The History of First Nations Bible College is written below the Schedule of upcoming Intensives.

SCHEDULE

Saturday, November 8, 2008  Regina, Saskatchewan, 10 am - 1 pm
Praise and Worship Centre Foursquare Church
"Introduction to First Nations Ministry for Non-Native Pastors and Leaders"

Wednesday, December 17, 2008, 1 pm - 5 pm
Kingsway Foursquare Church
4061 Kingsway, Burnaby, BC
"Atonement and our First Nations Traditional CleansingCeremonies"

First Nations Drum and Dance Group - Overseas Outreach to Russia
October 15 - 30, 2009

25 Year History of First Nations Bible College

Many Location and Name Changes, One Consistent Purpose!

   Randy Barnetson had a great desire to see Native men and women trained for the work of the Ministry in order to go to every First Nations community with the Good News about Jesus, establish Native churches and then, in turn, carry the Gospel from the First Nations cross-culturally, to every Nation around the world. "To the First Nations and From the First Nations" has always been his motto.  This need could best be met, Randy envisioned, by a Native Bible School.
   1983 classes began in the Anglican Church on the Kwakiutl First Nations Reserve in Canada, and expanded to the Church on the Quatsino Reserve. It was called "New Life Assembly -School of the Bible".  Some of the early teachers were Peggy Kennedy, and Basil James Jr. (J.J.).
   1985 Randy moved the School to Vancouver to be a part of a new urban church plant he felt called to start (Vancouver Native Pentecostal Church). The School was called "Vancouver Native Pentecostal Bible College".  It filled quite a need and soon the School had 30 students who were the core leadership of a church of over 100 members.
   1987 The School was adopted as an official College of the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada (Assemblies of God) denomination registered as "Canadian Native Bible College".  Randy served as the first President, Administrator was Dorothy Fraser.  Instructors included Bruce Brown, Dr. L.T. Holdcroft, George Kallappa, James Kallappa, Basil James Jr., Peggy Kennedy and Lynda Prince.
   1989 Randy left the leadership of the School. The PAOC saw fit to close the school down a couple of years later.
   1991  Randy began classes in the Prince George Native Pentecostal Church, a church he went to Pastor in Northern BC.  This is where Cheryl Bear joined him!
   1992  Randy, now married to Cheryl Bear, re-opened classes in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver under a new church they planted with the Foursquare denomination.  The School came to be known as "Hastings Street First Nations Bible Institute" named after the skid-row area of Vancouver where the School was located.
   Once again, the School flourished and enrollment was around 30 students, who became the core Leadership of the "Street Church", a church that ministered to hundreds of people and served more than 1 million meals to the homeless and marginalized in the poorest neighbourhood in Canada.   Many of the Grads went on to plant new churches and pastor with Foursquare.  Student Outreach Teams travelled out to hundreds of Reserves in the US, Canada and to many nations around the world.
   2000 The name changed to "First Nations Bible College".  The School enjoyed great growth and the ministry of many Instructors from the First Nations leadership community: Jeff Yellow Owl, Richard Twiss, Huron Claus, David Hopkins, Hugh Grant, Blake Dunn, Charles Hart, Deborah Chein, Jonathan Maracle, Ken Pretty-on-Top, (Jr & Sr), Lorraine Vickery, Hector Hill, Papa Joe McGillis, Levi Beardy, Linda Louden, and Steen Laursen to name but a few!
   2005  Randy and Cheryl felt Creator Father's call to move the School to Los Angeles (the Indian capital of North America).  The students of the school, once again, are part of helping Randy and Cheryl plant a new church  www.firstnationschurch.com which is ministering to the 150,000 First Nations people living in Southern California and the many Reservations within short driving distance of LA.
   2006  The Internet School.  This is an exciting new development that is taking Native country for Jesus!  Many students are now receiving Bible School training without ever having to leave their communities, villages and reserves.
  2007 The new student body in Los Angeles is growing month by month and recently graduated 3 more students into First Nations ministry.
 2008 - 5 students graduate.
Fall 2008 - The LA Campus site closes and the College switches to a regional seminar format.  Intensive classes are now held in various places around North America.  Many students from around the world are enrolled in the Online program.
   The School has had hundreds of students over the past 25 years, who have ministered marvelously in over 20 nations around the world. They are serving Creator Father as pastors, evangelists, and missionaries.  The student outreach teams ("The New Warriors") continue to travel widely, just having returned from Russia and are looking forward to more overseas ministry trips in the future. 

   If you are someone who the Creator has blessed with money to invest in His Kingdom- First Nations Bible College is a proven ministry that has yielded good fruit over many years-  please consider helping us to train Indigenous Leadership!