As strange as it feels to say, there was a time, not long ago, that Indian Creek Baptist Church did not exist. After its first meeting in the late 19^th century, the tiny church limped along with only a handful of members. There were long stretches of time in which the congregation didn’t gather at all. Finally, in 1923, the church disbanded.

That might have been the end of the story. But twenty years later, the First Baptist Church of Mineral Wells, along with Pastor W. M. Turner, had a vision to “re-plant” this church to meet the growing needs of the community. Pastor Turner began preaching in the Brazos Valley Schoolhouse on Bankhead Highway. Slowly, people began to gather. A core group formed.

Finally, in December 1943, in response to a request sent by Pastor Turner to the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Pastor Leonard Dyer arrived to serve as pastor of Indian Creek Baptist Church.

Pastor Dyer was in the process of finishing his degree. But he had the zeal and wisdom to lead. The church was given a few acres of land along Indian Creek Road, and they banded together to purchase materials from the army base east of town. Pastor Dyer (who must have been multi-talented) drew up plans for a new meeting house and the congregation worked together to get it built.

Think about all the lives that have been impacted in the more than eight decades since. Think about how far we’ve come! God gets the credit. But it wouldn’t have happened if a church family a few miles away hadn’t lent their prayerful energies toward the planting (or in our case, re-planting) of a fledgling congregation.

It's easy to see the heroism of the little congregation and their young pastor meeting here on Indian Creek Road. But put yourself in the shoes of the members at First Baptist Church. Their pastor had invested many hours in a mission several miles away. I imagine that took place at the sacrifice of some of the time he could have spent investing in the growth of First Baptist. They probably sent away some of their best families to strengthen the congregation here at Indian Creek. I’m sure there was a financial sacrifice as well.

I don’t think we’ve had a lot of church planting activity in Mineral Wells in recent decades. But it’s not exactly a new concept. God’s people have been investing in planting or re-seeding local churches for a very long time.

Why? Because this is one of the most effective strategies in existence for fulfilling the Great Commission. You want to make disciples? Plant a church.

Planting churches is a ministry of multiplication rather than addition. Even leaders in the “megachurch” movement recognize this. Many churches that became multi-campus behemoths in the 2000s and 2010s have aggressively shifted to a focus on planting other congregations. In fact, some experts surmise that the future of church in America is not the slick suburban campus with thousands of attendees in a massive arena, but numerous smaller congregations in a movement of multiplication.

Not only is it effective; it’s biblical. Consider the ministry of the Apostle Paul. He didn’t build a massive tabernacle in Antioch so that the masses could hear him preach. Neither did he merely engage in one-on-one evangelism. No, Paul planted churches all around the Roman Empire. Those churches persisted long after he went home to be with the Lord.

This past Sunday, we discussed our own plans to invest in a new church plant in Mineral Wells, led by Jamie Kinman. We talked about why we believe this is the right move for Indian Creek, and why Pastor Jamie has been asked to lead this new church. If you weren’t able to make it, I hope you’ll catch me or one of the elders and allow us to share our heart regarding this important project.

As we’ve prayed and talked and studied and learned from others with more experience than us, it’s become clear that if we are going to move forward with this plan, it will take a high degree of commitment and sacrifice on the part of Indian Creek Baptist Church and the families in our congregation.

What can you do? First, please pray and consider whether the Lord might have you and your family join Jamie as part of the “core group” in the new church.

Second, please take the time to read through this “Memorandum of Understanding" (MOU). We’ll have to take action on this MOU as a church, and we intend to hold a vote during our family meeting on Sunday, August 23. Please read it carefully and let us know what questions or concerns you may have as soon as possible so that we can move forward in unity as a church.