May 19, 1999
Lumberyard Church builds body of Christ
___By George Henson
___Staff Writer
___MIDLAND--Ryan Reddell had a desire to build up the less affluent churches in Midland. God provided an abandoned lumberyard as his tool.
___Reddell, a member of First Baptist Church in Midland, said he used to pass by the building that is now known as the Lumberyard Church without giving it much thought. What occupied his thoughts, however, was the disparity between the wealthy, affluent churches that dot much of the city and struggling churches in other parts.
___He believes God used those thoughts to cause him to see the abandoned building, which he then made an offer to buy. A couple of days after his offer, the real estate agent called back to say the offer was much less than the asking price but the owners were ready to be rid of the property and had accepted his bid.
___About the same time, Deborah Fikes also sensed God's leadership in a similar direction. Fikes, a member of the missions committee at First Baptist Church in Midland, was working with a Hispanic church to build a warehouse-type building, just a concrete foundation with steel walls. Reddell learned about the plans and called Fikes the same day that she and Pastor Sergio Alvarado of Iglesia Bautista Antioquia were to meet with an architect about drawing up the plans.
___"He called and said he had just bought this building and thought it would make a great church, and we should come look at it," Fikes recalled.
___She was excited about the prospect of finding an existing building, but she also had questions.
___"I thought he was going to have a rent amount in mind, and I was sure the utilities on a building that large would be a large amount, but that wasn't what he had planned at all," she said.
___Reddell offered the building not only to Alvarado's church, but to any Christian organization needing a large space for a special event. And there would be no rental fee, he said. The utilities, which run between $700 and $900 a month, are paid by a non-profit board.
___There was still work to be done, however, if the abandoned building was to be a church. Volunteers with Brothers and Sisters in Christ Ministries labored six months to renovate the building. Then tables, chairs and a sound system still were needed.
___Fikes saw the need and turned a her own birthday party into a fund-raising event that collected more than $7,000. Guests were asked to make donations to the project rather than bring gifts.
___"I thought, "If I'm going to turn 40, let's make it something that will glorify the Lord," she said.
___Alvarado said the move has been a good one for his church, a mission of Crestview Baptist Church in Midland.
___"This is a much better location, closer to the Hispanic community," he said. Attendance has grown from 80 to 170.
___The Lumberyard Church not only is home to the Hispanic congregation and various special events but also is used on the first Friday of the month for praise services led by different groups in the city.
___"I've been amazed," Reddell said. "When I bought the building, I had several things on my heart, and it's been neat to see all those things come to pass. I think the biggest blessing may have come to me--just getting to see God work."
Frontpage / Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!