A year ago, Eder Financial shared the inspiring story of Circle of Peace Church in Peoria, Arizona — a vibrant congregation dreaming big as construction began on a new worship center designed to match their growing ministry. Today, that dream has become a reality. The walls are up, the doors are open, and the energy within reflects the same spirit of faith and vision that started it all.
One of the greatest blessings of the new worship center at Circle of Peace Church in Peoria, Arizona, is space. For years, worship meant opening four adjoining classrooms to create a makeshift sanctuary that seated about 100 people. Even with two Sunday services, only about 200 could attend — crowded close together, with little room for quiet reflection. In a place like Arizona, where open space is part of the culture, that was a challenge. But now, with the opening of their new worship center, everything has changed.
Built next to the educational building, the worship center is open with a high ceiling and lots of light from windows. It can easily accommodate 350 people on chairs that can be configured in any chosen arrangement. There is a nursery attached as well as a room for nursing mothers, and for those who like their specialty coffees there is even a café.
They held their first worship in the new center on October 12. They called it their “soft launch,” and it was for their members. Their attendance was at about 330. The grand opening will be on Sunday, December 7, and the community will be invited.
“There’s a lot of excitement. There’s a lot of energy,” says Pastor Jeremy Ashworth, “For folks who have been part of this church for thirty, forty, fifty years — this was their dream from decades ago. There are folks who started with us in 2019, when we began conversations about building, and there are folks who have been with us just a few weeks or months, and they jump in and feel like they are getting in on the ground floor. So, the excitement is real.”
The church was able to complete their worship center project within the original 5.3-million-dollar plan, anchored by a loan they received from the Pacific Southwest District. They anticipate paying off their loan early. The funds from the district were held in Eder Organizational Investing and will replenish the district’s account at Eder Financial as Circle of Peace pays them back.
In the past they averaged 50 new, first-time visitors each year. Last year, as the building progressed, they had 200 first-time visitors. And this year they have already topped that number.
Numbers can be a measure of participation and enthusiasm, but they are not the main goal of Circle of Peace. Relationships are very important to the folks of this congregation.
“It is our relationship with God that changes every other relationship in our lives,” according to their website. “Relationships are messy, but it’s not good for us to be isolated, so we make relationships a priority. Following Jesus is a team sport and a group project. And the priorities Jesus gives us are clear: we love God with everything we have, we love our neighbors as we love ourselves, and we invite our neighbors into a relationship with us and with God.”
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