Pastor Scott Bauer. A very important thing happened during his leadership—the Vision for a City-Church.

2000
God spoke profoundly in August, “The gateway to the City runs directly through your front door!” Reaching Los Angeles is our call. This began to materialize in two ways: the beginning of our Spanish-speaking congregation and the need to reach north. In February, we gave the City of Los Angeles a present—La Iglesia En El Camino. Under Pastor Jim Tolle’s leadership, it has grown to be one of the largest Spanish Evangelical Church in the Nation.

Then we began to proceed with the North Campus to serve the needs of those who commute from the Santa Clarita and Antelope Valleys. Under Pastor Scott’s leadership, we purchased the Mann Theatre Complex in the heart of Santa Clarita and are now in the process of renovations, while meeting weekly at the Valencia Foursquare Church.

2001
Dr. Hayford, Dr. Campbell, and Dr. Chappell along with CFO, Joe Volpi, announced the wonderful news that The King’s College and Seminary (TKCS) had received accreditation. Just recently (2005), TKCS has acquired the former Northridge Hospital between our East and West Campuses and the zone variance approval has been given by the City of Los Angeles (2006).

2004
Just four years to the day of Pastor Scott’s installation, he was called home to Glory (2003). In the fall, nearly a year after Pastor Scott’s homegoing, we formally received the gift of Jim & Alice Tolle, as our new Senior Pastors.

2005
After 30 years of faithful prayer, we possessed the property next to The Prayer Chapel on the East Campus, where a white house once stood. This signaled a mighty victory—now it belongs to the Kingdom! We also continued with great headway on the North Campus renovation with building permit in hand.

2006
From the day that God’s glory was given, there has been an extraordinary ongoing work of grace at The Church On The Way. Lives have been changed, bodies healed, homes rescued, people delivered, truth perceived, love outpoured, leadership raised up, and ministry sent forth around the globe.

2007
The vision, ministry, and impact continues!

Prophetic Markers

MOVING FORWARD ACCORDING TO HIS WORDS FOR US

• “Make Big People”—Be a ministry-minded church, not necessarily a big church but big people. The passionate pursuit of advancing the Kingdom is not only the function of the clergy, it is the responsibility of every believer.
• “Much Work Requires Much Praise”—We must precede our God-appointed tasks with the sweet savor and incense of worship, lest the smell of flesh taint the atmosphere wherein God seeks to display His glory.
• “You Shall Break Forth on the Right as well as on the Left”—”Enlarge the place of your tent . . . For you shall expand to the right and to the left, and your descendants will inherit the nations, and make the desolate cities inhabited” (Isaiah 54:2-3).
• “Praise Paves the Way”—Praise proceeds victory. As the singers went before the army of Israel, we will move forward in battle with praise as our first line of defense!
• “Pray and Intercede as if No One Else is Praying”—We will pray with passion, standing in the gap, and keeping watch.
• “You Shall Be as a Fountainhead”—We will be a principle source of blessing to this City!
• “Take Care of My Lambs, I’ll Take Care of You”—We must care for our children, drawing them with cords of love and being an example for them to follow.
• “My House Shall Be Called a House of Prayer for All Nations”—He has brought the World to Los Angeles. We will be a people with a ministry vision to the World and it starts with our prayer.
• “Reach the Youth”—Invest in this generation! Teach them how to be the people of God and the emerging leaders in the Church.
• “Raise Up a Hispanic Congregation”—The sociological facts and spiritual needs of our Community give an amazing opportunity to reach the growing Latino population of Los Angeles. If we are to serve the City, we must do it in both English and Spanish.
• “Go North”—We must care for those in our congregation who live North. We must think of the Santa Clarita Valley as part of our spiritual responsibility to serve, the same way we see the San Fernando Valley.
• “I Will Make You as the Church at Antioch. It Takes a Team!”—Antioch (Acts 13:1) experienced a strong team of gifted teachers and prophetically anointed preachers. With the continued growth of our congregation, we will embrace the vision of expecting something of this “Antioch” kind of leadership mix.
• “Pastor Los Angeles”— Love, care for, nurture, and lead this City through prayer and action.
• “This Moment In Time Matters”— What we do now has lasting ramifications. Make the most of every opportunity to advance the Kingdom of God.