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History (Evidence of God’s continued grace toward New Life and her mission):
1993-94: The RCA's Pleasant Prairie Classis and Central Iowa Classis teamed up to investigate starting a new church in the Iowa City area after determining that more than 70% of the people were un-churched. A Mother Church was signed on – Second Reformed Church in Pella – and a Steering Committee with “Great Commission Eyes” was assembled. Later, two sister churches – Third Reformed in Pella and Cedar Hills in Cedar Rapids – came alongside. They called John White and his family from Utica, NY to pioneer the work. A Bible study began with thirteen people in the White’s home on November 6, 1994. It was then that the name “New Life Community Church” was chosen.
1995: In January of 1995, The Phone’s for You campaign took place. Over 6000 phone calls were made to the Iowa City and Coralville area, with the help of people from Pella, Cedar Falls, and the core group, inviting people to a new church. The grand opening worship, held in the banquet rooms of the Expressway Motel in March of that year, was attended by 91 people. People’s lives were beginning to be changed by the Gospel. Our signature van ministry was started.
1996: We moved to an office building on Highway 6 in Coralville. Members from Third Reformed Church in Pella helped to design and construct the interior. Comfortable chairs were purchased through a successful chair campaign, attendance increased,Discovery Hour began, and kids and adults were baptized. Our name became better known, thanks especially to our neighbor – KGAN-TV.
1998: A huge step was taken by leasing a vacant warehouse (current location). It was renovated with numerous donations and the help of 185 RCA volunteers from Iowa and Minnesota. Staff additions included a part-time Music Minister, a part-time Children’s Ministries Director, and a part-time Administrative Assistant. Powerful worship and activity followed.
2000: New Life Community Church was chartered into the RCA and 253 people were here to celebrate that day. The offering was given to begin a new church in the Ames, IA area. The number of families attending New Life crossed the 50 benchmark. Our softball team won the championship!
2002: Vacation Bible School began to grow and we entered our first float in the 4th of July Parade. A work team went to Apache, OK to build houses.
2003: A visioning process using The Natural Church Development (NCD) survey was done, and as a result Small Groups and Evangelism became a major emphasis.
2004: In the fall, God answered our prayers regarding finding land that met our criteria. A season of prayer and fasting was requested by our leadership to determine God’s will.
2005: The people of New Life Church voted overwhelmingly to purchase land on contract, using classis funds and church savings as a down payment. A team was appointed to plan the financial campaign and the Breaking New Ground (BNG) campaign was launched to fund the land purchase. Rockin’ Comedy Community Night (our annual outreach event), and our first ecumenical worship service during the 4th of July festivities in Coralville’s city park began. A part-time Youth Pastor was hired.
2006: Jeremy and Susan Beebout and their family were sent as RCA missionaries to Niger, and a group from New Life went on a short term mission trip to Louisiana.
2007: Construction began on our Youth and Community Center, which is connected to our church building. The planning for an Ecumenical Food Pantry was initiated. A Vision Task Force team was developed to recommend our next steps. The final land payment was made, the church voted to move forward into the pre-planning stage of the building process, and we developed our Pre-Design Team.
2008: The Pre-Design team was in full swing. A mission team was sent to Niger. On June 12th the church building was completely evacuated and on June 13th the building flooded with 6 feet of water. Worship services were held in the Coralville Library for 2 months and later in an Iowa City movie theatre for 3 months. Staff and Ministry offices were scattered throughout the city, yet our congregation remained unified. In November the renovation of the church building, Youth & Community Center, and Ecumenical Food Pantry were completed and the congregation moved back into the Coralville building.
2009: In February 2009 our founding Pastor, John White resigned. A seven-member pastoral search team was formed. They prepared a job description and identified the traits our church would seek in its next pastor. The search produced a significant applicant pool. The team vetted the pool and identified candidates they felt to be a good match. A candidate was recommended to the consistory who accepted another call. The team then recommended a husband and wife pastoral team to the consistory. They extended a call, but after a lengthy process of discernment the couple declined the call. During the eighteen month period following Pastor White’s departure, the consistory enhanced its role in leadership. Ken Polsley (a New Life elder) and monthly substitute pastors ably taught from the pulpit, performed baptisms and installed new members. Sunday services were coordinated and led by the worship team, and with the exception of the sermon and benediction, lay members conducted all activities of the worship services. Ministry teams remained intact and active. Outreach also continued with the addition of our Neighborhood Outreach BBQ’s.
2010: In October 2010 Pastor Jim Van Zetten, a Specialized Interim Pastor was hired. Pastor Jim lead our church body through a healing process and providing much needed education both from the pulpit as well as in Sunday morning adult Bible studies where he addressed the role of women in ministry, and taught us to be an even more cohesive family. His Sunday classes were typically attended by approximately 20 members of our church body. Our worship continued to be lay led, with the exception of the sermon and benediction given by Pastor Jim, Pastor Ken, or RCA pulpit supply. Ministry teams continue to remain vibrant and active as we seek to be one body in Christ, growing in worship, discipleship and outreach.
2011: Early in 2011, a second pastoral search team was formed and began collecting and reviewing applications. After considerable discernment time, interviews, and prayer, the search team went to consistory with a recommendation to call Paul Smith, a gifted RCA Commissioned Pastor leader from central Iowa, as New Life’s next Sr. Pastor. In June, Pastor Paul and his family visited New Life for a candidate weekend. Following that weekend, the congregation voted overwhelmingly in favor of advising the consistory to extend a call to Pastor Paul. The consistory did so and Pastor began his ministry here in August. A new mission was put into place and a new sense of excitement towards serving the Lord together began to take shape.
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