Sunbury Grace Brethren Church is applying for membership in the FGBC this summer. Here is Pastor Brian Williams story of the faith-venture called Sunbury GBC...
"It is another exciting moment in the unfolding history of the Sunbury Grace Brethren Church. We are preparing to become a real church…no longer to be referred to as a "church plant." It causes me to think back over how we arrived here.
In the Spring of 2004 the Lord was moving in my life. I had been on the Pastoral Staff at the Delaware Grace Brethren Church for 16 years. My wife Mary and I, and our two children, Brice and Breanna had deeply invested ourselves in that ministry. I had enjoyed a wonderful opportunity to learn about ministry under Sr. Pastor Jeff Gill and Associate Pastors Dean Risser and Darrell Anderson in succession. We had experienced success in the ministry, and had watched our youth program grow to be a program that was challenging teens to live for the Lord through mission trips and camp as well as small group and one on one discipleship and weekly meetings. I had a great youth staff that aided me greatly in this. We were comfortable and satisfied with the direction that our lives were taking…we called DGBC "home."
The events that made the Lord's hand evident to us included Pastor Jeff's departure to Grace Theological Seminary to take the Dean of the Seminary position. Through a series of events, including some that were painful and difficult to understand at the time, the Lord made it clear that He wanted us to work in a different harvest field. DGBC and I looked at the Sunbury community together and felt the Lord's leading to investigate the possibility of planting a new Grace Brethren Church.
As we began the process, we discovered that there was much preparation to be done…of me. My wife and I endured a grueling Church Planter Assessment to determine if we might be suited to church planting; we were told that we might be. We went to Church Planter's Boot Camp to discover if there was anything we might be able to learn about being more effective as church planters; and we discovered that there was. We began asking for prayer partners to join with us as we sought the Lord's will in all of this, and were able to see 30 churches and 80 people begin praying for us and our new venture.
Our home church, Delaware Grace Brethren Church felt God was calling them to be our mother church, and supported us in so many ways through this process and into the early stages of planting a church. In the fall of 2004 nearly a dozen people began meeting in our living room, planning, praying, discussing and dreaming about how to plant a church in Sunbury.
In the Spring of 2005 we wrote an article for the local Sunbury newspaper "warning" the community that we were coming. We had begun making contacts with the community through the local flea markets and parades, and felt strongly that we needed to be in Sunbury (rather than at my house, about 10 miles away from Sunbury) if we were going to plant a church in Sunbury. We had researched locations for our meetings, but had found everything to be either expensive, inadequate, or both. Then in a show of His power, the Lord provided the Town Hall for us for as long as we needed it rent free with a $50 deposit that we would get back if we didn't trash the place. We viewed this as His hand confirming His approval.
As we were practicing and preparing for the first meetings in the Town Hall, I received a phone call. A small, struggling church had read our article and wanted to discuss the possibility of joining with us. After a few meetings, the decision was made. The church gave us their buildings (a church building and the house next door) and became Grace Brethren. From that union we gained 7 wonderful ladies who had been working tirelessly to keep the doors of their little church open.
We began meeting on Sunday mornings in September, 2005. In a math problem that only God could solve, our 12 added to their 7 equaled 30 for our first Sunday together. We saw phenomenal growth over those first two months, and by the week before our grand opening we were running 60. We invited the community to come check us out via a Saturday evening party and a Sunday morning Grand Opening Service on November 5th & 6th. We were thrilled to see 127 people come to our little church and fill the parking lot and the pews. As expected, the numbers dropped back to about 80 the next week, but we were still amazed as the growth then picked up from their and continued into the winter and spring.
We've made significant changes to the facility, always working to make it more usable for our ministries; and continue to plan improvements and expansions today. We are in the process of hiring an Associate Pastor, which we hope will enable us to do a better job of ministry both within and without the walls of the church. We are running between 80 & 100 on most Sundays. We've seen that number higher and lower, but are blessed with a solid group of people who prove their love for the Lord every time we get together through the service, giving, attitude, spirit and love.
One of the BIG items that we asked the prayer warriors to present to the Lord regularly was for the unity of this small church. We had started by merging two churches, and then within a matter of weeks of the Grand Opening we had an influx of "refugees" from two failed church plants. This heritage was ripe for disunity, but God has answered those prayers abundantly, and we are blessed with a wonderful group of people who genuinely love the Lord and each other. One of the things that I am most proud of (in a godly way, I hope) is the fact that we still have all 7 of those generous ladies (who voted to become Grace Brethren and give us their buildings) in attendance with us.
Financially, the Lord has been good to us through the faithful support of several organizations beyond just our mother church. GBNAM, the NCO District Mission Board, and several GBCs including Powell and Marysville have helped us to grow and move forward. Several individuals outside of the church have supported us financially as well, and God has moved in the hearts of His people here at SGBC to give generously over our first couple of years. Typically and logically, the financial support from outside sources declines over a three year period; and God has balanced the scales wonderfully in the case of Sunbury Grace to provide for our needs through the generosity of the tithes and offerings within as those gifts from without have decreased.
This year we are celebrating our induction into the Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches. I feel like this is our winning of the Oscar or the Grammy. I'd like to thank God for His faithfulness and leading. He is good all the time. Even through sometimes confusing and bewildering events; He has always been working things out for our good. I would like to thank the many good people who have faithfully or even occasionally prayed for us. God has answered your prayers "exceedingly, abundantly beyond all that we could ask or think." I thank the several organizations and individuals who have supported us through the "plant" process. And I thank the good people who are faithfully loving and serving the Lord at the Sunbury Grace Brethren Church. You make Sunbury Grace a wonderful place to be and serve the Lord with you.
I want to thank my family. Mary has endured much as a pastor's wife. My kids have endured much as PKs. Through it all they haven't allowed their eyes to get off of the Lord and His goodness. People let us down. Paths are sometimes hard and uncertain. But "He who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of salvation." That is true of me (thanks for your patience with me) and it is true of this little church (thanks for Your grace and your support and encouragement).
As we look at the opportunities before us, we are in the process of hiring an Associate Pastor. We have also begun the preparatory work for a Welcome Wagon ministry. It is our desire to welcome each new resident to the greater Sunbury community, and invite them to visit the church. Finally, we are in the midst of several facility improvements and expansions…parking lot, front door entrance, children's ministry classrooms, offices, etc. There is much to do, and like everyone, time and money are limited. Pray for wisdom as we move forward. It is our desire to continue to grow this young church to be an effective ministry to the Sunbury community.
In His Service With You,
Brian Williams ("P.B.")
