Ministry:  First Free of Los Angeles
Location:  Los Angeles, CA
Project:  Remodeling of 1925 church building
Story:  The story of First Free of Los Angeles really begins many decades ago with the Swedish congregation.  It is now dramatically different, but every bit as exciting as it ever was.

Sarah Yetter, Head of the Communications Committee during their capital campaign to raise funds to refurbish the building, paints a picture of a typical Sunday morning at First Free.  "Early Sunday morning Pastor Doug stands on the steps of the church building in his sweats, hosing off the stairs for the coming day. These stairs of the First Evangelical Free Church of LA will greet many different groups of people today. At 9:00am, the English-speaking congregation meets. It's a small but diverse group. There are some older folks who have been coming to the church most of their lives from the time that the congregation was mostly Swedish. There are the committed college students who love that they have a place to serve and lead. There are several international students and a few young families. As the service ends, the Spanish congregation begins to gather. Most are immigrants who were touched by the church's strong ESL program in the 80's. Now their kids are growing up and their witness continues to grow in the community. Typical of Latin culture, people linger long after service talking to each other as a new set of faces begin to arrive - the members of the African congregation. This group of brightly-clad and tight-knit people come from all over the city to meet at First Free, where they have been renting for over two years now. And there is another group of people in all the activity that would be easy to overlook. All throughout the day there are skaters and youth from the neighborhood 'congregating' on those steps. Even though most of them don't come into the church, they are an important part of the church body. They are the precious ones that God has given First Free to reach out to and love."

Sarah's enthusiasm continues as she relates how this congregation got to where it is today.  "Thanks to the generosity of the body of Christ and with the help of Christian Investors Foundation, this much-used building has been given a new lease on life." Against much speculation to the contrary, this church was able to embark on a capital campaign to restore the 1925 building, and so far have raised over $500,000. A man with an eye for the underdog, Steve Johnson, from Ministry Campaign Services, came along side pastor Doug and his staff and helped make this dream a reality." Now, multiple and diverse congregations meet in a beautifully restored sanctuary. "My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations" from Mark 11:17 stands emblazoned over the room where that hope is also a reality."

Jesus words in Mark repeat the Lord God's words in Isaiah 56:7.  This verse is wonderfully appropriate for a building that has truly been dedicated and used by faithful people in reaching their community (and many others, but that's another story) with the love of God.