The Birth Of Our Church Family

The Forest Lake Church’s rich legacy began 82 years ago in 1926 with the establishment of Forest Lake Academy on 240 acres of rolling farm land near Apopka, Florida.

In the spring of 1926, Professor and Mrs. F. H. Parrish, along with 12 students moved into the property’s nine-room main house known as the “Old Mansion.” It was here that the little group first held church services in that building’s parlor.

As families in the surrounding community joined the school’s faculty and students in their worship services, the little church grew. In the coming decades, Forest Lake Church was housed in a number of Forest Lake Academy’s buildings including the boys’ and girls’ dormitories, the chapel of its administration building, and the school’s gymnasium.

A Permanent Church Home

In 1960, under the leadership of Pastor Hoyt Hendershot, plans were formulated to build a permanent church home for Forest Lake Church members on an eight-acre knoll of land just west of Forest Lake Academy. Under Hendershot’s direction, and then that of James F. Hamrick, who took over the pastorate in 1964, fund raising began and building plans went forward. On April 23, 1966, a Threshold Crossing ceremony was observed and the doors to Forest Lake’s current sanctuary were opened.

In the ensuing 42 years, Forest Lake Church has grown from 749 members in 1966 to nearly 3,300 as of July 31, 2008. In 1977, a community services building was constructed to house the church’s large community outreach. A separate youth center was built in 1979 to better minister to the young adult population of the church.

In 1988, a new wing was added to the sanctuary’s east side. It was constructed to house new administrative offices, more Sabbath school classrooms and a new choir room. Another milestone was marked on April 13, 1991 as members celebrated 25 years of worship in the current church structure.

In 1994, Forest Lake refurbished the interior of its main sanctuary and added a third worship service to meet growing membership needs. Its youth center was remodeled in 1999 and in 2001, the church began streaming worship services live via the internet at www.forestlakechurch.org. A fourth worship service, Deeper, was added for young adults in 2003 as the church continued to expand.

Time To Take The Next Step

Dr. Derek Morris became senior pastor in August 2004. Under his leadership, Forest Lake Church continued to reach out in new ways to spread the Gospel to the community and the world. Forest Lake’s internet church audience continued to grow with hundreds of individuals around the world attending each week. In 2005, two radio programs created by the church were launched–Message Of Hope Radio and Hope On Fire, a radio talk show for young adults. Two websites, www.messageofhoperadio.com and www.hopeonfire.org were also created to support the new broadcasts.

In 2006, Hope Channel TV began airing Forest Lake’s church services and in January 2007, they also began broadcasting a television version of Hope On Fire. Hope TV also began airing Hope Sabbath School in January 2008. The program is a Forest Lake Church-produced panel discussion of the Adventist Church’s weekly adult Sabbath school lessons.

And so we come to the present—time to take the next step in “Building Boldly for Jesus” on the legacy of the Forest Lake Church. As we keep in mind Forest Lake’s mission, values and vision, the proposed expanded facilities aren’t so much about bricks and mortar as they are about the ministries they will house. It’s this ministry outreach that will continue be God’s light to our members, our surrounding community and the world.