High Pointe Church gives prime time, property to reach community_50205

Posted: 4/29/05

High Pointe Church gives prime time,
property to reach community

By George Henson

Staff Writer

CEDAR HILL–High Pointe Baptist Church is willing to give whatever it takes–time, money, land, tradition–to reach the African-American families who live nearby.

The church is in the midst of a growing community that is about 43 percent African-American, 43 percent Anglo and 12 percent Hispanic.

In spite of repeated efforts, church members have had limited success in reaching the African-American segment of the community.

“Our outreach events would be predominantly African-American, but it just didn't translate to Sunday mornings,” Minister of Missions Keith Thompson explained.

This frustrated Pastor Toby Snowden, but it came to head when an African-American woman named Rosie attended a fall festival and saw that 80 percent of the participants were African-American. She came to the church the following Sunday and got a huge surprise.

“She was shocked we were all Anglo, and we just couldn't connect,” Snowden lamented. “It was then that we started asking, 'What about Rosie?'”

The church redoubled door-to-door efforts and found the African-American families “polite, but not receptive,” Snowden said.

“I've been here 17 years, and we've worked arduously to reach these families since we've been here, and we only had one head of household who was African-American. It brought to mind the old Dr. Phil question, 'How's that working for you?'”

The idea came to Snowden that if the African-Americans in the community were not going to come to High Pointe, then the church should start an African-American church for them.

Initially, there were a few members of the Anglo congregation who were a little resistant. “It wasn't that they didn't want to reach these people at all; they just wanted them to come to High Pointe and worship with us,” Thompson explained. That resistance evaporated quickly, however, when it was explained to them that the African-American church would offer a different worship style.

The Fellowship Church at High Pointe met for the first time last October, the Sunday after the church's fall festival–an event perennially well-attended by African-American families in the neighborhood. Twenty people attended that preview Sunday.

The church continued to meet once a month, with a few more in attendance each time.

Since the church began meeting weekly in March, 30 families have joined. Easter Sunday, more than 130 attended. Pastor Willie Jacobs Jr. said the church averages about 70 adults and 30 children.

To help Fellowship Church succeed, High Pointe gave the African-American congregation the prime time in the sanctuary on Sunday mornings.

“When we looked at doing this, we realized that for African-Americans, 11 o'clock is church time. So, we've given them that time slot,” Snowden said.

That gesture was not lost on Jacobs, who also is a church-starting consultant with Dallas Baptist Association.

“High Pointe has a kingdom agenda. It has to have, or they wouldn't have sacrificed to the extent they have,” he said.

“It's a testimony to this church and their call to win the lost to Christ that we're even here.”

The credit for much of the success belongs to the High Pointe congregation, Snowden said, noting, “I would have to applaud our people for the flexibility and their willingness to change.”

The vision doesn't end there. The church is in the midst of a capital campaign that not only will pay off its debt, but also earmark funds to help provide Fellowship Church with a building of its own.

High Pointe Baptist Church started on a 15-acre tract of land. It plans to make part of that land available to build facilities for the African-American congregation and then perhaps a Hispanic church, Snowden said.

“They will be free-standing autonomous churches, but they will be joined intentionally in partnership,” Thompson added.

The plan is to call the group of congregations the Churches of High Pointe.

“The Churches of High Pointe philosophy is that we're going to meet people where they are and not tell them what they are going to be,” Thompson said.

Currently, High Pointe holds a traditional service at 8 a.m., a contemporary service at 9:15 a.m. and a combined Bible study at 10:45 a.m., and the Fellowship Church has the 11 a.m. slot.

During Bible study, a Hispanic group meets for a Spanish-language Bible study.

All of this is a little different than what Snowden thought the 15 acres might eventually look like.

“I guess I initially thought it might someday be a megachurch plant, but I've come to the realization over the years that this is to be a megachurch in the sense found in the Book of Acts. In the book of Acts, the word 'mega' is used three times–to describe a mega faith, a mega fear of the Lord and mega grace,” he explained.

The venture is not one being undertaken by the church alone, however, but it also is subsidized by the church-starting arms of the Baptist General Convention of Texas and Dallas Baptist Association.

“What I really see here is Baptist work at its best. We've been faithful to contribute to the association and convention, and without cooperative dollars coming back, none of this would be possible,” Snowden said.

“It's just so exciting to see God work.”

For Thompson, one picture immediately springs to mind.

“To watch that first Sunday as African-American family after African-American family came through these doors after years and years of trying, that was exciting.”