I like how kind the staff and congregation are. I was blown away with how others took the time to…read morehear my story of getting closer to god. Truly a place for imperfect people only.

Been attending Renew Church OC for about 6-7 months now and purposely waited to write this review…read moreto be fair and offer an honest review. Since our first Sunday, Renew has been welcoming, friendly, and caring. All the Pastors and staff have big hearts and truly care about everyone that visits. There are so many different ministries from Youth, College, Young Adult, Young Families, Global Missions, and classes ranging for sexual addiction to divorce care for kids. There's also a sports ministry that includes basketball, volleyball, and pickleball. I'm sure i i didn't list all the ministries since i'm still very new but Renew has so much to offer. They've been very caring and supportive to me and my family. We just had a beach baptism at Huntington Beach where my Dtr was baptized and it was perfect. We also recently have this new partnership with Hope Intl Univ where Renew offers accredited college and seminary classes that are transferable to local colleges. How many other churches offer classes and for credit? Renew likes to share we're a church for imperfect people but nobody's perfect on this planet. Thank the Lord for Renew Church!! Blessings!!

This church teaches the second coming of Christ it also does the altar call if someone wants to…read morereceive Jesus which I find it to be very very important they teach on healing and the laying of hands.

Amazing church everyone was welcoming feel great the whole time and the atmosphere was amazingread more

My wife and I recently moved to the area and decided to check out Saddleback Church - Brea for the…read morefirst time. We were pleasantly surprised by the ample parking at the community center, which is always a plus. From the moment we arrived, we were genuinely welcomed by everyone, including their kids, it truly felt like a warm and inviting atmosphere. We even received a very nice, clearly not cheap, first-timer's mug, which was a lovely touch. We also filled out a connection request to learn more, as we're still searching for our home church. The worship was great; the singers and band had fantastic energy, and the slides were awesome. I didn't know any of the songs, but my wife mentioned they were all modern, which explains why they were new to me. While at the connection table, we learned that typically, the message is delivered via screen or recording. However, on our visit, their lead campus pastor was preaching live, and it was a real treat! He was incredibly engaging and delivered a fantastic message. This brings me to the main reason for my 4-star rating: I'm a bit puzzled why their ideology seems to focus around a main pastor delivering messages via screen when they have such a talented campus pastor right there. While I understand some churches might do this if a pastor is away, it seems to be the norm here, almost like a "long-term sub" situation, as another reviewer put it. For me, while community is vital, I also want to feel connected to the pastor delivering the message, not just from a screen. Their whole service is also only about an hour long. It was particularly disheartening to hear the campus pastor say, "I went to school for this and I don't get to do this every week," and that he "won't speak again for a very long, long time." As someone who went to school for graphic design but ends up doing project management all day, that comment resonated deep in my soul. I truly hope he gets more opportunities to speak because he's genuinely great. The message itself, taught from the NIV, wasn't boring, but it felt quite "generic" or basic. While it's good for newer believers or those new to the faith, for someone like me who's been a Christian for a while, it didn't go very deep. I appreciate delving into the lore, the original Greek/Hebrew words, and understanding the historical context behind the authors' choices. I know this might put me in the minority, but it's just not my preferred style of teaching for personal growth in my walk with Christ. I'm not trying to bash the church at all. This "hybrid" model might be the perfect fit for many people seeking a strong community aspect, and it is on the smaller, more intimate side. The campus pastor even made sure to say hi and goodbye to everyone after the service, which was a really nice touch. I'm just trying to provide all the information for anyone considering visiting for the first time. Please don't let my review sway you from checking it out for yourself to see if it fits your needs. This is just my personal experience, and everyone's will be different. They are still a solid church, and their teachings are aligned with my beliefs, but for my personal spiritual growth, I don't think it's the place for me. God bless.

Are you looking for a church you can belong to?…read more Saddleback Brea is built on a foundation of love...love for Jesus, community, service, discipleship and evangelism. I started going to Saddleback Brea about a year ago and it has made my life so much better. I was struck by how warm and friendly the people were. They really do care! And, I have been here ever since. We are a church that supports each other and has the biggest heart for service, not only on Sundays but with our different ministries and community outreach. But, most of all, we have fun together! If you've haven't found a church to plug in and get connected to community, then Saddleback Brea may just be the place for you.

An Upbeat. Modern. Cozy. WITH LOTS OF SOUL CHURCH ... the worship is full of energy and Pastor…read moreKelly really makes the message relatable and fun... my boys love the kids church and are eager to come back every time, they really know how to engage them in the faith.

Saw a video on Facebook on how their safety team handles suspicious persons and I think you would…read morebenefit from some deescalation training and also the way they handled someone recording from a sidewalk. The safety team even passed up the opportunity to promote positive things about their church. Jesus commanded us to love God, love others, obey His teachings, and live as His disciples through repentance, forgiveness, and service. Based on what I saw online I would never attend or recommend this church to anyone.

