2025 Impact Report
“Blessed are…”
This past year, we were changed by Jesus’ opening words to His most famous sermon, the Beatitudes. He begins by saying, “Blessed are…”. Indeed, 2025 has been a year of seeing God bless our church in incredible ways.
Lives were changed, families were strengthened, and people met Jesus - some for the first time, others in a fresh way.
None of this happened by accident. It came through God’s Spirit, working through prayer, humility and a church family that keeps showing up to love God and love each other.
As you read this report, celebrate what God has done, be encouraged by His Kingdom activity, and remember that every number has a name and every story points to His grace. I’m so grateful for you and to be a part of the story.
We’re excited for what’s ahead.
Aaron Ophaug
Lead Pastor
Sunday Gatherings: Lives are Being Changed
Our Sunday gatherings continue to be the hub for life change and community life. Every Sunday service is aimed at helping people take a next step with Jesus, no matter what their past. Engagement and participation are the goal, not passivity and spectating.
Sunday Attendance
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This past year, our church attendance has grown by 25%.
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23% of our church has been saved and baptized since launching in 2022.
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51 people filled out a connection card to take their next step with Jesus and in our church.
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61 people joined us for Intro Breakfast, the first step into the life of the church.
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We had over 350 new subscribers to our YouTube channel and 6,300 views of our livestream services.
Milan being baptized
Story: Milan, a champion for Jesus
Milan, who’s nine, chose to be baptized this past year. As he stood in the water, his parents, Chris and Bianca, and Pastor Aaron prayed over him. In that moment, Pastor Aaron asked God to make Milan a “champion for Jesus.” What he didn’t know was that Chris’s dad—Milan’s grandpa—had prayed that same prayer for years over his sons and grandsons. Everyone in the water felt the weight of it. It was one of those moments where Jesus makes His faithfulness unmistakably clear to a family.
Spiritual Growth: Becoming Disciples who Make Disciples
Love is the standard God uses to measure the health of a church (1 Corinthians 13). It’s not easy to quantify, but like a healthy plant, a church rooted in love will grow and multiply. Jesus said, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).
Our aim isn’t just for people to believe in Jesus—it’s for them to become disciples who make disciples. We’re seeing that happen through the growth of our mid-week Growth Groups, greater engagement in spiritual practices, and more people serving on ministry teams. These are the places where Jesus is forming us and where love shows up in real ways.
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We added 14 new leaders to oversee critical ministries including prayer, kids, set-up and security. Ministry is a team sport. Its so fun to watch people find their gifts and use them for Jesus with joy.
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Our Growth Group leaders report that 75% of people in their groups are engaging with God’s word, 2-3 times per week.
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Throughout 2025, we had a total of 292 people join a Growth Group, from our traditional groups for men, women, and couples to Moms with Littles and Faith Behind the Badge.
Story: Hailey, stepping into God’s call so others can experience Jesus
Hailey and her husband Christian began to attend our church on Launch Sunday. God had been stirring in her that her walk with Jesus could go deeper. As a faithful follower of Jesus, Hailey helped lead in various ways but as the church grew, a need arose: A Sunday Prayer leader.
Although hesitant, Hailey also knew that Jesus was asking her to step into the role of leading our Sunday prayer ministry. Since then, she has trained a strong team who covers our Sunday services in prayer and has helped many feel God’s comfort in moments of pain.
Next Gen: Owning their faith
Our Next Gen ministry—kids and students together—keeps growing. By percentage, our kids ministry is now one of the largest in all of Friends Church. Our aims are simple and urgent: help the next generation build a real relationship with Jesus, connect them with mentors they can trust, guide them as they make their faith their own, and equip them with solid biblical wisdom in a world that pulls them the other way. We hold tight to the promise that “one generation will commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts” (Psalm 145:4).
Story: Laura, A student leader encourages a God-honoring choice
Aubrey, a high school student who’s grown up in our church, was facing a tough decision about some friendships. Her mom, Kim, encouraged her to bring it to Jesus and listen for His guidance. After two days of praying, Aubrey still didn’t have clarity. Kim gently told her to keep waiting on God.
Aubrey picked up a journal—one her high school leader, Laura, had given her after she was baptized. Inside was a note from Laura that Aubrey had never noticed. When she opened it, she was stunned. Laura’s words were exactly what she needed to hear to make a God-honoring choice.
