IRVING (BP)—Through the years, Bear Creek Community Church in Irving has seen its share of trials but also testimonies of God’s provision, even when the odds are stacked against it or when vandalism strikes.
One of those times occurred a few weeks ago when Pastor Dennis Webb was smoking briskets for an annual fundraising dinner to benefit the church’s Many Helping Hands homeless ministry.
“As I was checking [the briskets], something didn’t look right,” Webb said. “I realized I’m missing two briskets, but I thought there’s no way nobody would have come and stolen briskets off of a pit.”
After retracing his steps and second-guessing himself to see if he had misplaced the meat, Webb realized the meat was in fact gone after watching footage on the security cameras.
The briskets were valued at $300 a piece. The church’s security footage was turned in to police and a report was filed. Days later, one of the thieves turned himself in to the Irving Police Department and shared the name of his accomplice. Police learned the men sold the two briskets.
Praying for conviction
Webb is praying the Lord will bring conviction to the hearts of the men and change the course of their lives through the services offered by Bear Creek Community Church.
“I would send them to 500 hours of community service on this property right here,” Webb said. “You just cannot have a mentality that you can commit a crime and there’s no consequences for it. I didn’t get to speak with the individual, but one police officer said the man was remorseful.”
“Hopefully, this man has learned a valuable lesson that there was really no need for him to steal. Interestingly enough, that man had just got served food at the church earlier that day, so we know he had been fed, but at the end of the day, Satan puts things in people’s heads to do wrong.”
In the midst of this bizarre experience, Webb has seen God at work in various ways.
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“Everyone now talks about the ‘brisket bandits’ and wants to know about my barbecue,” Webb said. “A local radio show host interviewed me and said the Lord placed on his heart to donate 20 briskets to make up for what happened. I didn’t have room to store them, so he brought me 10 briskets last week, and I used them for our youth group fundraiser.”
Many avenues to make an impact
Webb has used many avenues to make an impact on his community, serving as a fireman for 30 years and now as a city councilman. The pastorate was not his plan, but God’s, he says.
“This church started from a ministry that I started from my house,” Webb said. “When I started a support group, I wasn’t planning on starting a church. I just started the support group to minister to friends who were dealing with some drug problems.”
“We would meet once a week at my house on Friday night, and it started with about four people. Over a few months, we had about 30 people showing up regularly. The Lord started impressing on my spirit that I was actually shepherding these people, not only through leading the support group, but also walking them through the spiritual aspect.”
Bear Creek Community Church officially launched with 37 people gathering in the chapel at First Baptist Church in Irving. The congregation remained there until 2000, when they started leasing a warehouse facility.
In 2006, the Lord provided the opportunity for the church to purchase a 26,000-square-foot facility it now calls home.
Since relocating 20 years ago, the multicultural congregation has become an integral part of the community.
“We strive to communicate and care for one another like family,” Webb said. “We are not a megachurch, but we want to make a mega impact for Christ. When I started out, like many young pastors, I began ministry with the goal of building a church.
Success and challenges
“To me, success meant growing the congregation, increasing attendance, raising enough money to build a large facility, and becoming known as a successful pastor,” Webb said. “Yet, despite what appeared to be success, I was not fulfilled.
“During one particularly discouraging season, the Lord impressed something on my heart that changed my ministry forever when God said: ‘I didn’t call you to build a ministry or a church. I called you from your support group to build people.’”
Around that same time, God provided opportunities for the church to begin doing missions work in Nigeria, Kenya, and Haiti.
“Those experiences broadened my understanding of God’s kingdom and renewed my passion for ministry,” Webb said. “They reminded me of the calling that gave birth to Bear Creek in the first place—to develop people who are following Christ and serving others. Since about 2014, our focus has shifted from building attendance to building disciples.
“Today, by God’s grace, Bear Creek has helped people deepen their relationship with Christ, baptized new believers, trained leaders, and equipped members to recognize and respond to God’s assignments.”
In 2017, the church was forced to look deep within after a three-alarm fire engulfed the 4,000-square-foot sanctuary. The congregation learned valuable lessons about how God sustains and strengthens.
Over the past nine years, members have been actively raising funds to restore their campus with a brand new 7,500 square-foot worship center, which they believe will help them have an even bigger impact on their neighbors.
“We are paying cash as we go so we have no debt,” Webb said. “Bear Creek is very resilient, so when we had the fire on a Thursday night, we still had worship on Sunday morning.”
A mandate from God
In addition to food, Bear Creek provides medical and counseling services for homeless neighbors, a portable shower trailer, and even shelter in winter months.
On Friday evenings, church members also provide free tutoring services for kindergarten through 12th graders.
“There are so many testimonies from people talking about how this church has changed their lives,” Webb said. “While we are grateful for the facilities God has provided, our greatest desire is to invest in people, make disciples, and faithfully serve our community wherever God opens the door.”
“In Scripture, God talks a lot about feeding people, serving them and meeting their needs. All throughout Scriptures, it shows how God cares about the needs of people. People look at these feedings as a good social thing to do, when actually, it is a mandate from God.”
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