On Spokane's northside, just west of the Division Street “Y,” Spokane First Church of the Nazarene is a Great Commission congregation with a wide ministry shaped by a simple Sunday rhythm: Learning and Growth for all ages at 9:00 a.m., followed by worship at 10:00 a.m. Its worship is known for blending contemporary songs with remakes of classic hymns, and its ministries extend from nursery care and youth discipleship to adult groups, recovery, worship arts, and mission in Spokane and around the world.
Learning and Growth Comes First on Sunday
Learning and Growth begins at 9:00 a.m. and concludes at 9:45. Adult classes meet in the Fireside Room and Library. Children gather in grade-level small groups for Bible lessons, hands-on activities, and interactive games, with nursery care for children three and under. Middle school and high school students meet in the youth loft, where the group divides by age for a focused study of God's Word.
The Sunday schedule then moves into the 10:00 worship gathering. Nursery care is available for children under two, while two- and three-year-olds and pre-K and kindergarten children have age-specific classes. Children in grades one through six begin with their parents in the sanctuary and are dismissed for Children's Church before the sermon. Ushers give visitors a Ministry Highlights card as they enter, summarizing church announcements and opportunities.
Blended Worship and the Mighty Wurlitzer
SFNAZ has one Sunday morning worship service, and its music reflects both the present and the church's Nazarene heritage. The worship team performs contemporary songs and remakes of classic hymns with acoustic, electric, and bass guitars, keys, drums, and other instruments. The relaxed “come as you are” approach is visible in the congregation, where shorts and jeans appear alongside nice slacks and dresses.
A distinctive feature of the sanctuary is the Mighty Wurlitzer Pipe Organ, a century-old theater pipe organ. Worship Arts teams draw from congregants of every age and skill level. A contemporary service band performs modern praise and worship songs associated with writers including Chris Tomlin, David Crowder, and Paul Baloche. Separate sound and multimedia teams use their talents to support services and rehearsals.
Music and the arts are key parts of the church's communal worship, and the live band, congregational singing, and historic organ all share the same gathering. People unable to attend in person can join the livestream on Facebook or YouTube, with service recordings made available on the church's YouTube channel later the same day.
Finding the Sanctuary and the Rest of the Building
The church stands at 9004 N Country Homes Blvd., Spokane, WA 99218, just west of the Division Street “Y.” Parking is ample. The Gym entrance faces west on the northwest corner, while the Sanctuary entrance faces north on the northeast corner. Both lead into the building, but the northeast entrance leads directly to the sanctuary and has several accessible parking spaces close by. Directions open the location in Google Maps.
The facility is fairly large, with the sanctuary on the west end, the children's wing in the middle, and the Family Life Center to the east. The Teen Room is upstairs at the back of the gym, while bathrooms are located throughout the building. These distinct spaces give children's, youth, and family activities dedicated places within the same church.
Security is especially visible in the children's wing. Access beyond the double doors is limited to staff and volunteers who have completed background checks. Check-in begins at a counter opposite the children's wing entrance. First-time families receive help from a volunteer, while returning families enter a phone number into the self check-in station, which guides them through check-in and prints name tags. At the end of the gathering, families present their receipt and a volunteer assists with collecting their children.
Children Learn, Build, Serve and Share
The children's and pre-teen ministry has a four-part purpose: children learn about God, build their relationship with God, serve as Christ's hands and feet, and share Christ with others. At 9:00 on Sunday, children participate in age-appropriate small groups with hands-on activities and interactive games designed to connect them with God's Word.
Wednesday evening brings another regular gathering. Dynamic Discipleship serves children in grades one through five, using small groups for Bible study, life application, spiritual development, crafts, and games. Bible Learning Lab gives pre-K and kindergarten children hands-on learning and exploration through interactive group play and crafts. Nursery care is available for children three and under, and children's leaders have completed an extensive orientation process and Washington background screening.
Every fourth Wednesday, children take part in service projects as the hands and feet of Christ. These projects give children direct opportunities to assist the church or community, extending the ministry's emphasis on learning and discipleship into practical service.
Youth Gather in the Gym and Youth Loft
Sunday Learning and Growth for grades six through twelve takes place at 9:00 a.m. in the youth loft. Students have time to hang out and eat treats before splitting into middle school and high school groups to study God's Word. This gives younger and older students a shared gathering time while preserving age-specific teaching.
Wednesday's youth group runs from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. The group begins in the gym with games and then moves upstairs to the youth loft for snacks, more games, fellowship, and separate middle school and high school lessons. Outside the normal Sunday and Wednesday schedule, youth activities occur a few times each month, with some free and others requiring a fee.
Adults Study, Build Community and Serve
Adults have several regular opportunities to grow together. Sunday's 9:00 Learning and Growth classes meet in the Fireside Room and Library. Several adult Bible studies begin at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, including a men's Bible study in the conference room. Life groups also offer smaller settings for building community and strengthening faith.
