We are thankful Bible-Way Missionary Baptist Church is planting a church in Huber Heights, Ohio. Bro. Pittman became pastor of Bible-Way Missionary Baptist in March of 2011. Bro. Pittman had previously served as a missionary in Mexico for ten years and served in the Spanish ministry of Bible-Way for three years. When Pastor Terry Zeller was called home to be with the Lord the church extended a call Bro. Pittman to become pastor. We are thankful for Bro. Pittman and his wife Wendyand their faithfulness. Here are a few thoughts from Bro. Pittman on church planting:
"Let's face it… age is our enemy! Since the fall of man in the garden, time has
been playing havoc on our world. Every
living thing ages and eventually dies.
This includes the Lord’s churches.
We are often shocked by an evangelist or pastor quoting statistics about
how many churches close their doors every year in America. Why should we be surprised? This is a natural process. Things have been this way since Adam and Eve
were driven from the paradise they started out in. Some churches publish their age with pride as
if being the longest running church is some feat worthy of praise. It is indeed an accomplishment worthy of
recognition just as it is with a person.
We celebrate the birthdays of our eldest citizens with glee but the fact
is that most of them are by now weak and fragile, just like old churches. It’s nothing we should be personally ashamed
of; it is the law of the curse. Just as
elderly people are not as productive as they once were, typically, elderly
churches are the same. The secret to
revival in America is vibrant youthful churches! That is what has motivated Bible-Way
Missionary Baptist Church to reproduce herself.
I am not trying to be disrespectful to older people or older churches. I am just stating a fact. One day Bible-Way will undoubtedly close her
doors if the Lord tarries His return. In
his book Multiplying Model, Bro. James Beller defines the “absolute
death” of a church like this: “When a
church dies and has not reproduced itself in the planting of new churches…” I do not want our church to suffer this
fate. Think about it; all of the
churches mentioned in the New Testament are now dead. They still live in a sense through the “great,
great, grandchildren” of the many churches that they established during their life
span. In our day we have left the Bible
model of churches reproducing churches.
Many churches now have the goal of longevity and enormous size. I theorize that subconsciously they feel that
they can cheat the law of the curse by sheer determination, power and talented leadership. They will fail, however, as the hundreds of
churches before them have. The key to
reaching our country and the world is in planting new churches. Just as our youth and middle aged citizens
carry the majority of the work load in our society, the young and middle aged
churches will see more revival and work accomplished in reaching the lost. The Lord’s churches MUST start reproducing
again! The Word of God and Church
History teaches us these facts. Why
should we ignore them?
In March of 2013, Bible-Way voted to
begin her first church plant. We prayed
about the details and then chose Huber Heights, Ohio as our first work. It has surely not been easy just as it is not
easy for humans to birth children. There
is a lot pain and expense involved. We
have enjoyed successes and joys and have suffered disappointment and hurt. However, I believe that overall this has been
a positive and educational experience for this 34 year old church! I look forward to the day when the mission in
Huber Heights becomes a church. It will
no doubt be much like a father and mother watching their daughter get married
and start a family of their own. The
natural process of reproducing and raising children is a perfect analogy for
what the Lord’s churches should be doing.
As for advice for churches wishing to
plant a new work; I would recommend that you prepare yourself for difficulties
and disappointments. They do not mean
that you are doing things wrong. They
are natural and often the frantic attempts of our adversary to discourage us to
the point of failure. Rely on God and
His word. One of my theme verses for
ministry is Psalms 127:1 “Except the LORD build the house, they labour
in vain that build it:…” I believe that
the only path to true success is to do things God’s way; The Bible Way!"
