Digging the foundation in 1926.
Founded in 1926 as the result of a revival service that was too good to stop, Pocono Lake Wesleyan Church is a community of people who believe that God can and does transform lives. The Poconos looked very different for much of our history — communities were smaller, families were larger, and the mountains were much more remote — but that desire for God to work a great change in our lives has remained steady.
In those early days, for many people the church was the center of community life. Building relationships with others and with God came through regular participation in church activities. Prayer, Bible study, and regular calls to a deeper commitment to God permeated everyday life. As time has passed, the methods and schedules may have changed, but that desire for a life profoundly transformed by an encounter with the risen Christ has continued.
The Poconos have seen a massive influx of people in the last twenty years, largely from the urban centers of New York, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. With the growth has come both a wonderful diversity and a multiplication of needs. We are no longer a simple country church, secluded up in the mountains. God has given us an opportunity and a calling to reach out to our families, friends, and neighbors to share the message of hope in a God who transforms. We are about the work of bringing together people of different generations, cultures, and life experiences in the name of Jesus Christ.
In those early days, for many people the church was the center of community life. Building relationships with others and with God came through regular participation in church activities. Prayer, Bible study, and regular calls to a deeper commitment to God permeated everyday life. As time has passed, the methods and schedules may have changed, but that desire for a life profoundly transformed by an encounter with the risen Christ has continued.
The Poconos have seen a massive influx of people in the last twenty years, largely from the urban centers of New York, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. With the growth has come both a wonderful diversity and a multiplication of needs. We are no longer a simple country church, secluded up in the mountains. God has given us an opportunity and a calling to reach out to our families, friends, and neighbors to share the message of hope in a God who transforms. We are about the work of bringing together people of different generations, cultures, and life experiences in the name of Jesus Christ.
The boundary stones of the original property can still be found.
Today, as we look for God's leading in how to continue this great mission where God has placed us, it is our heart's cry — and our commitment — that Jesus would make us into deep, beautiful, fearless people. Deep people are curious, growing producers and contributors to their world, rather than being bland consumers who only want to be entertained. Beauty has nothing to do with what you look like: rather, it is seen in the grace and love shown by people who are grateful to God for what he has done. And fearless people realize that if Jesus Christ has been raised from the dead, death has lost its sting, and we therefore have nothing to fear as we serve our King. This is the sort of church we've asked God to make us.
Five Loaf House in 2013.
In response, God has given us an opportunity to be a deep, beautiful, and fearless church. In February of 2013, we purchased a former restaurant and boarding house in Pocono Pines, renaming it "Five Loaf House." Just as Jesus blessed his disciples' faithfulness with five loaves of bread in feeding five thousand hungry people in Matthew 14, we are looking forward to seeing how God blesses our efforts in the use of this new facility.
The vision is to renovate Five Loaf House with the help of Monroe County Habitat for Humanity and use the space as the new home of the Top of the Mountain Ecumenical Council's food pantry. We intend to find other creative ways of using this place to offer resources to help people and families in need to get back on their feet.
We hope you'll join us on this great journey God has called us to.
The vision is to renovate Five Loaf House with the help of Monroe County Habitat for Humanity and use the space as the new home of the Top of the Mountain Ecumenical Council's food pantry. We intend to find other creative ways of using this place to offer resources to help people and families in need to get back on their feet.
We hope you'll join us on this great journey God has called us to.
