North County Christian Fellowship was formed in 1978. Five couples were involved in its forming including their Pastor, Steve Calagna. All of these people had been touched by the Charismatic renewal and desired a church where the scripture and the gifts of the Spirit were valued. Most were looking for a simple context to live out being the church.

 

One of the key theme scriptures that provided guidance to these church leaders was Acts 2:42, “…they continually devoted themselves to the Apostles teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayer.” These four actions became the primary practices of this new church, and they experienced the resulting growth best put in the words of scripture, “…and the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47)

 

As time went on and the church grew, values were sharpened and clarified. Scripture was the sole authority for testing values, beliefs, and practices. The Charismatic movement which brought renewal and Holy Spirit blessing to a variety of denominational churches was at its peak and North County Christian Fellowship was deeply involved in the renewal that was expressed during those years.

 

The leadership of this church always believed and emphasized “the people are the church” and for the first several years of its existence, the church grew in spite of inadequate facilities. Nothing seemed to stop people from coming, and on the church’s 10th anniversary celebration (held in a local park), they remembered the 17 different locations they had transformed into places of worship. The church then leased an industrial building which became their home for the next 10 years. During those years, the church continued to develop new ministries, multiple services, new staff and several worship teams.

 

Developing plans and finances for a permanent facility also became important. A Lutheran church facility in Paso Robles became available, and North County Christian Fellowship purchased the facility. They also bought two other adjacent properties and built a new multipurpose education facility, a teen facility, and developed ministry offices.