New Life Community Church has spent forty years planting the same conviction on Chicago's Southwest side and then carrying it into nearly every corner of the metropolitan area: that the church exists for the good of the city. Founded in 1986 by a twenty-one-year-old Mark Jobe alongside eighteen members of a small Southwest-side congregation, the church now gathers several thousand people each weekend at more than thirty campuses running from Albany Park to Hobart, Indiana, and a few hours beyond, into Latin America and Europe. Its purpose statement is short enough to memorize: to be a family of love that cooperates with God in making fully devoted fruitful followers of Christ.
Forty Years on the Southwest Side
In 1986 Mark Jobe, then twenty-one, met with eighteen people from a small Southwest-side congregation and dreamed of starting a church where people from every walk of life could encounter God in a real way. With new vision and fresh energy the small group reorganized and called themselves New Life Community Church. Four decades later the church counts more than forty weekend services across Chicago, its inner-ring suburbs, and Northwest Indiana, with parallel English, Spanish, and Mandarin-speaking congregations. The November 15, 2026 anniversary celebration at the Tinley Park Convention Center is built around a single sentence from Joshua 3:5: "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you." The theme, "Tomorrow God Moves," captures the posture of a church that has just commemorated what God has done and is leaning forward into what comes next.
Mark Jobe remains the Senior and Founding Pastor. He also serves as the tenth president of the Moody Bible Institute of Chicago, holds a Masters from Moody Theological Seminary and a Doctorate from Bakke Graduate University, and is heard daily on his national radio program Bold Steps. He is the author of Unstuck: Out of Your Cave, and Into Your Call.
One Church, Many Campuses
The church describes itself as "one church, many locations." Each campus shares the same purpose, beliefs, and leadership pipeline but reflects the neighborhood around it. English-language campuses include Albany Park (9:30 am bilingual), Bridgeport (10:00 am with a 12:00 pm Mandarin service), Cicero, East Humboldt Park, East Side, Elgin, Hammond (11:00 am), Hobart, Homer Glen, Humboldt Park, Lincoln Park (9:00 and 11:00 am), Little Village, Midway (9:00, 10:30, and 12:00 pm), Mont Clare, Montgomery (10:00 am English, 11:30 am Spanish), Norwood Park (9:00 and 11:00 am), Oak Forest, Oak Lawn, Riverside, Rogers Park, Villa Park, and West Lakeview. Spanish-language Nueva Vida campuses meet in Blue Island, Brighton Park (10:00 am and 12:00 pm), Cicero, Hammond (9:00 am), Hobart, La Villita (8:00 am and 12:00 pm), Melrose Park, and Midway (10:30 am and 12:00 pm). Most campuses meet weekly and many stream their services on Facebook or YouTube so regulars and newcomers can join from anywhere.
The flagship Midway campus, at 4101 W 51st Street, also serves as the central offices for the entire church. Josiah and Carolina Jobe, the Lead Pastors, lead that location, and Mark and Dee Jobe remain closely tied to it. The location pastors read like a map of greater Chicagoland: Galen and Brooke Holcomb at Albany Park and Rogers Park, Juan Carlos and Elly Callan at Albany Park, Javier and Karina Villa at Brighton Park, Chuy and Norma Garcia at Blue Island, Luke and Melissa Dudenhofer and Jackson Cui at Bridgeport, Roger and Martha Cortez plus Juan and Rosa Sanchez and Samuel and Violeta Sotelo at Cicero, Danny and Cyrene Lopez at East Humboldt Park, JC and Mayra Rojas at East Side, Franklin and Diana Ponce at Elgin, Garrette and Tanisha Horne plus Jose and Marisela Perez at Hammond, Isaac and Adrea Huffman at Humboldt Park, Jason Peña and Ed and Agnes Guerra at Hobart, Bobby and Jeannette Moss at Lincoln Park, Paco and Sylvia Amador at Little Village Lawndale, Mike and Debbie Berry and Pablo and Katie Villa at Midway, Jessie and Aida Alarcon at Melrose Park, Ray and Suraya Abruzzi at Mont Clare, Wes and Belen Kennedy at Montgomery, Matt and Sarah Demateo with New Life Centers, Asa and Elizabeth App at Norwood Park, Mike and Julie Rodriguez at Oak Forest, Tony and Laura Nuñez at Villa Park, and Chadwick and Brooke Bacon at West Lakeview. Rick and Nora Tatina lead the Riverside Brookfield location.
Three Languages, One Family
The Spanish-speaking Nueva Vida congregations and the Mandarin congregation at Bridgeport are not side ministries; they are full partners in the church's life. Many of their leaders are first- or second-generation immigrants who have built up the church over decades. The Bridgeport Mandarin congregation, led by Jackson Cui, has its own original music ministry called the Burning Bush Worship Team, and a church-planting residency developing a new generation of Mandarin-speaking leaders.
