The Story of VCF Temple
In the spring of 1995 the Crothers moved from Ohio to Pastor a
church that was going through a very difficult time. During the next 5
years, with little growth and much frustration, Jim became
convinced more than ever that the way he was doing church was not productive and
began to transition the church.
It was during this time that a decision was made to do church differently and genuinely care about those who were unsaved and those who were disenfranchised with church. Jim always had a love for the Vineyard. It was the people of the Vineyard that first gave Jim a picture of real community back in the late 80's.
With this as a backdrop, Jim and Teresa made application with the Vineyard to be adopted. In the spring of 2000 Family Worship Center was adopted as Vineyard Christian Fellowship of Temple.
The History of the Vineyard Movement
In
1982, John Wimber, who had been a pastor and church consultant, was asked to
serve as the leader of a newly formed association of about nine churches (all in
southern California) that called themselves Vineyard. As the leader of
this new movement, known as the Association of Vineyard Churches, John pastored
the pastors and encouraged the planting of churches internationally.
Worldwide Vineyard churches have been planted in many nations, including the
U.S., Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, Russia, Turkey, throughout the
European continent, Africa, Southeast Asia, and Australia. God has shown
us, however, that His desire is not just to build the Vineyard, but that we
should promote
His Kingdom and encourage, build and love the whole church.
The Story of our Senior Pastor
Jim was raised in a conservative evangelical home in western PA. At a young age he felt that God was placing in him a desire to pastor. He graduated from High School in 1975 and went on to attend Mount Vernon Nazarene College in Ohio.
During his senior year at Mount Vernon Nazarene College he met Teresa. A year later they were married in Marion, Ohio and moved to Kansas City to attend Nazarene Theological Seminary.
Both Jim and Teresa had a deep love for the denomination - however - during the spring of 1987 they became increasingly hungry for a deep walk with the Holy Spirit. It was during this time that Jim was asked to leave the denomination that he loved because of theological differences with the Nazarenes.
It was during this same time that Jim met several other Vineyard Pastors in Michigan and began to develop a relationship with them. It was these relationships that impacted Jim's live in a profound way.
Jim and Teresa have been married since 1980 and have two children, Christy and Jon-Mark.
