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Step of faith
By LINDA M. LINONIS
YOUNGSTOWN
Faith Fellowship Church of God is on the move in more ways than one.
After 90 years in Struthers, it bought and relocated to the former Bethel Lutheran Church, 388 E. Midlothian Blvd., which closed.
The congregation acquired two 14-passenger vans for its bus ministry to transport worshippers from their residences to the church for Sunday morning services.
And attendance already has increased.
Recently, the Rev. Jonathan Mitchell and his wife, Joyce, who serves as church secretary, talked about the changes.
Pastor Mitchell said he visited Faith Fellowship on Father’s Day 2014 and preached. He said the Rev. Arlie Dorman had served the church for 33 years until his retirement. “I realized that this was the place I needed to be,” he said.
“The congregation had been saving money for the purpose of building or relocating,” Pastor Mitchell said.
After learning that Bethel Lutheran was closing and the building was up for sale, Pastor Mitchell said Faith Fellowship worked through a lawyer and made an offer, which was accepted. The sale was completed in early March; March 15 marked the first service.
“There are cosmetic issues to deal with,” he said. “But this is a solid building and functional facility. It was a positive outcome for everyone.”
The pastor said the Struthers site had “steep steps to the sanctuary, which was small.” And the restrooms were on the lower level with no elevator or handicap access. “The dream was to relocate,” Joyce Mitchell said, noting construction was “cost prohibitive” for the congregation.
The new site provides one-level access from the parking lot into a large gathering space, sanctuary with pipe organ, meeting room, offices and classrooms. “Buying the property was a step of faith,” he said.
Pastor Mitchell brings experience in building congregations to Faith Fellowship. In his 37 years in ministry, he has served five churches in California, Missouri, Florida and Ohio, and Faith Fellowship is the sixth. He was ordained a bishop in the Church of God. “It’s a scriptural title,” he said, “and describes a lead pastor.” He also was a missionary in Africa for three years.
On April 19, Bishop Wayne Dority, administrative bishop for the Church of God in Ohio, conducted a dedication service and delivered the message. The Church of God has headquarters in Cameron, Mo., and has some 6 million members. Pastor Mitchell said the bishop told the congregation that the church isn’t the building — it’s the people.
Though the Zip code of the church has changed, the pastor’s wife said the new site is only 1.9 miles from the former church. Pastor Mitchell said at a former church where he served, a bus was used to transport youths to a rally. When he was cleaning up the bus, he swept up a dirty penny from the floor. Something nagged at him to get the penny. Pastor Mitchell said some think a penny and some people are worthless. “Everyone is special to God,” he said.
The church bus ministry uses its two vans to bring people to services, and that includes residents at the Rescue Mission of Mahoning Valley. Joyce Mitchell noted that 18 men from the mission helped the church move to its new location. “We want to partner with the mission to help people,” the pastor said.
The church has a service at 10:45 a.m. Sundays and has children’s church. Also from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Sundays, there is a Bible study, currently on Romans. From 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays, Christian Recovery is open to people with addictions and is led by Dan Smith, church chaplain, and his wife, Julie. Between 45 and 60 participate. On Wednesdays, there is a meeting for elder men and women of the church to learn about outreach ministry. For information, call the church at 234-254-4220.
On the church council are Kenny Phillips, associate pastor, and Neil Gettig and Marcus Groves. A retired minister, the Rev. Jack Bridges, handles public relations. His wife, Claudine, plays the pipe organ.
The Mitchells, married for 45 years, have three adult daughters and eight grandsons. Pastor Mitchell said he “didn’t want to fizzle out in the last part of his ministry.” “I’m a go-getter,” he said.
“My vision for the church is to build strong families and for children to be involved in Christian education,” he said, adding that background helps create strong communities.