The Access Story

We believe that, just as Jesus was irresistible, the local church should be irresistible. People should wake up on Sunday morning and want to go to church. Our desire is to create a church that would be people’s number-one option on Sunday, first, because of what we do, and ultimately because of what we believe.

This vision began to take shape in 2003 with a group of people in Jacksonville who had a heart for their friends who didn’t have a growing relationship with God. This group of people wanted so badly to invite their friends to church, but hadn’t been able to find the right kind of environment their friends would connect with.

This group decided to partner with North Point Community Church, who recommended Rich and Stephanie Barrett lead this strategic partnership. The Barretts visited Jacksonville in the spring of 2006 and met with the core team that God had already assembled. They were impressed by the team’s clear desire to start a church, not for themselves, but for their friends who wouldn’t feel comfortable in most churches. The launch team began to gather friends and family around the idea of a church for unchurched people, and as the group grew, so did our excitement.

In March 2007, Access Church hosted our first worship service in the Fine Arts Center at the University of North Florida. In 2012 we moved to our first permanent facility on Losco Road in the Mandarin area of Jacksonville.