20 years ago, God began Hope’s story. His power, plan, and grace have sustained our church for two decades. Whether you’ve been with us for all of it, or you’re new to Hope this season, we welcome you to share in our anniversary celebration! Thanks be to God! For HE ALONE writes our story! HE ALONE is responsible for it all! Praise Jesus! Take a moment to scroll through Hope’s history. See what God has done in our 20 years of ministry together. We’ll start in 2003, in a diner, ready for what God might do…
2003
Humble Beginnings
20 years ago, in an Oakville diner, God began working through two couples, forming the ideas and passions for a Harvest church in the Oakville area. Ideas scribbled on placemats soon became real prayer meetings in a church basement in Mississauga. Before long, eighteen dedicated people were coming together, feeling called to this group, excited and expectant about what God might do with them.
2003-2004
Calvary into Harvest
The group’s leaders met the leaders from Calvary Baptist Church in Oakville, and through that, God ordained a miracle. A struggling Calvary Church voted to become Harvest Bible Chapel Oakville, and the two groups combined to form an eager church body. Harvest had its first service on Easter Sunday, 2004, with a packed sanctuary. Pretty soon, a second service was required to accommodate the people God was bringing in the doors.
2004-2005
Youth Ministry and Winter Fuse/Winter Camp
The youth started meeting with 30 students and 6 leaders in 2004. That number had more than doubled by the time they took their first winter retreat in 2005! Youth leaders have always focused on having fun, but not messing around. They teach the gospel with the same passion and conviction as weekend services. Today, the Youth Ministry sees hundreds of students every Wednesday, and the students from decades ago are becoming leaders themselves—a testament to God continually working in the next generation!
2006
A Growing Church
By Easter 2006, it was necessary to add a third service on Saturday nights. Then overflow seating, and eventually a fourth service! The church family was growing in ways that can only be described as supernatural.
It was time for Harvest to start facilitating intentional group time among the expanding church body. A handful of groups started meeting on Wednesday nights for discipleship, and praying that God would appoint more spiritual leaders. Around the same time, staff were called to start a Recovery Ministry. A Christ-centred support group for those who have struggled or were currently struggling with any form of addiction. Today, the church has approximately 125 groups and 190 group leaders! And Recovery has impacted hundreds of people over its consecutive weekly meetings spanning 15 years. God has used these groups to point people to the victory only He provides. Praise the Lord for that!
2006
Live in the Light
The church was offered a spot on Joy 1250 radio! Soon it expanded to Sundays on WDCX, then weekdays as well. A listener-supported program began called Live in the Light that featured Pastor Robbie’s Sunday sermons. The Lord has used this amazing outreach opportunity to bring listeners to faith! Today, this program can still be heard on WDCX, Harvesters FM in Eastern provinces, and on Faith FM/Hope FM in Southwestern Ontario.
2009-2011
Church Plants Begin
With the growing numbers, it was time for Harvest Oakville to send out its first-ever church plant in the city of Brampton. Then, in 2011, another church plant went out in the region of Niagara. More than a decade later, these two churches remain faithful and thriving! Praise the Lord!
2011
Global Missions
2011-2012
500 Great Lakes
After years of praying, planning and saving money, the Lord led Harvest Oakville to purchase a new property that would be able to accommodate the thousands that called Harvest their home church. The groundbreaking ceremony was in September 2011, and the first service was in October 2012. Make no mistake – Harvest built nothing! God built His church at 500 Great Lakes Blvd!
2013
Kids Camp
With the new space, Harvest launched Kids Camp! This week of summer camp sees hundreds of kids every year. It has always been an incredible evangelism opportunity to the children of the church, and the community (plus it is lots of fun)!
2013
Community Care Advances
God has always stirred in each ministry, a heart for the community of Oakville. In 2013, Harvest began providing some key community care opportunities. After years of facilitating a food bank at Harvest House, Harvest Bible Chapel opened The Market. The church finally had enough space for its very own foodbank in the new building! This ministry soon became a way for God’s people to serve, and generously give. Today, The Market sees over 300 families every month, and throughout its history has served nearly 1,100 households in the Oakville region.
The care for the church body changed fundamentally when the small staff team of biblical counsellors began training non-vocational counsellors using the ABC model. Over the years, this ministry has walked with and counselled over 500 individuals. Praise the Lord for the team He has gifted to this church! In both The Market care and Soul Care the Lord has always provided things, time and time again that no one could have anticipated.
2013-2017
Church Planting Continues
In 2013, Harvest sent out two church plants to the areas of Toronto-West and Brantford. In 2014, a church plant was sent to Kelowna. And, in 2017, another church plant was sent to Ottawa! Praise the Lord! The people of Harvest were getting to see God move in incredible and gracious ways as He grew His Church for His glory!
2016
5G Life
As more people joined the body of Harvest Oakville, it became time to clarify what exactly it meant to be a part of this church family. In 2016, the I Am a Christ Follower sermon series was introduced. A series about living for what matters most! Through this study, Harvest sought to gain clarity among the church body about its discipleship model by introducing the 5G Life: Abide (God time), Connect (Gather time, Group time) and Share (Give time, Go time). This model is a testament to what the church believes about the Christian walk.
