Our Story

When Brian Long, the founding pastor, moved to California in 2001 to attend Fuller Theological Seminary he had a desire to be ordained in the Methodist denomination. While at Fuller, Brian met and soon married Julia and together they began a lifetime in ministry. After serving in the UMC for 17 years, they witnessed something changing in today’s church – rituals mattered more than faith and being culturally hip mattered more than gospel-centered. The denomination began moving away from the timeless truth of scripture to emphasize a social gospel. The light of Christ and power of the gospel to drive out the darkness of sin was starting to fade as the cultural pressure was growing.

Evangelist William Booth once wrote, “The chief danger that confronts the coming century will be religion without the Holy Ghost, Christianity without Christ, forgiveness without repentance, salvation without regeneration, politics without God, heaven without hell.” This statement shines a light on where the American church stands today. God never called Christians to settle down into beautiful cathedrals and church buildings to practice a set of religious rituals to feel better about ourselves or feel accepted by God by doing this. Nor are we to change the gospel that we preach. God called Christians to go into the world and shine the light of Jesus Christ by preaching the truth of the gospel to all people in order to bring them into a relationship with their Heavenly Father.

The first Christians were not a social club where people simply belonged and that was good enough. It was ordinary people, who professed faith in Jesus and were transformed into His likeness, filled with the Holy Spirit and His power that were called to start a movement. Proclaiming the gospel, inviting people to a relationship with God through Jesus and, in turn, transforming the world one life, one family, one city at the time as they continued in Jesus’ mission to “to proclaim good news to the poor. to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:18-19)

Yorba Linda Lighthouse, a non-denominational church, wants to follow in their footsteps, to bring the light of Jesus Christ to the world. It started in March 2024, Brian heard God’s call for him to start a new church. Brian, along with his wife, Julia, began praying about this new call. The reality of a church plant was confirmed through many conversations and situations. Finally, in May 2024 the UMC General Conference voted to change how it viewed certain biblical truths. Brian had a choice to make as to whether he would stand for his beliefs or compromise for the comfort and security of a position. Along with Julia, they took a step in faith to plant Yorba Linda Lighthouse Church.

In July a group of believers, including members of his former church, made the choice to not compromise their beliefs and left the denomination and comfort of a place where they had lasting memories to meet for the first time in a home. Having grown we’ve since moved to our present location. This group of people have made the commitment to stand firm in the faith and be a part of a movement that started with the early church and continues today as we reach out in ministry to the people of Yorba Linda and well beyond with the gospel and love of Jesus.