When you attend church, where do you usually attend? What is its name? How did it become known by that name?
I pastor the Sugar Creek Baptist Church. The locals know our township as Sugar Creek Township. So, it is easy to discern how the members chose the name when the church had its beginning in 1971. We have several churches in the West Terre Haute area including Faith United Methodist Church, Bethany United Church of Christ, and the First Assembly of God just to name a few. I grew up going to the Grace Baptist Church in Evansville. That is a great name for a church. We need a lot of grace in the world.
Without really trying, I acquired a habit of collecting names of churches. I just seem to notice them. There are Family churches, Harmony churches, and Pleasant Valley churches. I know of a group of people who named their church the Trinity Baptist Church because it was three churches who came together to form one church.
Being a Baptist and knowing many of you are of the Roman Catholic tradition, you might agree that one of the most interesting church names is The Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church. Makes me smile every time I see that name. When I served in East Tennessee, I often had the occasion to drive by the Sinking Creek Baptist Church located on Sinking Creek Road. One state over you can find the Stinking Creek Baptist Church. I have a friend who pastors the Idlewild Baptist Church. He told me one time, “there are two things you do not want your church to be known for and that is idle and wild, but we have both in our name.” Another friend pastors the Little Hope Baptist Church. That could be discouraging until you learn the church is located on Little Hope Road.
The longest and possibly the most inclusive church name is The St. Francis National Evangelical Spiritual Baptist Faith Archdiocese of Canada. In 1 Cor. 9:22, Paul the Apostle wrote, “I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.” Here is a church that sounds like it wants to appeal to all people no matter what brand of church they are looking for.
Located along the foothills of the Ozark mountains in Conway, Arkansas, the village of Pickles Gap was named from an incident by a German immigrant, who while crossing the creek, a gap in the foothills, overturned his load of pickles in the creek. When the area needed a church, it was appropriately named Pickles Gap Baptist Church. A friend of mine was born at Happy Hallow, lived at Squirrel Hill on the Skunk Hallow Road and his home church growing up was the Pickles Gap Baptist Church where he was also licensed to preach. I hope you will attend church this Sunday regardless of its name. God Bless!
