Our History

Palm Coast Community Church (pc3) was launched in 1995 by Billy Wight (an ex-saddlemaker) and John Shepherd (a former rocket scientist).  These two men and their families took a leap of faith, moved to another state, and started a church with very little money and a whole lot of faith.  After two years, pc3 sponsored John to move to Tennessee to start another church, while Billy and Kim stayed in Flagler County to continue the work of challenging people to discover real life in Christ.

 

It has been a God-sized story since way before the official launch in 1995.  Below is a brief story about how their journey took place.

Billy came to know Christ at the age of 16 while attending a church service in July of 1979.  Listening to Coach Bobby Bowden give the message that day, he decided to make Jesus the Director of his life.  Several years later, while pursuing a degree in Forestry at Auburn University, Billy realized God’s ultimate purpose for his life was to one day become a pastor.  So after his graduation from college and his marriage to Kim, Billy worked several years in the forestry business before he and Kim headed for spiritual leadership training at Mid-America Seminary in Memphis, TN.  It was when he graduated seminary in 1991 that his pursuit of starting a new church began.

The first few months following seminary were filled with events that led Billy to discover he had been wired by God to do something other than become the  leader of an existing local church. Instead, he began to focus his energies on moving to a growing area in the U.S and starting a new church with a fresh approach to spiritual growth—Real People in a Real World serving a Real God.  He also felt that he and his wife should not start this new church on their own; it was to be a team effort. As they became more and more convinced God was leading them in this direction, Billy and Kim pursued this calling with a singular focus only to find no clear direction and few open doors.  The Wights searched for an opportunity for over 2 ½  years without answers.

At last, in October of 1994 Billy was contacted by John Shepherd, a friend from seminary.  John had been approached by Pastor Dannie Williams of Peniel Baptist Church in Palatka, Florida about the possibility of starting a new church in Palm Coast.  Through a series of events over a three-month period, God’s direction for this venture became crystal clear. The Wights, along with the Shepherds, moved to Palm Coast after Christmas in 1994.

The first eight months of 1995 were a whirlwind of planning and organizing.  On September 10^th, Palm Coast Community Church launched with a total of 205 people in attendance!  The average attendance settled in at just over 100 people in the next three months and began to grow from there.

God has been consistently faithful throughout this journey, guiding the church through many challenges and leading it from a small church to its current population with over 500 people in attendance on Sundays.  The journey continued in 2009 when pc3 launched a new church – epic church.  www.theepicchurch.com

With God’s leading, pc3 will continue to challenge the people of Flagler County to discover real life in Christ.  We will also continue to launch new churches that multiply the spiritual DNA that emphasizes loving God, loving people, and living it out!