Jan 20, 2021
An Update
By Pastor Darrell Chilson
It all started with an earnest desire to reach “Phoenix for Christ” (an article so named in the Sabbath Recorder of September 2019) and an opportunity to establish a Sabbath ministry in the fifth largest city in the United States. This new ministry had to be Christ-centered, and the telling of His story the focus of its mission. Up until September 2019, there had been no Seventh Day Baptist presence in the Phoenix area.
Our first service was held on September 7, 2019, in our home. Sixteen individuals were in attendance. All in attendance had been invited except for one couple, who that very morning had found our website with the announcement of services, put on their church clothes, and drove an hour to attend! Jay and Linda have become strong supporters and involved members of Phoenix SDB Fellowship — and truly a blessing to our entire church family.
Today, more than a year later, our congregation has strong ties to one another, in spite of the need to meet mostly virtually since March 2020. We have had two baptismal services this year (four baptisms), for which we have gathered in person with the usual precautions of wearing masks and practicing social distancing. We will meet again in an outdoor park setting in a couple of weeks to worship and fellowship in person — we so miss that!
Out of necessity, and yet a blessing we might have missed had we not been forced to start meeting virtually, we have developed an online ministry that is extensive. We first started our ministry by building a website, and we have substantially built a library of videos from our bi-weekly broadcasts. We now are reaching more individuals in distant areas that we might ever have reached otherwise.
Looking back on how the Lord has led in the establishment and continued blessing of the Phoenix ministry, there are factors that we believe have played an important role in creating a vibrant ministry for our fellowship:
• A passion for the story of God’s saving grace, freely extended to sinners in response to their faith in His Son, Jesus Christ — ALONE
• A ministry that is based on the Bible ALONE, including the truths that are outlined in the Seventh Day Baptist Statement of Faith — especially the truth of the 7th-day Sabbath
• A recognition that all that is blessed and born of heaven comes in answer to earnest prayer and committed hearts
• The faithful support of the Church — its leaders at the Conference level, and its members at the local level — Phoenix Fellowship has been blessed with tremendous support from both groups!
• Advertising — an attractive website and a social media presence — TWO OF OUR MEMBER FAMILIES FOUND US AND BECAME MEMBERS FROM OUR INTERNET PRESENCE
• A place of meeting (when meeting is appropriate) — SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS A RESIDENCE CAN BE THE BEST OPTION IN THE BEGINNING!
• Regular meetings — virtual in nature with Zoom and YouTube — seeing each other’s faces, interacting and praying together, showing movies and sharing good music keep our congregation together during these times of “the pandemic”
There are people who are currently looking for a Sabbath-promoting, gospel-centered fellowship where they can worship, find fellowship and enjoy a common understanding of the Word of God. One of the greatest examples of how God is leading people to search out Sabbath-keeping, Christ-centered congregations is the story of James and Priscilla. They both came to us from religious backgrounds very different from the Seventh Day Baptist faith. But they had become hungry for the Word of God, began studying the Bible quite apart from any church affiliation, discovered the seventh-day Sabbath from the leading of the Holy Spirit, and began searching for a church that taught what they were discovering. That’s when they called us, began finding answers to their questions, vigorously embraced an identity with our fellowship and were baptized into Christ and this congregation just weeks later.
The Seventh Day Baptist General Conference is rightly picking up on the potential for extending the Kingdom of Christ through church planting. Creating even a small presence in many different places is an effective way of growing the Kingdom of God. Our leaders recognize this and are currently training many individuals to do just that! What insight—definitely the leading of a God who is about to bring into His Kingdom many who need to know Christ and join others in their efforts to take His story to others longing to find Him before He returns!
If you are reading this article, please join us in praying for a mighty outpouring of the Spirit of God upon our Church and its leaders—upon the members of each congregation, and upon those who are being called to establish outposts of God’s Kingdom where they live. “People need the Lord”, and we need to be active in making His voice heard through our united voices!
Pastor Darrell and Sammy Chilson live in Goodyear, AZ. They have spent many years in ministry, seeking to bring Christ to the congregations in their care. The “gospel of Jesus Christ” is their passion, and their love for one another is the treasure of their lives. They planted a church in Tucson, AZ, in 1994, and are now leading the Phoenix Seventh Day Baptist Fellowship.
