First Baptist Church

I performed a wedding the other day. It was a nice ceremony for a neat young couple. But I didn't perform the wedding ceremony in our church building. It was held at the First Baptist Church in Johnston, IA.

The church is pastored by Tim Bonney, a very nice man who has served in ministry in Illinois, Indiana and Iowa. He has been at First Baptist in Johnston for approximately five years.

The reason I am blogging about First Baptist is because they are a very interesting church. They used to be located downtown in Des Moines, but they moved in 2002 to their current location. Their facility is breathtaking.

It has a strain-your-neck-high vaulted wood ceiling which is amazing. The stone walls are gorgeous. The open airy feel of the facility leaves you feeling like you are in a house of worship.

But here was the odd thing for me...they are overtly traditional. In every way they pride themselves in not being a contemporary congregation. There is a grand piano and a pipe organ on the stage and behind their baptistry there is a beautiful wooden cross and above that a fabulous round stained-glass window.

But there is no projection system. The audio set up is only average. There is nothing in the facility that says "2002!" Other than it looks new.

They do currently have a contemporary service that meets at the church. I was told by their sound man that it is a smaller gathering and they do not meet in their sanctuary, the contemporary service meets out off of the foyer area.

This church of approximately 200 people like the way they do church. They are proud of their style and that is who they are. And hear me clearly, there is nothing wrong with that.

In fact, too many churches spend their time with a psychological disorder always trying to be the mega-church that they aren't. So it is okay, in my book, to embrace who it is that you really are as a church.

But, having said all of that, I do know that I dream about who The Fort is all the time! I want us to be different than we are. I believe that we are capable of being so much more. I have begged God, I have shed tears before the Lord over showing me what it is to do so that we can grow as a church. I desire for us to reach as many people on the South Side of Des Moines as we can for Jesus Christ.

I do not desire to uphold traditions. I do not desire to build beautiful buildings. I do not desire to have any of that. What I desire is for one more opportunity to preach about Jesus Christ to another lost man or woman. That is my heart.

I know God's Word is true. I know it can change lives forever. I desire to see that life change happen at The Fort! One of the only ways it can happen is when our people begin to invite their family, friends, neighbors and co-workers with them to church.

A great opportunity to do that will be our upcoming Warrior series that starts on September 20th. This will be a sermon series directed at the men. Far too long men have settled for less than God's best in their life because they believe that deep spirituality is too feminine. It isn't. It is actually brutal and bloody. And we want to show the men in our church that being a man of God is a call to the heart of a Warrior!

So do your part, invite someone to join you. Beg someone to come. Barter with them. Bribe them. I don't care but do something. Because people's eternities are at stake!