Beyond Time: Harvest Worship Center’s Remarkable History
In The Beginning
On Sunday, March 8, 1987, we held our first service. The service was held in the Glenmoore fire hall. God had supernaturally opened the door for us to use the fire hall. The normal rent for the hall was one hundred dollars per usage, but by God's power & grace, we were allowed to use it for one hundred dollars per month!!
Looking back over the years, we can truly say that God moved in very powerful ways in those early services. We used to say we were a church that met in a fire hall where God's fire was falling!!
Phase Two
God moved us on to another fire hall in Downingtown 5 years later. We were there for about three months, when God again moved supernaturally & provided a building for us located at 141 East Lancaster Avenue. We were given the entire upstairs of this building.
The normal cost for rent of this building was about 1,800 dollars per month. God gave us the building for 400 dollars per month!! We were at this location for about seven years. During this period of time, we were able to renovate & expand our sanctuary two times. This enabled us to double our seating capacity.
But God wasn't finished with providing for us in a supernatural way!! At the end of this seven-year period, God gave us a first-floor building just a few doors down from our 141 E. Lancaster location. This location more than tripled the size of our sanctuary & gave us a highly visible location on Route 30. This faculty was provided to our church at no cost!!
Our Home
It was during this time that God began to speak to Pastor Keith Brooks about speaking to me. Pastor Brooks approached me about bringing our congregation to his church, which is located at 1295 Marshallton-Thorndale Road. After much prayer, the Lord began giving both of us confirmation that, indeed, this was His plan for both of our lives.
So in August of 2000, we were joined together. This history is given as a testimony to the faithfulness of God!! We look to the future with great expectations for what God has planned for our congregation!
Our 16 Fundamental Truths
These are nonnegotiable tenets of faith that all Assemblies of God churches adhere to. This list is derived from the official Statement of Fundamental Truths. Click the links below to see the complete original statement with scriptures.
- WE BELIEVE... The Scriptures are Inspired by God & declare His design & plan for mankind.
- WE BELIEVE... There is only One True God revealed in three persons... Father, Son & Holy Spirit (commonly known as the Trinity).
- WE BELIEVE... In the Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. As God's son, Jesus was both human & divine.
- WE BELIEVE... though originally good, Man Willingly Fell to Sin-ushering evil & death, both physical & spiritual, into the world.
- WE BELIEVE... Every Person Can Have Restored Fellowship with God Through Salvation (trusting Christ, through faith & repentance, to be our personal Savior). [1 of 4 cardinal doctrines of the AG]
- WE BELIEVE... and practice two ordinances-(1) Water Baptism by Immersion after repenting of one's sins & receiving Christ's gift of salvation & (2) Holy Communion (the Lord's Supper) as a symbolic remembrance of Christ's suffering & death for our salvation.
- WE BELIEVE... the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is a Special Experience Following Salvation that empowers believers for witnessing & effective service, just as it did in New Testament times. [1 of 4 cardinal doctrines of the AG]
- WE BELIEVE... The Initial Physical Evidence of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is "Speaking in Tongues," as experienced on the Day of Pentecost & referenced throughout Acts & the Epistles.
- WE BELIEVE... Sanctification Initially Occurs at Salvation & is not only a declaration that a believer is holy but also a progressive lifelong process of separating from evil as believers continually draw closer to God & become more Christlike.
- WE BELIEVE... The Church has a Mission to seek & save all who are lost in sin. We believe "the Church" is the Body of Christ & consists of the people who, throughout time, have accepted God's offer of redemption (regardless of religious denomination) through the sacrificial death of His son Jesus Christ.
- WE BELIEVE... A Divinely Called & Scripturally Ordained Leadership Ministry Serves the Church. The Bible teaches that each of us under leadership must commit ourselves to reach others for Christ, to worship Him with other believers & to build up or edify the body of believers-the Church.
- WE BELIEVE... Divine Healing of the Sick is a Privilege for Christians Today & is provided for in Christ's atonement (His sacrificial death on the cross for our sins). [1 of 4 cardinal doctrines of the AG]
- WE BELIEVE... The Blessed Hope-When Jesus Raptures His Church Prior to His Return to Earth (the second coming). At this future moment in time, all believers who have died will rise from their graves & will meet the Lord in the air & Christians who are alive will be caught up with them, to be with the Lord forever. [1 of 4 cardinal doctrines of the AG]
- WE BELIEVE... in The Millennial Reign of Christ when Jesus returns with His saints at His second coming & begins His benevolent rule over earth for 1,000 years. This millennial reign will bring the salvation of national Israel & the establishment of universal peace.