Nueva Vida Blue Island, planted in 2017, is a representative example. Pastor Chuy grew up in Monterrey, his wife Norma in Little Village, and their four young-adult children now serve alongside them. "In seeking to grow in their relationship with God, they started attending New Life community church in 2004 and were received by the 'family of love' that expanded their friendships and community." A family Spanish Life Group that started in the Garcias' living room eventually became the core community that launched the Blue Island campus.
At Brighton Park, Pastor Javier Villa puts it this way: "If you've never been to a Christian church, we want you to know this: you're welcome here just as you are. You don't need to know what to say or how to dress. We'll greet you like family, listen to your story, and walk with you."
What a Sunday Looks Like
First-time guests at any New Life location are treated as VIPs. The church says plainly, "as a first-time guest, you are VIP to us so we'll be there with you every step of the way." Kids Zone, the children's ministry, is available at every service for children from birth through sixth grade at most locations and birth through fifth grade at Hammond. The staff specializes in "fun, Bible-driven, interactive lessons" designed for each age group.
There is no dress code. Several location pages state it explicitly: "At New Life Community Church, there's no dress code and no judgement. Some show up in suits or dresses, and others wear t-shirts and jeans. We want you to wear whatever makes you feel comfortable!" The typical Sunday includes an encouraging message, inspiring worship, and time for kids. Services are livestreamed on YouTube and on individual campus Facebook pages, and a welcome card, weekly guide, and registration for upcoming events are available from each location's page in the New Life app or the Church Center app.
Life Through the Week
The church's small-group system is called Life Groups. They meet in homes, online, and on campuses at various times throughout the week and are open to men, women, couples, and singles at every age and stage of life. The point of a Life Group is not just to study the Bible but to encounter God together and to grow in obedience: "The Bible should be the focus, but a Life Group should not just be a Bible study. The goal isn't just to learn content from the Bible but to connect with God and each other for spiritual growth." Faith comes at least in part by hearing the Word of God, so the group reads the Bible together. "A group should lead us to live differently, not just know more."
Anyone interested in hosting or leading a group can take a free four-part video course called Life Groups 101, which covers community and purpose, leading a group discussion, and what to do during the off season. Past conferences for Life Group leaders and the larger church (Essentials and Engage Summits, with both English and Spanish tracks dating back to 2017) are kept on the church's YouTube channel for ongoing training. A four-part Discipleship video series complements the groups curriculum.
A Clear Path of Discipleship
New Life describes its growth path in five steps. First, baptism: water baptism is offered the first Sunday of every month, with a First Steps Class and a mentor to help new believers prepare. Second, group life: connecting with a Life Group for prayer, worship, and Bible study through the week. Third, habits of growth: conferences and trainings through the year for established believers. Fourth, serving: hundreds of friendly, caring volunteers serve every week, and the church says anyone can find a team to serve on Sundays or during the week. Fifth, disciple and mentor: making disciples is the responsibility of every believer, and the church encourages one-on-one mentoring as the primary mode.
Discipleship resources are built around the four-part Discipleship video series, and every member receives a free RightNow Media account, giving access to more than 10,000 on-demand Bible study videos, parenting and marriage courses, and a children's video library.
One Church, Two Languages, Three Generations: ONEYTH, Young Adults, and Project 72
ONEYTH is the middle- and high-school ministry, and Young Adults is its older sibling. The Young Adults team, led by Director Lauren and Assistant Alyssa, gathers young adults in cities and suburbs to worship passionately, pray boldly, and be encouraged alongside one another before sending them back into their campuses, workplaces, and communities. Lauren spent six and a half years with YWAM in Australia before joining the staff, and Alyssa graduated from the Moody Bible Institute. The team's stated commitment is to form disciples who are "rooted in Scripture, shaped in community, and marked by obedience." Yearly rhythms include a young adults retreat, monthly "Welcome Home" nights at campuses like Norwood Park, and an Awaken worship gathering.
Project 72, led by Alonzo, is a missionary and leadership pipeline that gives young adults a year to know Jesus and be trained for ministry. Alonzo himself came to Christ his senior year of high school, joined Project 72, and now helps lead it. Project 72 is also a designated giving fund, alongside missionary support, pastoral support, and New Life Centers.
The Leader Track: Local Lab, Leadership Cohort, Pastoral Residency
For anyone sensing a call to ministry, the church has built a three-stage leadership pipeline. Local Lab is an eight-week, location-based experience that introduces emerging leaders to practical ministry and self-awareness. The Leadership Cohort is a one-year, church-wide journey that meets Monday nights (mostly on Zoom, with in-person meetings about once a month) for deeper formation, coaching, and shared learning across locations. The Pastoral Residency is a one-year, hands-on apprenticeship for those preparing for vocational pastoral ministry, with a time commitment of about twenty hours a week. The church describes the residency as "a pipeline to pastoring a current or future New Life location."
