A FAITHFUL JOURNEY: GROUP COMMITS TO NEW CHURCH START IN FRUITLAND AREA

FRUITLAND -- The spiritual foundation is in place for Fruitland Community Church.

The church saw the birth of a fledgling congregation Sunday at the church's first worship service in North Elementary School at the intersection of Route W and Highway 177. The group meets each Sunday at 9:30 a.m. for a coffee fellowship, with worship at 10 a.m.

The idea of starting a church in northern Cape Girardeau County has been a goal of the Cape Girardeau Baptist Association for many years. Earlier this year, Lynwood Baptist Church opted to take the lead in the project.

To get the work started, the Rev. Mark Anderson, Lynwood pastor, asked members to consider committing to the new church. About 50 have agreed to help plant the church and move their membership once the new congregation officially forms.

The idea isn't to duplicate Lynwood or relocate geographically, but to become a church with a separate identity, said the Rev. Mike Parry, church planter.

While you won't find a pew or an organ at Fruitland Community Church, you will find strong biblical beliefs. The church is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention.

Some of the changes are intentional so that there aren't any barriers to reaching people in the Fruitland area, Parry said. But at the same time, it's a little difficult to haul in a piano each week.

The church uses drums, a guitar and a bongo for a more fresh sound instead of relying on other, more traditional instruments. Words to choruses and hymns are displayed on a large screen using multi-media programs.

"We don't always use the word contemporary, but it's a fresh sound to some of the old songs," Parry said. "It makes people comfortable that have never been to church before."

Comfort was key for most of the 109 people attending service Sunday. They didn't wear suits, sport coats or other dress clothes. Khakis and polo shirt were the chosen attire. There aren't even padded pews or fancy chairs like you'd find in some newer churches, just bright blue metal folding chairs arranged neatly in rows.

But while comfort counts, "we still want to be reverent," Parry said.

The building was filled with the attitude of worship Sunday as visitors gathered in the converted cafeteria for a nearly 90-minute service.

"People have tried all sorts of worship styles," Parry said during the sermon. "But Jesus says they don't matter as long as you worship in spirit and truth. How you worship happens in your heart, not on a stage."

Starting a new church isn't an easy task; there was a little reluctance and resistance. "We knew we'd have struggles," Parry said. But no one wanted to abandon the idea.

Leaving Lynwood was hard for some of the core group at Fruitland Community Church who had been worshiping there for years. "We had meetings where people cried because it's so hard to leave the church you have grown up with," Parry said.

While the move meant some grieving at Lynwood, people knew that "we were attempting to do something for God." he said.

Mary Jo Filer, who attended Lynwood before helping with Fruitland Community Church, said that after a while people forget they're meeting in a school and really concentrate on worship.

"You can see the excitement levels and not notice the surroundings are a gym," she said.

Her four children don't mind the different setting, though Filer admits at first it was hard to leave Lynwood where the family had friends and enjoyed the programs.

"I didn't want to go," she said. But now that she has felt God's call to help with the church, she said everything has worked for the best. Filer is office manager for the congregation and works from her home.

Lynwood purchased nearly $50,000 worth of portable equipment designed just for the task of church planting. It is used solely by Fruitland Community Church.

"It was a step of faith to have Lynwood lend us the money," Parry said.

The equipment fits on a 24-foot trailer and is set up and dismantled at the elementary school each Sunday. Fifteen crates filled with speakers, video screens, coffee makers, plants and even children's toys roll off the trailer and into the school's cafeteria or classrooms for setup.

It takes nearly 45 minutes to set up the equipment and another 30 minutes to dismantle it after services.

When he finally took the microphone Sunday, Parry said he was happy to welcome people for worship at Fruitland Community Church. "I've wanted to say that for about six months," he said.

"We wanted to start out and be a church from Day One."

IF YOU GO

Location of church: North Elemenatry School at Rt. W and Hwy. 177

Sunday schedule: Continental breakfast/coffee at 9:30 a.m. Worship at 10 a.m.

Moore Information: 204-2724