Living Hope Fellowship To Celebrate 25 Years of Faith, Family and Unity in Lexington

Living Hope Fellowship in Lexington will celebrate its 25th anniversary this weekend, marking a meaningful milestone for a church family that began with a simple but lasting vision: to be a Christian family of faith.

The anniversary celebration will take place at on Sunday, October 4, 2026. There will be an open house at 9:15am, bringing together members, families, friends, and the wider community to remember God’s faithfulness through 25 years of worship, ministry, growth, and unity. At 10:15am, the worship service will begin.

For Living Hope, the occasion is more than a look back at dates and buildings. It is a celebration of people, prayer, shared commitment, and a church community that has sought to serve Lexington faithfully through changing seasons.

A church plant with a family-centered vision

Living Hope Fellowship began in 2001, when Pastor Chris Rieber and a core leadership team made up of four other families set out to plant a church in Lexington.

Their goal was clear. They wanted to establish a church that would function like a Christian family of faith, where people could worship together, grow together, serve together, and care for one another in a deeply personal way.

That vision shaped the church from its earliest days. Before there was a permanent building, a full calendar of ministries, or a long history to celebrate, there was a shared belief that the local church should feel like family. That foundation has remained central to Living Hope’s identity for 25 years.

In those early days, the church held its first services at the Kentucky Inn. Like many church plants, the beginning required faith, flexibility, and the willingness to build something one Sunday at a time. The congregation gathered, worshiped, prayed, and began forming the relationships that would carry the church forward.

After about a year and a half, Living Hope moved to a church building on Regency Road. That move marked an important step in the church’s early growth, giving the congregation a more settled place to gather and continue developing its ministry in Lexington.

Finding a long-term home on Grace Drive

In 2004, Living Hope Fellowship moved to its current home on Grace Drive. That location became the congregation’s long-term base for worship and ministry, especially in the Red River and Crosby area of Lexington.

The move to Grace Drive gave the church a place to put down roots. Over the years, it has become the setting for Sunday worship, teaching, prayer, fellowship, service, and countless personal moments that make up the life of a church.

Church anniversaries often bring memories of major events, but they also call attention to quieter signs of faithfulness. A child growing up in the church. A family finding support during a hard season. A new believer being welcomed. A prayer answered after years of waiting. A meal shared. A conversation that helped someone keep going.

Those are the kinds of moments that give 25 years their weight.

Twenty-five years of ministry and shared life

The story of Living Hope Fellowship is a story of perseverance, but also one of steady commitment to community. Through different seasons, the church has continued to pursue its founding purpose as a family of faith.

Across 25 years, congregations experience change. People move in and out. Families grow. Leadership teams adapt. Ministries expand, pause, and begin again. Communities shift. Needs change.

Living Hope’s anniversary is a reminder that faithfulness is not measured only by outward growth or public milestones. It is also measured by the church’s ability to remain rooted in Christ, committed to one another, and open to the work God is doing in each new season.

For many who have been part of the congregation, the celebration on October 4 will be a time of gratitude. It will offer space to remember those early steps at the Kentucky Inn, the move to Regency Road, the settling on Grace Drive, and the many relationships formed along the way.

A refreshing story of churches coming together

One of the most meaningful parts of Living Hope Fellowship’s history is its experience with church mergers.

In 2003, Living Hope joined together with Life Praise Fellowship. More recently, in 2024, the church entered another new season through a merger with Graceway Church.

At a time when many people are more accustomed to hearing stories of church conflict and division, Living Hope’s history offers a refreshing example of unity. These mergers represent moments when congregations chose to come together for the sake of shared faith, shared mission, and greater strength in the body of Christ.

That kind of unity does not happen by accident. It requires humility, patience, trust, and a willingness to place the mission of the church above personal preference. It also reflects a belief that churches can be stronger together when they listen well, honor one another, and follow Christ with a shared heart.

The result is a story worth celebrating. Living Hope’s 25th anniversary is not only about the endurance of one congregation. It is also about the beauty of believers coming together across different seasons to continue serving God and neighbor.

Celebrating the past while looking ahead

The 25th anniversary celebration on October 4, 2026, gives Living Hope Fellowship an opportunity to honor its past while looking with hope toward the future.

There is much to remember. The founding vision in 2001. The leadership of Pastor Chris Rieber and the four families who helped plant the church. The early services at the Kentucky Inn. The transition to Regency Road. The move to Grace Drive. The ministry in the Red River and Crosby area. The unity formed through the mergers with Life Praise Fellowship and Graceway Church.

There is also much to anticipate. A milestone anniversary is not the end of a story. It is a marker along the way.

For a church built around the idea of being a family of faith, the future will continue to be shaped by the same commitments that were present at the beginning: worship, community, service, prayer, discipleship, and unity in Christ.

Those interested in learning more about the church’s story can visit Living Hope Fellowship online.

As Living Hope Fellowship gathers this weekend, the celebration will stand as a moment of gratitude for 25 years of God’s faithfulness and a hopeful step into the years still to come. For Lexington, it is a welcome reminder that the church can be a place where people come together, grow together, and bear witness to the strength found in Christian unity.