Rod Parsley - World Harvest Church

World Harvest Church

The genesis of Parsley's church came into being in 1977, when as a Bible college student he began leading a Bible study in his parents' back yard. Seventeen people attended the first service. Soon it was decided that the Bible study should become a church. It originally became known as Sunset Chapel, and later Word of Life Church in Canal Winchester, Ohio, a southeast Columbus suburb.

The church's first permanent facility was built in 1979. It is now known as Alpha Hall, which is one of four buildings on what for many years was the campus of Valor Christian College (the college moved to the main church campus in 2011). Growth soon required an addition to that building, and several years later the church built a bigger structure adjacent to Alpha Hall, which is now known as Dominion Hall. In 1986, ground was broken on 57 acres (230,000 m2) to begin what is now the church's Columbus campus. When it was dedicated, it was renamed World Harvest Church in honor of Lester Sumrall, who had befriended Parsley years earlier and became the younger pastor's mentor.

World Harvest Church Columbus now includes a 5,200-seat sanctuary, children's and youth ministries, Ministry Resource Centers and administrative offices. Harvest Preparatory School, a private Christian school serving students in preschool through grade 12, also operates on the church grounds. About 10,000 people attend services at World Harvest on a weekly basis.