Moved down to the OC and what do I see A church called…read moreLiving Hope, a chill community I went to other churches and no one said hi They were into their cliques and that's no lie Yet, there's something different that I found at Living Hope Didn't have the typical drama like Korean soaps The motto is a place to call home So here's an invite, try it out, don't be alone Living Christian life is hard, but you don't need to do it on your own So come check it out, make friends, learn about God, and be known So, my family and I were looking for churches in the OC, but we had no idea what was out there. A friend told us about Living Hope, and when I saw the staff and saw all Korean folks, I'll be honest, I was thinking, no thanks. I heard so many stories about Korean churches, that they were either drama or super cliquish. Not so with Living Hope, and I was really grateful for that. The kids program at Living Hope are great, but more than that, the teachers love God and love the kids. That's really all that I could ask for. But there's more. There are so many ways to serve, get connected, and to know people, so that it's a really great place to get plugged in. Here's a concise rundown of the church: Church Services: https://www.livinghopecc.org/sundays 9:30am Service - Mostly families because kids services are during this time (Infants - 5th grade) 11:30am Service - Mostly singles and college (though youth is during this time as well) - Cool thing is that the founding pastor is still here! Pretty amazing - They have cell groups for families and singles - If you're new and want to get to know the church, there's something called first lunch every month where you get to have lunch with some of the pastoral staff to get to know them and ask questions - They're non-denominational - But truly this is so unique in that their pastors have different stances, but the Christian core beliefs are all the same

Clear message during service when I came myself. People are nice here and get involved, especially…read morehelping the homeless. Parking can improve a bit with more spaces but got ushers to guide at least. Little bit more community could be added like more events out of service. I mean just a solid place to worship God here.

I have been attending Southlands for about a year and a half, and from day one, I felt genuinely…read morewelcomed by the congregation. It didn't take long to embrace this as my new church home. The people in the community groups, the women's group, and the Bible study have been incredibly supportive and uplifting. The pastor's staff is well-trained and compassionate, always ready to provide love and care to those in need. Every sermon has resonated deeply with me, and the worship experience is beautiful. One of the main reasons I fell in love with Southlands is its heartfelt commitment to caring for hurting individuals, exemplified through the training provided by the Stephen Ministry. The pastors over the Stephan's Ministry came to our house and prayed for my husband after his surgery, when we had only been attending the church for two months. You can genuinely feel loved at Southland's Church.

Terrible service to come from start to finish. Don't be fooled with nice little snacks & water…read morefountain. No care to preach their practice in real life. Break things based on the bible including communion. Too fancy to come off. No accountability to even feel welcomed & say hi at all.

All this church does is care about themselves or atleast the person who runs the compationate…read moreministry. I'm a member of the church and yes I haven't been to service for a while now due to done ptsd. but im in some really dire need of help( about to get kicked out of my place,) and I made a request to the compassionate ministry. I got denied because I haven't gone in awhile. to me a church should help people no matter what their "status" is. isn't that what GOD says? yeah they are very selfish

This is one of the best churches you can find if you are looking for authenticity, truth and honest…read moreunhindered Biblical teaching. Great community of truly amazing people with lots of diversity and from all different walks of life. The church is very healthy and kingdom focused, there is no hint of selfishness or greed from the staff or pastors. This church absolutely lives up to its motto of "Loving God, loving people".

We're new to the area and really enjoyed ourselves--we'll definitely be back…read more We used to attend a church on the other side of Irvine while living in Huntington Beach. About seven months ago, we bought a home in Brea and have visited a few churches nearby, but none of them felt like the right fit for us. I didn't feel it was fair to leave negative reviews--everyone connects to God and the Bible in their own way. This church was recommended to us by our super sweet dog sitter. About a week ago, I stopped by when I noticed Lion & Lamb had opened (10/10 on the coffee, by the way), and realized it was the same church she had mentioned. I told my husband we should check it out. Right away, we were welcomed by Kellen (I may have his name slightly wrong), who was so kind and walked us over to the kindergarten Sunday school, where another very nice woman helped us from there. We really enjoyed the woman pastor--she was funny, relatable, and we followed the entire message without even checking our phones once. We're not big on music, so we came in around 9:40 and caught the tail end of the singing. Overall, the group felt incredibly welcoming. We'll definitely be back, and hopefully after a few more Sundays, we can call this our church. Side note--our son loved Sunday school so much that when I asked if he wanted to go back next week, he said, "Sure, I'll make more friends."

CHANGE is coming. Senior Pastor, McWatters, resigned (actually, most likely urged to leave by the…read moreelder board). The letter from the elders read aloud to the congregation implied this while McWatters' letter was more vague. There is CHANGE coming; it will take awhile but replacing the senior leadership is HUGE. Those that have left neg comments and those that have read the neg comments might want to give this place another chance. There is new energy and hope at the church. Let's see how this church changes over the coming months and years.

Went to the living nativity and was completely amazed by the interactive experience! You don't just…read moredrive thru and look at a scene. You become part of the story as it is told along the way. The people were so warm and welcoming and truly embodied the Christmas spirit. It was such a pleasant surprise.

Celebration OC is not just a church it's a Home! We were invited to celebration about 3/4 years ago…read moreand we instantly fell in love. From the moment you step in those doors you are greeted and feel the love from everyone. We were looking for a church where our daughter will learn about God and their kids ministry is doing just that. One of their core values is find friends, and at this place is very hard to NOT make friends, our family has been blessed by the friends ships made at Celebration. We are honored to be part of the vision that Pastor and Pastor Christina have for this church

I cannot express how much this church has changed my life! They embraced my single Mom and my…read moresiblings with open arms. Our family has been attending this church since 2013. We are active volunteers and we feel completely part of their family. I love everything this congregation stands for. Pastor Doug and Brenda Green are some of the greatest people I have ever had the pleasure of doing ministry with. Disregard a comment made by a Dustin S. All I remember about that gentleman was that he left the church upset because NONE of us ladies wanted to date him. I would recommend NHC 100%!!!

Pastor Green creatively brings the Scriture to life and makes it relevant. My grandsons enjoy the…read morechildren's summer program, and I always learn more about the Christian life listening to Doug's sermons. I highly recommend this church.