The vision for Restoration Community Church began in January 2009 in a Naperville small group Bible study for Calvary English Chapel. It was during this time that two families discovered that God had been independently placing a burden on their hearts to see a church planted in Naperville—a church that would faithfully proclaim and live out the good news of Jesus Christ while being a vital presence in the community.
Much of the initial vision of the church plant was borne out of the experience of a couple men involved in this small group, David Cho and Ken Ha, who both grew up in the Western suburbs of Chicago. They were well aware of the rapidly-changing demographics of the area and concluded that the time was ripe for a church plant. With an overwhelming sense that God was leading their families in this direction, they began to pray and plan in earnest.
The next important step was finding a pastor who shared this vision to plant a church in Naperville. Toward that end, Ken and David approached Rev. Brian Park, another Western suburbanite by upbringing, who was serving at the time as an associate pastor at Calvary. After a time of careful consideration and prayer, Brian and his wife, Jane, began to sense the Lord’s leading. They officially came on board in July 2010 after a very gracious send-off from Calvary. Along with Pastor Brian and Jane, four other families joined the launch team.
After praying, planning, and visiting different churches throughout the summer, by God’s grace we gathered for our first Lord’s Day worship service on September 12, 2010. We feel a compelling sense of God’s call, and we are excited to see how He will work in and through Restoration Community Church to reach the Naperville community and beyond for His glory.