Morgantown Community Church dedicated its new sanctuary Aug. 3.
People were streaming into ‘That Church’ at 4221 Main St., Elverson on that Sunday morning at 10 a.m. for unveiling of the new 80′ x 100′ room which houses the new large sanctuary, an enlarged nursery, and a welcoming lobby for serving beverages and snacks for fellowship.
Morgantown Community Church, which started with 40 parishioners in 2008, now has a robust community of about 500 families.
‘We will do everything to spread the gospel through your word,’ said Pastor Bill Wright in prayer at that time which now seems so long ago.
As they grew in numbers and with the Holy Spirit upon them, they remained faithful to that calling and were soon to become known as ‘That Church’.
At 10 a.m. Sunday, the joy was evident with music playing in the lobby where coffee, donuts and other snacks were shared. During this time leadership gathered for a pre-service meeting and prayed together.
At 10:15 the doors to the new sanctuary flung opened! People filed in with excitement and big smiles. Comments from the crowd went up.
‘For me as a 43-year-old man, I will sum it up like this. The anticipation of today’s service last night was like a 6 year old boy waiting for Christmas morning to come. It was worth the wait and I was not disappointed said,’ James Joyce from Morgantown.
Gage Gentile from New Holland said, ‘It’s amazing to see Gods hand at work, when most churches in America by statistics are stagnate or closing their doors each year, God has made it apparent that He is going to use Morgantown Community Church to be a lamp for Jesus to the world and powerfully enable us to do His will! I’m so excited to be a part of the loving family we have at MCC and I know the best of what God has planned is yet to come!’
‘Wow! Awesome! Beyond words! This is what the Lord can do through people dedicated to Him and leading others to the freedom we have found. Thank You, Father God!’ said Judy Mitchell of Morgantown.
As the crowd settled into their seats, Stef Grick started the Dedication Service with a warm welcome to all, followed by her introduction of Dan Mitchell and Ron Putt the two men who had overseen the entire building project.
They updated the congregation on how the new building had unfolded since its groundbreaking and the erection of its first wall on Christmas Eve day, 2013, then proceeded to explain the future remodeling of the old meeting space.
They were honored to lead the people in prayer for the future of the church. Their beautiful prayer was modeled after King Solomon’s prayer from the Old Testament when the first Temple in Israel was dedicated.
Trish Styer of Glenmoore later reflected, ‘I loved our opening prayer. The whole congregation got on their knees and lifted hands high!’
A brief video from the ground breaking prayer meeting that was held on Oct. 13, 2013 followed. Those prayers have now come to fruition.
A surprise for the people happened when after the video Gage Gentile and Tommy Malin appeared!
‘Their funny short skit about moving into a new building, greeting first time guests and helping people find what they are looking for was a highlight of the morning for many people because we all laughed so hard,’ said D. J. Grick, Youth Pastor.
‘Such a blessing to see the church grow. The best is yet to come. We love the time with our church family. And yes the guys that did the skit were hilarious!’ said Jennifer L Waldron of Mohnton.
After a brief meet and greet time, worship leader Joe Barszowski and the band led the congregation in four worship songs. Then Pastor Bill Wright preached his sermon titled ‘Greater Things Are Yet to Come’
Followed by a few more worship songs and an opportunity for prayer the dedication came to a close.
‘As the service ended we served Rita’s Ice to everyone as they left. This was just another way to celebrate together,’ said D. J. Grick, youth pastor.
As people were chatting after the service the following people spoke up.
Chrissy Sweeney Ferrell of Narvon said, ‘The new sanctuary is a blessing! … A great first service and message in the new space, but as Pastor Bill always reminds us it’s the people that are the church. Whether we have housed service at a local park, outside in the parking lot, or in the old or new sanctuary the presence of the spirit is always present and that is why ‘I love that church!’
‘You can sense the love the people have for their church, Why the growth? … Pastor Bill reminds us… all TRULY are welcome here,’ said Lynn Schmidthuber of Elverson.
‘A great new space for our family to grow and to worship our awesome God,’ said Jason Hess of Mohnton.
‘I love my church,’ said Tiffany Adamson Malin of Morgantown.
‘Attending the service was wonderful. You could feel the excitement of the long time attendees as well as newer ones. I’m looking forward to what God is going to do with this bigger building, and watching ‘the church’ grow,’ said Melissa Pullano of Bowmansville.
All are welcome to Sunday services held at 10 a.m. and a Wednesday Family Night at 7 p.m.
There is something for all ages, a large AWANA program meets year round with seasonal breaks and teen and adult groups flourish.
To sum it up Trish Styer of Glenmoore said this, ‘I love ‘That Church’…you can always recognize a Holy Spirit powered church — the evidence is obvious. MCC has this gift, and is shared through; evangelism; sharing faith; and helping lost souls. Souls are born into the family of God through MCC, changing people and lives…. I am so very proud of the men, women and children that made this dream come true for us all! I feel so blessed to have been led to this church! Thank you Jesus. A great big thank you Jesus, for Pastor Bill, AMEN’
For more information visit the website Morgantowncommuniychurch.org or call 610-286-5153.
