History

History

Brought together
In December 1982, God brought together five Christians who had the same desire to worship in a pentecostal church in Dunblane. Although living in Dunblane one couple attended church in Glasgow whilst the others fellowshipped in Stirling. As their friendship developed so the realisation that one day God would plant a pentecostal church in Dunblane grew and they would be part of it.
'Loss' and 'Birth'
In April 1983 one of the couples suffered the loss of their 8 month old daughter. Out of this tragedy Dunblane Christian Fellowship was birthed as on the following Sunday morning the small group along with their 3 children met for the first time in Argyle Grove. This first meeting consisted of praise and worship followed by a sermon preached by the current pastor of the Fellowship Duncan Strathdee. Sunday school was provided for the children. The group also met mid-week to pray for a move of God in Dunblane and the surrounding area.
'The Vision'
For the next 2 1/2 years the group continued to meet together and it was during this time that God began to speak into the Fellowship and Dunblane.
To read more about this vision click here
Constitution
Due to the continued increase in those attending the Fellowship it was acknowledged that the time had come to place it on a more permanent footing. After much prayer and deliberation a constitution was drawn up along with a 'statement of faith' and in April 1987 'Dunblane Christian Fellowship' (DCF) was officially registered as a Christian church and charity with the Registrar General in Edinburgh.
Meeting Place
Holding meetings in homes was proving difficult due to numbers and so it was agreed to look for alternative venues. In October 1987 DCF started holding the Sunday morning service in Dunblane High School assembly hall. At the same time the Fellowship formally called Duncan Strathdee as part-time Pastor.
Property Purchased
The Fellowship started looking to purchase property in Dunblane with a view to building a community church. In 1992 the offices and workshops in Stirling Road belonging to Lawrie (Plumbers) came up for sale. The Fellowship agreed to have a special building offering on the first Sunday in March. The offering received that morning encouraged the leadership to take a step of faith and put in an offer for the property in Stirling Road. The offer was duly accepted and architects were appointed to draw up plans for a multi-purpose community church. Planning permission was granted to put a two storey building on the site but the overall cost proved too much for the Fellowship to take the project forward at that time and the project was shelved.
Full-time Pastor
The next five years saw the Fellowship membership fluctuated between 120 and 50 as people came and went for a variety of reasons. In February 1998 God began to challenge the leadership independently about the need for full-time workers. And in May of that year after much prayer Duncan Strathdee resigned from his post as Head Teacher of Willowpark Special School in Edinburgh and on 26 October he and his wife Janet began full-time with the Fellowship. A new era had begun and more were added to the church.
Going forward
The desire to share the love of God and meet needs in the local community has led to a close examination of how relevant the activities of the Fellowship are. Building a new community church in the centre of the city will make the Fellowship more accessible to everyone and help promote community and social life in a caring environment. God has spoken in Dunblane and the world has prayed over it. We know in our spirits that the 'vision' given to Dunblane Christian Fellowship will soon be seen with our eyes - thousands saved, bodies healed, marriages repaired, drug addicts and alcoholics set free in the mighty name of Jesus.