from Lakeside To Eastside Park Rapids
Lakeside Christian Church officially became the Park Rapids campus of Eastside Christian Church, Eastside’s very first multi-site location, and from day one, God has been writing a story no one could have predicted.
the history of Lakeside Christian Church
It all began in a small Minnesota town, where two churches separated by thousands of miles found themselves united by one mission. Lakeside Christian Church had long been a place of steady faith and deep community in Park Rapids, MN. On most Sundays, about 25 to 30 people gathered — faithful, good-hearted retirees, with no kids and no clear sense of what the future held. Through prayer and discernment, Pastor Jorgensen reached out to Gene Appel, senior pastor of Eastside Christian Church in Southern California, with a bold dream.
What if Lakeside became part of Eastside’s mission?
What if, together, they could reach even more people for Christ?
From a human perspective, it made absolutely no sense. But with God… all things are possible. After much prayer, honest conversation, and a step of trust in God’s leading, Eastside said yes. They decided to go all in.
They decided to go all in
From the very first Sunday, everything changed. Attendance multiplied. Two services quickly became three. Soon they were literally bursting at the seams — running out of chairs, space, and room to grow.
And as the church expanded physically, something even more powerful happened: young families began showing up. Kids filled the halls. The sound of laughter and worship grew louder. A church that once wondered what was next suddenly found itself in the middle of a move of God.
Today, that dream has far exceeded anything anyone imagined. Every weekend, more than 800 people gather in a brand-new worship auditorium. Kids thrive in vibrant, age-tailored spaces. Guests are welcomed with ease thanks to a paved parking lot designed for growth. Eastside Park Rapids continues to make room for every person who walks through its doors.
LIVE ARE CHANGING IN PARK RAPIDS, MN
This town has watched God move in unmistakable ways. Eastside is experiencing a season of incredible growth — families coming to faith, students dragging their parents to church, and parents finding hope and purpose again. Baptism Sundays are overflowing. Lives are changing. And in a small town, that kind of transformation is impossible to miss. You see Eastside stickers on cars, Eastside shirts around town, invitations everywhere you go — evidence of a church that’s on mission.
After 10 years in a town of just 4,000 people, Eastside Park Rapids has become the largest, most dynamic church in the area. A church that moved from consuming to contributing. A church that said yes to serving their neighbors and meeting needs both locally and around the world.
What began as a prayerful step of faith has become a living testimony to what God can do when His people go all in.