| Skyline Church | |
| Skyline Wesleyan Church | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Denomination | Wesleyan Church |
| Website | skylinechurch.org |
| Clergy | |
| Senior pastor(s) | Jim Garlow |
Skyline Church is an evangelical Christian megachurch located in La Mesa, California, a suburb of San Diego, affiliated with the Wesleyan Church denomination. The church currently averages 2,500 in attendance per week.
In 1954, Dr. Orval Butcher founded Skyline Wesleyan Church in Lemon Grove, California and served as senior pastor for 27 years. After outgrowing the original 350-seat sanctuary, in 1974, a 1,000-seat auditorium was completed.
In 1981, Dr. John Maxwell succeeded Butcher as the church's second senior pastor. Under Maxwell's leadership, Skyline nearly tripled its average attendance, from 1,100 to 3,000. In 1995, Maxwell stepped down to focus on his international ministry, Injoy, which provides leadership tools and materials to pastors and lay leaders. Maxwell went on to gain international fame as a best-selling author and "leadership guru."[1]
Dr. Jim Garlow became Skyline's third pastor in 1995. In 2000, the church moved to a new facility in La Mesa. The move was plagued by difficulties, resulting in nearly $27 million being spent preparing the site infrastructure for a building that should have cost only $6 million.[2]
Skyline currently has one 3-story building, called the Family Center, which is Phase I of the church's master plan. Currently, five weekend services are held in a 1,000-seat auditorium in the Family Center. The church plans to eventually add four more buildings. These include a 1,600-seat auditorium/gymnasium, a 2,600-seat worship center, an administration building and a wedding chapel.[3]