In 2008, Robbie deMarigny (at that time the lead pastor of a large, prominent evangelical church in the suburbs of Chicago) felt led to explore the idea of planting a church in the under-served area of Maine Township. Robbie and his wife Kim always had a heart for this area and wanted to be part of a church that would serve and reach the hundreds of thousands of people in the area who need the life-changing message of Jesus Christ.
That summer, Robbie met David McDaniel, the director of campus expansion at North Point Community Church in Atlanta, GA. A quick bond was forged, and the idea of partnership with North Point surfaced. What would it look like for Chicago to have a North Point partner church? How many people could be reached? That was an idea that electrified Robbie, because Andy Stanley and North Point had already served as a long-distance mentor and as a great model for a church. There was no doubt that our new church plant would be stronger with North Point than on its own.
By spring of 2009, Robbie and a core team of people who shared God’s passion for the unreached started meeting at a hotel in Rosemont and the partnership with North Point was solidified. On September 13, 2009, a new strategic partner church of North Point opened its doors at Apollo School in Des Plaines with the name, North Maine Community Church. A year later, North Maine moved to Big Cinemas Theater in Niles, very near the heart of unincorporated Maine Township and continues to offer excellent ministry environments for all ages.
Our passion is to lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ. We do that by creating environments where people are encouraged and equipped to pursue intimacy with God, community with insiders, and influence with outsiders. It has been an incredible ride watching God work in and through us to meet people right where they are, and help them take their next step on their spiritual journey. What a thrill to see folks who were completely disinterested or disillusioned with the local church begin to engage with God again. We have seen adults read the Bible for the 1st time, watched God put marriages back together, seen families get healthier, watched kids drag their parents to church, and heard stories almost every week of lives that have been changed. And we give God all of the glory.
While we are incredibly thankful for all that God has done- we are even more excited about what God has in store for us as we seek to do whatever it takes to share the life-changing message of the gospel with our friends and family and everyone else within driving distance of our church.