Men's gatherings include Refuge, which meets Tuesday from 6:15 to 8:00 p.m., and men's basketball, held most Tuesdays at 7:00 p.m. The Piecegivers Sewing Group for women meets Tuesday mornings in the gym. For adults ages 18 to 30, the Young Adult Hangout meets Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. in the library.
Lead Pastor Wes Hershberger grew up as a pastor's kid. His ministry began in Missouri in 1997 and continued through Texas, Michigan, and Washington before he came to Spokane. Youth Pastor Justine, Children's Ministry Pastor Jordan, and Young Adult and Facilities Pastor Lake lead ministries for particular ages and areas of the church's life together.
Mission Starts in Spokane's Neighborhood
A deep commitment to both local and global mission is a core value at SFNAZ. The church describes Nazarenes as a sent people who respond to the call of Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to homes, workplaces, communities, villages, cities, and countries. Evangelism, compassion, and justice shape this mission.
Local mission includes NorthwestConnect, a combined effort of several area Nazarene churches devoted to “Connecting People for Change.” Its work includes the Northeast Food Pantry, A Hand Up for toiletries and cleaning products, KidsZone outreach to neighborhood children, and a monthly community breakfast. Dinner Church Ministry also reaches the community through fellowship, meals, and discipleship.
Mission Reaches Around the World
Nazarene Missions International mobilizes the church through prayer, discipling, giving, and education. Its work encourages prayer for world evangelization, communicates needs around the world, invites children and youth to participate in mission, and raises funds for outreach. Nazarene Compassionate Ministries partners with congregations around the world to clothe, shelter, feed, heal, and educate people while living in solidarity with those affected by oppression, injustice, violence, poverty, hunger, and disease.
Work and Witness teams from Spokane First travel to several world areas each year and partner with local Nazarene churches and ministries on construction projects, technical needs, evangelism, and compassionate ministry. These international efforts complement the neighborhood food pantry, children's outreach, breakfast, and Dinner Church work in Spokane.
The church also participates in the Nazarene Alabaster Offering, using a Wheelbarrow Offering to help fund churches, parsonages, Bible college and university facilities, missionary housing, community meeting places, and rebuilding after natural disasters. Care and Connection provides another way to strengthen the tie between local churches and missionaries through prayer, personal notes and messages, expressions of practical care, and hosting missionaries during home-assignment visits.
Celebrate Recovery on Thursday Nights
Celebrate Recovery meets on Thursday evenings at 6:00 p.m. It is a biblically balanced approach to sustainable recovery and healing, centered on eight principles based on the Beatitudes in Matthew 5. The gathering is described as a safe community where people can be honest about pain and about negative ways they may see themselves, God, and others.
Richard Flatt leads the group, which welcomes people seeking help with hurts, habits, and hangups. Its purpose is to help participants move toward lasting recovery through the power of Jesus Christ and the shared language of Christian faith.
A Great Commission Faith
Spokane First Church of the Nazarene is part of the global Church of the Nazarene, whose mission is to make Christlike disciples in the nations. As a Great Commission church, it seeks to carry the good news of life in Jesus Christ and spread scriptural holiness, or Christlike living. The church bonds together people who have made Jesus Christ Lord of their lives, strengthening one another through worship, preaching, training, and service. The essential strands of its mission are evangelism, sanctification, discipleship, and compassion, while the essence of holiness is Christlikeness.
SFNAZ holds that there is one God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; that the Old and New Testament Scriptures, given by plenary inspiration, contain all truth necessary for faith and Christian living; and that people are born with a fallen nature and inclined to evil. It teaches that the atonement through Jesus Christ is for the whole human race and that those who repent and believe are justified, regenerated, and saved from the dominion of sin. Believers are also to be sanctified wholly after regeneration through faith in Jesus Christ. The church further believes that the Holy Spirit bears witness to the new birth and to entire sanctification, and that the Lord will return, the dead will be raised, and final judgment will take place.
Giving and Facility Use
Many congregants make regular monetary contributions. Offerings are collected in a locked box at the sanctuary entrance and support both local and global ministry. As a connected church, a portion of each donation supports evangelistic work around the world, while guests are never obligated to give. Giving is also available by text, through a scheduled bank payment, through the secure online donation form, and through the Church Center app. Checks may be mailed to the church's North Country Homes Boulevard address.
The church also hosts and promotes events inside and outside its facilities. Every event or facility request goes through an approval process that checks the church calendar, discusses the request, and weighs the use of the building against the needs of the congregation and community. The Church Center app also keeps families connected for event registration, community participation, giving, and children's check-in.
From 9:00 a.m. Learning and Growth to 10:00 a.m. worship, followed by children's and youth discipleship, adult groups, Celebrate Recovery, and mission work throughout the week, Spokane First Church of the Nazarene continues its stated aim of taking the next step toward Jesus.