The three programs share a common curriculum built around six developmental components: ministry experience, personal development, church culture, ministry coaching, a leadership training curriculum, and regular evaluations. Each stage requires completion of the previous one, although exceptions are considered case by case. The Leadership Cohort is led by Executive Pastor Dan Leverence, and the Pastoral Residency by Lead Pastor Josiah Jobe. The 2025 Year in Review notes the launch of the Leadership Cohort as one of the year's milestone moments, and the church launched the Local Lab, Cohort, and Residency as a unified Leader Track under the conviction that "leadership isn't simply a position - it's a lifestyle."
Church Restart: A Movement Beyond One City
A distinctive part of New Life's national footprint is its Restart ministry. A "restart" happens when a healthy, growing church takes leadership responsibility for a historic but declining congregation, restoring the people and Gospel mission of that local church. The church has been privileged to restart nine congregations over its history and calls restart "a key part of the mission and movement in the urban context." Mark Jobe has written a book on the subject, God Was Already Here: Restarting Sacred Spaces, available as a free download, and a five-part Restart Podcast series walks through the process with the pastors, community leaders, and support staff who have led these transitions.
Beyond Chicago: New Life Centers and New Life Cities
Two affiliated organizations extend the church's reach beyond its own walls. New Life Centers, founded by Mark Jobe, focuses on helping youth in underserved areas of Chicago. Matt and Sarah Demateo lead the New Life Centers pastoral team. The New Life Cities network links New Life to partner congregations abroad: Santander and Bilbao in Spain, Querétaro in Mexico, Osorno in Chile, Havana in Cuba, Matagalpa in Nicaragua, and Lima in Peru. A separate Esperanza ministry partners in the same regions.
The Senior Leadership Team
Mark and Dee Jobe remain the Senior Pastors. Mark is the founding pastor, the tenth president of the Moody Bible Institute of Chicago, holds a Masters from Moody Theological Seminary and a Doctorate from Bakke Graduate University, and is heard daily on his national radio program Bold Steps. He is the author of Unstuck: Out of Your Cave, and Into Your Call. Josiah and Carolina Jobe serve as the Lead Pastors; Josiah is also the Location Pastor of Midway, a Moody Bible Institute graduate in Biblical Studies, and Carolina leads high school girls in the youth ministry. Dan and Angie Leverence are the Executive Pastors; Dan has more than twenty years of experience in organizational leadership, creative direction, and ministry operations, and Angie serves on the worship team.
The App, the Bible, and RightNow Media
The New Life Chicago app and the Church Center app keep members connected throughout the week. Both apps put sermons, news, events, Life Group sign-ups, volunteer opportunities, an audio Bible, and a daily reading plan at members' fingertips, and online giving is handled through Pushpay. Members can listen to messages from their location or any other New Life campus, register for events, follow a daily reading plan, and pull up the Bible during the Sunday message.
RightNow Media is offered free to every person connected with the church. The library has more than 10,000 on-demand videos, including Bible studies, teaching on relationships, parenting, finances, and an entire library of fun, safe children's videos.
Giving with Integrity
Online giving is processed through Pushpay and can be directed to a specific location, to missionary support, to pastoral support, to New Life Centers, to Major Needs Benevolence, or to Project 72. A finance team that undergoes an outside audit each year manages the funds. "As a church, we maintain a high standard of biblical accountability, financial transparency, and integrity in the use of tithes and offerings." Contributions are tax-deductible; the church is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Giving over the phone is available weekdays from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm at 773-362-5398, and cryptocurrency gifts are accepted. Annual giving statements are mailed each January for the previous calendar year.
What a Year Looks Like
The 2025 Year in Review highlights 620 people taking the bold step of baptism, 450 couples hosted for a 5 Love Languages conference with Dr. Gary Chapman, and 13,056 to 13,896 people welcomed and shared with the gospel on Easter weekend. The Essentials Conference, the Engage Summit, and the annual Life Group leader training remain the church's signature equipping events.
The Next Forty Years
The central offices of New Life Community Church are at 4101 W 51st Street in Chicago. The main phone line is 773-838-9470 and the general email is info@newlifechicago.org. The church is non-denominational in identity, evangelical in conviction, and rooted in the long relationship between Mark Jobe and the Moody Bible Institute community. With more than thirty local campuses, three languages, a leadership development track that is preparing the next generation of pastors, and a growing network of national and international partners, New Life enters its fifth decade as one of the most distributed urban churches in the United States, still defined by the same conviction it began with: a family of love, all over the city, for the good of the city.
Worship services are livestreamed on the New Life YouTube channel. Online giving is available through the giving page.