Moments like that remind us how students grow. They learn to own their faith not only by watching their parents follow Jesus, but by seeing other trusted adults in their church walk closely with Him too.
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This is our first faith milestone. We pray that the parents, together with the church, will raise up godly kids.
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Our three day Bible intense summer camp focused on helping kids grasp the big story of the Gospel and know that God is trustworthy.
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Identity & Growing Up
This fall, we talked about what it means to be a teenager who follows Jesus—how God sees them, how they see themselves, and how that shapes the way they treat others.Friends & Relationships
We spent time on friendships—choosing the right friends, being a good friend, handling drama, and learning what healthy, Christ-like relationships look like.Faith & Critical Thinking
We encouraged students to ask honest questions about faith, think critically, and see God as a trustworthy source of truth in a world with a lot of voices and opinions.Living for Jesus in Today’s Culture
Finally, we talked about how to follow Jesus in real life—online, at school, on teams, and at home—making wise choices and showing God’s love in everyday situations.
Spiritual Impact: Taking the church beyond our walls
God has been “on mission” working his plan of redemption throughout the ages among all humanity. Participation in the work of mission joins us with God’s mission, and we claim our role in God’s kingdom by following in the footsteps of Jesus. Mission is intertwined with other aspects of our discipleship and must involve both proclamation (our words) and demonstration (our lives, actions, and deeds) of the Gospel. (Genesis 1:27, Psalm 140:12, Ephesians 4:11-12)
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Our most ever! 180 kids received amazing Christmas gifts from our church through our partnership with Olivecrest.
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6 times this year, teams of people from our church partnered with Food for Life, a local food pantry, to give out fresh groceries and food to families struggling in our area.
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17 young men graduated from Only the Strong, a mentoring program for young men without fathers that was birthed from within our church. The program is run at Colony High School.
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Over 94 people served hundreds of hours outside of our church walls, touching over 1500 people in our local community and neighborhoods.
Story: Jessy, passing on biblical manhood
Only the Strong Graduation - Fall 2025
Jessy is a local police officer who couldn’t ignore the brokenness he saw every day. Again and again, he noticed the same pattern: young men without fathers were far more at risk of falling into crime. Jesus began to press that burden on Jessy’s heart, and together with our church he helped launch a mentoring program called Only the Strong.
The ministry focuses on young men in our local high schools who don’t have a father at home. Over ten weeks, they’re paired with mentors who walk with them and teach them biblical masculinity and practical habits for life.
Right now the program is running at Colony High School, and we plan to expand it in the coming years. This past year, seventeen young men graduated and received the steady, godly mentoring they’ve been missing.
Building a future together: Salt and Light 2026
Our focus for 2026 is simple: live out Jesus’ call to be Salt and Light in the Inland Empire.
1. Embody Salt and Light in our community
We’re praying about launching a third service on Thursday nights, designed for young adults (ages 16–30) and anyone who travels or has sports on the weekend. This would give us space to reach more people and create much needed space for our kids ministry on Sundays.
2. Engage every life stage with intentional discipleship: We want to help people grow deep roots in Christ, not just attend services. This includes:
Hire staff for our growing Student and Worship Ministries
Intentionally disciple our jr. high and high school students to understand the Bible and walk with Jesus
Launch Friends Basics, a four-part discipleship course covering:
– Who God is
– How to read the Bible
– How to live in healthy community
– How to make a Kingdom impactDeepen our Marriage Ministry to strengthen homes and help couples thrive.
Continue to make it easy for anyone, at any age, to take a next step with Jesus.
3. Expand our impact beyond our walls: We want to share the hope of Jesus wherever He opens a door. We believe God is calling us to reach our city in new ways:
A city-wide evangelistic outreach at the Norco Rodeo, allowing thousands to hear the Gospel
Growing our Only the Strong mentoring program
Supporting foster families and first responders
Sending our first Global Missions Team
4. Establish a long-term future: We’ll begin a savings fund for a future building so we’re prepared to serve and bear fruit for years to come. Our facility isn’t the goal. It’s a tool for Kingdom impact.
If God leads you, would you consider making a special year-end gift to support our Salt and Light vision? You’re not just giving, you’re partnering in the work Jesus is doing here.
Thank you for your partnership and generosity to build God’s Kingdom together!
Blessed are….
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
-Matthew 5:3-10