- WE BELIEVE... A Final Judgment Will Take Place for those who have rejected Christ. They will be judged for their sin & consigned to eternal punishment in a punishing lake of fire.
- WE BELIEVE... and look forward to the perfect
New Heavens & a New Earth that
Christ is preparing for all people of all time who have accepted
Him. We will live & dwell with Him there forever following His millennial reign on Earth. "And so shall we forever be with the
Lord!"
Our 3 Power Principles of Service
Give Some of Your Best
This principle springs from the story of Cain & Abel. Cain gave some of his produce to
God, whereas his brother Abel gave "some of his best."
God approved of Abel, but urged Cain to do the same, giving "some of his best." Otherwise, Cain would continue unhappy, struggling to "master" sin.
Give Out of Your Own Need
You'll never know true service until you've served from a position of true need. Many of the Apostle Paul's most compelling writings were written from prison cells, where he continued in willful service to those around him, praising
God in the midst of hardship.
Don't Hold on too Tightly
As Solomon put it, Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days, you'll find it again. This means more than just giving to the poor, as it's often interpreted. Don't be afraid to give & to spend. After all, money does the most good as it circulates, passing fluently from one person's benefit to the next & so on. Chances are, you'll see it again.
Our Pastor & His Wife
Pastor Garry L. Fowler
Dr. Garry Lee Fowler has been the pastor of Harvest Worship Center in Downingtown, PA, for 36 years. He is perhaps best distinguished by his ten years of service as Chaplain at the Department of Veteran Affairs Hospital of Coatesville, PA. He also served as Chaplain for six years at Brandywine Hospital & Trauma Center. Countless lives have been changed since that time by his simple but powerful approach to ministry.
His method is as straightforward as this - "See a need, meet a need." This is the crux of this mission here at Harvest Worship Center. Few pastors truly serve as the backbone of their church. There are many good preachers, church leaders, and counselors, but few who also carry the full weight of their church.
Pastor Garry was called to full-time ministry one night, lying in his bed in Baltimore. Reading from Luke, he came to chapters 4:18 & 19, where he sensed God's call to ministry: "The Spirit of the Lord is on me because He has appointed me to preach good news to the poor." He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed, and to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.
Pastor Garry has consistently demonstrated to his church, to neighbors, and to strangers alike, having learned and applied the fundamental requirements of Christian living, service, humility, and suffering with Christ and with people. He fully acknowledges his inability to live out these principles without help from God. Pastor Garry's commitment to God and to everyday people is evident in his passion for serving U.S. veterans and in his commitment to serve people entangled in all sorts of bondage and folks having little to give in return. After all, aren't these the ones Christ spoke of when he said, "The fields are ripe for harvest"?
Pastor Garry always has timely advice for youth as well as for married couples. Some gems of wisdom include that youth should surround themselves with peers who love God and that married couples must always be very careful about what they say to each other. Solomon said, "The tongue has the power of life and death." Finally, if there's one thing Pastor Garry wants you to know about our church, it's this:
"We have a passion for God and for hurting needy people. We don't pass people by when we see a need, we meet it".
Sister Debbie Fowler (First Lady)
The young Garry Fowler & Debbie were already engaged to be married as students at Valley Forge Christian College when God began speaking to both of them about their being set apart for ministry. When Garry felt certain about the call to full-time ministry, he brought it up to Debbie, whose support was resolute. In fact, God had been recently speaking to Debbie's heart in the same vein. When they married in 1981, they were still attending Valley Forge, and Debbie was working full-time as a medical transcriptionist, practically paying Garry's way through college.
Following graduation in 1984, Garry entered full-time ministry as a youth Pastor, during which time Mrs. Debbie was practically Pastor Garry's quasi-co-pastor. Not long after, Pastor Garry was called to pioneer this church, which was founded in March of 1987. Along the way, Debbie has been constant in her support of Pastor Garry's vision, creating such a synergy that their path, laden with thorns and obstacles, was completely straightened. Most naturally quiet, Debbie is very happy being behind the scenes, continuing to encapsulate this church's mission - "See a need, meet a need."
When you get to know Mrs. Debbie, one of the first things you'll notice is her gracious and empathetic heart. "She truly feels all of your emotional stories." Finally, Debbie is passionate about educating children in God's Word. Perhaps Debbie's zeal in this regard inspires the tone of our children's ministry and of our Day Care Program, that being "Firm Foundations," and truly, Christ is theirs and our sure foundation.