History of FIF

FIF had its beginnings in July of 1989 in Van Nuys, California as a small group of 7 adults, 3 teens, 1 child and 1 infant. It all started when Pastor Edgar Florendo and his family attended the Missionary Church of Van Nuys in January of that year. The church building was big and had lots of vacant rooms. It was in that context that the vision to plant a Filipino congregation was conceived. Subsequently, permission was granted to start a Filipino ministry.

At around that time Pastor Florendo met the late Reverend Gordon Swanson who was a retired missionary to the Philippines. Together, they prayed and planned. A prayer group was formed with a handful of believers. In the first Sunday of July 1989, the Bible study group decided to have their first worship service, making that the official birth date of the FIF church. Five years later, on November 1, 1994, the church was officially incorporated in the State of California.

After 13 years in Van Nuys, the increase in rental fees created the need to find another place of worship. The church prayed for an ideal location that would be more accessible and more affordable, and God answered the prayers with another Missionary Church located in Lindley. FIF rented their fellowship hall to hold Sunday services and other church activities. During this time in Lindley, Pastor Alex Maranan was petitioned from the Philippines and became an associate pastor in FIF. God provided for six years as membership continued to grow, and because of this growth, the church saw the need to relocate.

In 2008, FIF was blessed to find a new place of worship in Chatsworth where the Northridge Christian Church made their church facility available for rental to FIF. In this location, the Lord added new worshippers to His Body and blessed the church with gifted, committed, and faithful pastoral staff. Eventually, Pastor Florendo retired in 2016, and Pastor Maranan replaced him as the senior pastor. FIF prays to move to their own church property one day as the Lord wills. As FIF celebrates its 35th year anniversary in 2024, the church prays that they will continue to shine the love of Jesus Christ to their community, as they strive to worship and serve God faithfully for His glory and honor.