2018
Joining GCC
Harvest Bible Chapel officially joined the family of like-minded churches affiliated with the Great Commission Collective (GCC). Their desire for planting churches, connection in the gospel, and worldwide evangelism resonated with the church leadership as something the Harvest family should be part of. This wasn’t the church’s first international relationship, as it held large conferences like Vertical Church and Stand Firm around this time as well. To date, the church has hosted two GCC conferences and hopes to see many more!
2019
Introducing ‘HOPE’
On Easter 2019, the church changed its name to ‘Hope Bible Church Oakville’. A name that reflects the true HOPE experienced by Christ followers! The congregation eagerly awaited what God would do next in this new chapter of Hope’s history.
2019
Radiant Celebrates 5 Years
Hope’s RADIANT Women’s Conference celebrated its 5-year anniversary! This conference continues to encourage and boldly call over 2,000+ women every year to live brilliantly for Jesus. Hope has been blown away by how God chooses to use this event to build up and convict the women of this church family and the greater provincial community.
2020
Boxes of Hope Begins
The Market responded to the pandemic with Boxes of Hope, launched in 2020. Volunteer groups collected groceries from The Market and made boxes to deliver to people who could no longer come into the building. God used His church to generously provide throughout this time. Hope partnered with Hope Toronto-West, Hope Toronto-North and Hope Mississauga to provide boxes to those households outside of the Oakville region. Boxes of Hope still continues today; a ministry fully dependent on God’s grace and generosity, to serve those whom He loves.
2020
Hope Institute
In 2020, a desire became clear throughout the congregation for learning. This inspired the Hope Institute, a training and teaching-based discipleship opportunity at Hope. This ministry offers classes to support and strengthen individuals by engaging in a deeper understanding of biblical concepts. Today, the Institute runs several classes and has seen hundreds of students grow in their personal walks with the Lord through deepened learning.
2022
Mortgage Paid Off
In 2018, the mortgage for the property purchased at 500 Great Lakes Blvd was $7.5 million. At this time, the leadership was led to enter the Seek First the Kingdom campaign to decrease debt in order to increase funds for the Kingdom. By God’s grace, the church raised almost $5 million, and the mortgage was paid in full by 2022! This was less than 10 years after moving to Great Lakes Blvd. The faithfulness of God using His people to accomplish something so significant inspires nothing but awe.
2022
Soul Care Expands
Biblical Counselling at Hope is just one aspect of the Soul Care ministry. This ministry now also offers classes, resources, and training. Hope’s Soul Care team launched the Practical Theology courses in 2022, after three years of collaboration. These courses are a combination of what Hope believes about the spiritual heart and how that theology should practically inform everyday life. This was a huge Kingdom win! Every year, more students are pointed toward the one true answer to all pain and suffering! What a privilege it is to watch God bless ministries with growth and maturity!
2022
Deacons Commissioned
With a large church body, comes all kinds of needs and ways to serve. In 2022, Hope officially commissioned 14 Deacons, all with a heart for Christ-like service for the church family and community. A deacon is an official servant recognized by the church to help the pastors protect and prioritize the church’s mission by meeting the tangible needs of the congregation. This team has so far served hundreds of people! They are aided by the 67 Deacon Care Team members who come alongside the Deacons to provide care in specific areas of expertise like finance, medical care, home repair, and relational care. God is working in and through this ministry to reveal His heart of love and care for all people, and His nearness to those who are facing difficulty. We are profoundly thankful to the Lord and we stand in awe of His deep love for us. May God receive the glory!
2022-2023
More Churches Planted
In 2022, Hope was humbled to plant a church in Quebec, Église Doxa, which doubled in size over its first year. Then, in 2023, a satellite site was organized in Orangeville, which started with fifty people and is growing weekly. Praise the Lord!
2023
Free Indeed Celebrates 10 Years
Hope’s Free Indeed Men’s Conference celebrated its 10-year anniversary! Starting back in 2013, this conference continues to provide the truth to men that will set them free! Over 2000+ men join Hope for this conference every year! Praise the Lord for what He has done through this event!
2023
Hope Together
In the summer of 2023, the church organized Hope Together. This was one outdoor service with the entire church body, over 3,000 people in attendance! Everyone, all together, worshipping the Lord on the front lawn of the 500 Great Lakes property. No one could have known that field would be used in this way when the property was purchased over twelve years ago. God graciously provided the space, and the people that filled the spots – with one service altogether!
2024-
Future
From 2004-2023 over twelve hundred people have been baptized at Hope. This is no small work by the Lord. He has saved more people every year. He has filled the baptism tank. He has changed lives forever for HIS glory! This is the purpose of our building, our services— this is our Hope. Today, we are more than eighteen people in a church basement. But the mission of Hope Bible Church remains the same: to glorify God through the fulfillment of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20) in the spirit of the Great Commandment (Matthew 22:37–39). This mission statement is just another version of what was scribbled on that diner placemat in 2003. By God’s grace, Hope’s foundation is built on making disciples in His name and doing all things for His glory. And if anything else is to happen in Hope’s future, it will be the doing of HIM who brought us this far. Happy 20 years, Loved Ones!
