What kind of church is christ family church?

Christ Family Church is a place where you meet God, find freedom, discover purpose, and impact your world. We emphasize having a personal encounter with Christ, making friendships that help us grow in God, discovering our individual gifts and purpose in life, and reaching out to others with the love of God.


CFC is a young and growing church in Northwest Houston. We are an evangelical, Spirit-filled, nondenominational church with an emphasis on developing Christ followers, building genuine fellowship, and experiencing a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ.

our pastors

  • Paul & Delia Russell

    Lead Pastor & Administrative Pastor

    Pastors Paul and Delia are church planters and mentors engaged in raising up next generation leaders. They celebrate over 40 years of ministry, including pastorates in Salt Lake City, Utah; St. Louis, Missouri; and Nashville, Tennessee. In 2005, they moved to Houston to launch Christ Family Church and fulfill a long-time vision of planting a life-giving church in Northwest Houston.  They are parents to three grown children, all in Christian service, and six grandchildren.


    Pastor Paul is Lead Pastor of Christ Family Church.  He holds a Masters of Practical Theology from Oral Roberts University.  He is on the oversight board of several churches and organizations and continues to offer friendship and mentoring to leaders.  In recent years, Paul has served as Chairman of Global Network of Christian Ministries and Associate Pastor at Christ Church Nashville.


    Pastor Delia serves as our Administrative Pastor; providing each ministry with practical support and counsel.  Her life is a reflection of her personal passion for prayer, daily Bible study and her love for family.

  • Kennis & Samantha Russell

    Co-Pastor

    Pastor Kennis and Samantha Russell moved to Houston in 2005, five months after their wedding, to help plant Christ Family Church. Kennis serves as Co-Pastor and is on the Preaching Team.  He leads the Dream Team, Youth Ministry, and Production.  He has his BA in Music Composition and Technology from Oral Roberts University. Samantha graduated from Indiana University with a BS in Telecommunications. She serves on the CFC Nursery/Pre-School Dream Team. They have two young children, Evangeline and Pierce.

  • Juliet & Lewis Geil

    Worship & Connections Pastor

    Pastor Juliet and Lewis moved from San Diego, California to Houston, Texas in 2011.  Pastor Juliet is on the Preaching Team, leads the Worship Dream Team and directs Growth Track. She studied musical theater at Missouri State University and University of West Florida. She and Lewis met in college and married in Missouri in 1992.  Juliet has built and led worship teams in several churches and directed theater extensively.  Lewis is a retired Marine Major and flies Life Flight for Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston. They have two children, Chloe and Preston.

  • Tim & Claudia Oakley

    Assistant Pastor

    Pastor Tim and Claudia have been a part of Christ Family Church since the beginning of Christ Family Church in 2005. Tim holds a Masters of Divinity from Houston Graduate School of Theology and serves on the Preaching Team and Altar Ministry. Tim holds an executive position with a local food service company. Claudia serves in various areas of ministry while managing her own business. They have two children, Andy and Sophia. 

  • Justin & Jean'ah Welsch

    Youth Minister

    Justin and Jean’ah Welsch moved to Hockley at the beginning of 2019. They joined CFC very soon after, and got plugged in leading in children’s and youth ministry. After two years they started leading the youth ministry on Wednesday nights. Justin and Jean’ah both graduated from East Texas Baptist University with a BA in Religion. Justin had his concentration on youth and family ministry while Jean’ah’s was in children’s ministry. They have a newborn son named Asher.


  • Troy & Kari Marrs

    Children's Pastor


    Troy has lived in the Houston area most of his life.  He attended Abilene Christian University and served in the US Army before an 18 year career in law enforcement.  He was also a longtime volunteer firefighter and paramedic.  Troy has worked with children and youth most of his life, and loves to create dynamic and exciting children's programming for our kids. Kari attended East Texas Baptist University and they have three daughters.  The oldest (Kalyn) is at North Texas University, Their middle daughter (Hannah) attends Lone Star & is a keyboardist on the CFC Worship Team.  Their youngest (Megan) is in high school and works in the CFC nursery with Kari.   Troy is also an instrument rated pilot, and enjoys sailing & RV/Camping with the family.


WHAT WE BELIEVE

  • About Jesus Christ

    Jesus Christ is the Son of God. As truly God and truly man, He lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all men by dying on a cross. He arose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven's glory and will return again to earth to reign as King of kings, and Lord of Lords.


    (Matthew 1:22,23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5, 14:10-30; Hebrews 4:14,15; 1 Corinthians 15:3,4; Romans 1:3,4; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Timothy 6:14,15; Titus 2:13)

  • About Scripture

    The Bible is God's word to all men. It was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living. Because it is inspired by God, it is truth without any mixture of error. 


    (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20,21; 2 Timothy 1:13; Psalm 119:105,160; Psalm 12:6; Proverbs 30:5)


  • About Christ's Kingdom

    We believe in the literal second coming of our Lord, literal rule of Christ upon the earth, the resurrection of the regenerate to eternal life and the unregenerate to eternal death, and the ultimate victory of the eternal kingdom of God.


    (Acts 1:9-11; Daniel 12:2; Revelation 22:1-7)

  • About the Life of the Christ Follower

    We believe that those who are called by the name of Christ should depart from sin and seek to fulfill God's will in their lives. Just as salvation comes through faith, the power to be an overcomer and walk in victory over sin is also an outflow of God's grace. The work of the Holy Spirit is to create in us the character of Christ. 


    (2 Timothy 2:19)

  • About the Church

    We believe in the priesthood of the believer. All people born of God have equal status before God and direct access to their Lord. We believe the identity of the body of Christ on the earth is primarily perceived through the local church. The ministries of apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher are gifts to the church for the purpose of equipping believers for the work of the ministry, so that the body of Christ may be built up. 


    (1 Peter 2:5; Ephesians 4:11-16)

  • About Salvation

    We believe that humans were made in the image of God and are the crown of creation. They are now by reason of the fall spiritually alienated from their Creator. Apart from God's grace they have no ability to attain to the high calling of God's purpose. People are justified only by grace through faith in Christ's sacrifice on the cross. 


    (Psalm 8; Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 3:21-24)

  • About God

    God is Creator of all things and the Ruler of the universe. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are co-equal and co-eternal and are one God. The tri-une God is all-powerful, all-present and all-knowing. 


    (Deuteronomy 6:4; 2 Corinthians 13:14; John 1:1)

  • About the Holy Spirit

    He is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation, providing power for living holy, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. The baptism in the Holy Spirit is an endowment of power that provides the Christian with power to be witnesses and live holy lives. We believe that the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit are active within the body of Christ until the coming of the Lord. 


    (2 Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13; John 14:16,17; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:12, 2 Corinthians 3:16; Ephesians 1:13; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 5:1; Acts 19:1,2; 1 Corinthians 12:4-7)

  • About Water Baptism

    The next step after becoming a follower of Jesus is to be baptized.  Water baptism is an outward expression to the world of what God had done in your life.  Just as Jesus died, was buried and was raised from the dead; baptism represent us dying to our old self, being washed clean from our sin and raised to new life in Christ.  For more information on water baptism, download the What is Water Baptism? guide here.