This article was originally published in The Examiner on May 4, 2017.
By Eleanor Skelton
Staff Writer
Many people have criticized evangelical churches over the last decade for being politically divisive, shallow and disconnected from the community.
Between 2007 and 2014, Americans who identify as Christian fell from 78.4 to 70.6 between 2007 and 2014, mostly driven by declines among mainline Protestants and Catholics, according to a Pew research study published in 2015.
Beaumont’s First Baptist Church, located on Major Drive in the West End, wants
to counteract this trend by being a “simple church.”
Instead of listening to a sermon April 30, both the 9:30 and 11:11 a.m. services gathered to sing worship songs but then dispersed to deliver care packages to Southeast Texas first responders and pray with people.
“Prayer was the emphasis of the day,” Executive Pastor Mark Adams said.
He said he called principals and assistant principals at Southeast Texas schools the week before, asking about the school’s needs.
During the service, Adams organized the groups that went out.
Several people delivered a home-cooked meal during the 9:30 a.m. service to three
nearby fire stations. The 11:11 a.m. service brought cookies and movie theater gift cards.
Both groups prayed with the firefighters on shift.
Groups of 20-40 people left to pray outside of Boys’ Haven, Legacy Christian Academy, West Brook High School, Lumberton Intermediate School, Lumberton High School, Sour Lake High School, Sour Lake Middle School and Lamar University.
Other groups gave cookies and gift cards to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and
the Beaumont Police Station downtown.
Still others brought cookies to Baptist Hospital’s ER and ICU departments and offered to pray with people waiting.
One little boy in the ICU waiting room said, “Mommy, we didn’t have to go to
church [this morning]. Church came to us!”
“It’s the church in action, we’re called to be the salt and light to our community and the
people we live around, and sometimes churches stay within their four walls and really
don’t have a presence outside of their walls,” Adams said. “We fee praying for the
needs of our community is very important.”
“Part of being the church of Jesus Christ is embracing all the things that he has called us to do, not just to attend worship on Sunday morning,” he said.
Eleanor Skelton 