An overflow crowd of 2,000 worshippers attended the first services of Northside Baptist Church in its new facility at 4347 Sunset Boulevard at I- 20 last Sunday, September 11, 2011. The spacious building marks Phase I of an ambitious building program for the new campus and is the culmination of five years of fundraising and planning for the church formerly located in West Columbia.
“ We are excited that the vision God gave us is finally becoming a reality,” said Senior Pastor Rocky Purvis. “We felt Him showing us that now is the right time for us to build, and we are honored to have the opportunity to reach our community from such a strategic location.
“ Words cannot express how exciting it was to see close to 2000 people worshipping God with all their hearts. But we are convinced that what we saw Sunday is only the beginning of what God is going to do in and through us. Our theme verse throughout this move has been Ephesians 3: 20- 21. ‘God can do anything, far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams.’ We believe God is looking for people and churches who are willing to do whatever it takes to share His love with the world and when He finds them, He will bless them and use them. That’s our desire.”
Northside Baptist Church’s new building
An unexpected level of excitement was introduced when Pastor Purvis announced that a contract of sale is being signed for the former sanctuary building in West Columbia. The Sprung building, also at that location, has already been sold; the final piece of that campus remaining to be sold is the Christian Fellowship Center with a gymnasium, office space, and fellowship hall with kitchen.
The new building is a multi-purpose education building with combined worship/fellowship space and education space for the new Northside Christian Academy. It features state-of-the-art electronic and audio equipment, presently accommodating 1000 people and with a possibility to expand to include 400 additional seats.
Pastor Rocky Purvis
The Academy is a new ministry of the church expressing its primary goal to “prepare students to become followers of Christ so that ‘generations to come might know him’ (Psalm 78:4).”
Phase 2 of construction will include a recreation facility with a gym and office space for the church staff. Phase 3 will see construction of the formal Worship Center. The wooded site will eventually feature walking paths, athletic facilities, and an amphitheater.
In addition to the principal structures, Northside Baptist’s longrange plans include building missionary housing as well as a prayer chapel to be used mainly for weddings and funerals.
Northside Baptist Church was established as a mission in 1946, and moved into its West Columbia sanctuary in 1953. That property was expanded with additional buildings and space with the Sprung building added in 1999 to enable the growing congregation to seat 1000.
Pastor Rocky Purvis has begun a new sermon series entitled “Apps for Life,” which focuses on life goals such as love, kindness, peace, patience, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. A special feature of the September 11 service was a tribute to First Responders of the Lexington County area. Each Sunday will hold a Blended Service at 9: 15 a.m. and a Contemporary Service at 10:45 a.m., along with activities for preschool, children and students. The Senior Pastor is a native of Hartsville, S.C. and has been married to his wife Sherrie for 26 years. They have four children: Jonathan (with wife Christy), Mary Beth, Joshua and Matthew. For more information about Northside Baptist, visit www.northsidebaptist.org or call 803-796-9786.
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