Why the name “High Mill”?

In 1975, in an attempt to give a group of “kids” an alternative activity during the summer months, some friends got together and started a fellowship Bible study. The group found a place to meet at an old farmhouse on the property of High Mill Swim Park in Massillon, Ohio. Attendance quickly grew to over fifty people and expanded to two nights a week. Soon Monday and Thursday night meetings were overflowing and each night took on a distinct flavor of ministry and fellowship.

As the fellowship grew and grew, it became apparent that there were a growing number of people who did not come out of a church background and did not have ties with another ministry. So shortly thereafter this realization, with the focus of reaching those who did not currently have a home church, the group started holding Sunday morning services in the barn at High Mill Swim Park. As a church, we took on the name “High Mill Christian Center.”

In the winter of 1978 it became apparent that we would have to find more suitable facilities for our meeting, so we rented the campus “barn” at Malone College for Sunday morning services. Though no official membership role existed, attendance doubled in size within four months.

During this time, another area church asked us to move our Thursday night meetings to their facility.

The meetings at Church of the Lakes were a great success in that they gave us a little more stability and saw many more people come to the Lord.

In November of 1979, with no money in the bank and much faith, High Mill purchased the former John Knox Presbyterian Church in Canton. A generous, anonymous donor from the local community stood up to co-sign on the purchase for this ragtag group of kids and, as a result, ministry continued in this facility for a number of years. When this building could no longer contain the growth, High Mill then sold the city property to another congregation and ventured out into the great unknown.

For almost a decade, High Mill took up residence in a local elementary school while waiting on God to provide for the construction of a new facility on nearby acreage. Many lessons were learned through those years in the schoolhouse as the congregation worked together and walked by faith. And, to the glory of God, we now function from a debt free facility valued at over $5 million.

The church name was changed in the 1990s from “High Mill Christian Center” to “High Mill Church of the Resurrection”. And, as a church, we have been witnesses of God breathing new life and fresh vision into His people.

Our Mission

Our mission is to relate a relevant God to real people for radical change . We want to creatively reveal Christ's love and authority in such a way that disillusioned and discontent generations will want to reach out to Him.

We are His hands and His feet. We want to reach our generation with the Gospel. We want to see every person reconciled to God, to self, and to others. And we want to see each one released into his or her giftings as we seek to reproduce Christ's likeness in our own lifestyles.

We have had our struggles and our challenges – as in any place where people are attempting to serve God. Our hope is that these will not be wasted lessons and that will walk forward and further on into the journey that God has called us to walk together.

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Our Vision

In today's world, we are surrounded by visual images - some are encouraging and uplifting while some are the exact opposite. In this experiential society, it is our desire to creatively reveal the love and authority of Christ.

We want to show others who Jesus is through the expression of our lives. We want to be living, visible examples that brings people to Christ in:

• Our circle of family and friends
• Our county, our state, and our nation
• Our world of so many cultures and peoples

Christ is the exact likeness of the unseen God. He existed before God made anything at all. (Colossians 1:15)

So we seek always to give glory and honor to God forever and ever. He is the King of the ages, the unseen one who never dies. He alone is our God and full of wisdom in all that he does. (I Timothy 1:17)

Our vision stays clear because of our focus on the Lord and the evidences of His involvement in our lives. We are not distracted by circumstances that would try to take our focus from the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Because of his great love for us, we persevere and are confident of one thing - we will see the goodness of the Lord in our lives. (Psalm 27)

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Our Focus Areas of Ministry

Our focus is founded in four key areas or pillars:

• Worship
• Youth
• Missions
• Body ministry

God has blessed us with cutting-edge leaders to direct each of these areas.

We recognize worship as a lifestyle , not a Sunday morning experience. Our worship leaders exhibit humility and hearts toward God. Many are drawn to our services by the quality of our worship. Yes, some may be drawn by our technical excellence, but we believe to a greater degree it is the anointing of God on worship in this place and on the lives of the leaders who have given themselves to this service.

Our congregation has been and continues to be comprised of a large youth population – at any service half of those in attendance will be under age 30. Our call and responsibility in this area remains to train and to disciple young people to reach out to their friends and family with a Gospel that speaks of love and relationship.

The area of missions has become focal at High Mill in the past ten years (once Pastor Chuck got over his fear of flying, he has never looked back!) Now at the beginning of the 21st century, High Mill stands poised to be an integral part of the last days harvest for Christ. God continues to develop our networking with leaders throughout the nations. He has entrusted us with great responsibilities as to developing right relations with these leaders and we eagerly desire the strengthening of these relationships within a partnership context.

Body ministry is a phrase that sometimes is difficult to define. Perhaps the best way to describe what we mean by body ministry is that, while we have the hearts of rescue workers, we seek to function within the realm of being a wellness center. By this we mean that we give help to those who are in need, but we also seek to help them establish healthy disciplines.

Christ came for those who were sick, not those who were healthy and whole. So, to reach those who are hurting, we will sometimes be seen in unexpected places and doing unconventional things. Our body ministry means being an example of love and meeting people where they are at – with a focus on drawing them with the love of Christ into right relationship and growth with Him.

As a congregation, our desire is to remain true to the vision and calling given from High Mill‘s inception. When we step away from this focus in an effort to please others or accommodate varying approaches is when we get ourselves into trouble.

We desire to be what God has called us as High Mill Church of the Resurrection to be. We desire to be a participant in the larger body of Christ - all bringing our gifts and callings into the blend that God desires of His bride.

We pray that God will continue to place within our congregation the servant leaders who seek the face of God to bring His ordained plan and purpose into reality. And we pray that we will be open and discerning of God's creative ways in which He will bring to pass all that He has desired for us.

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