Editor’s Note: As many churches throughout Florida are dealing with damage and even destruction to their facilities following the fury of recent hurricanes, church leaders can be encouraged by those who have walked the path of disaster recovery previously and have emerged victoriously.
PANAMA CITY–There is hope for recovery after a storm. Through patient perseverance, St. Andrew Baptist Church in Panama City is celebrating this truth as it moves into its newly opened worship center.
The congregation was displaced for six years following the wrath of Hurricane Michael, a Category 5 storm that hit Florida’s Gulf Coast in 2018. The storm damaged every building on the church campus, requiring all roofs to be replaced and each structure needing varying degrees of repairs. The worship center was rendered completely unusable.
Following the storm, the Florida Baptist Convention moved quickly to help the congregation set up for Sunday services in the student center, a gymnasium where services could be held until rebuilding was complete. Every week, 500 chairs were set up for Sunday morning services, and every week the chairs were removed for Wednesday night student activities.
The core of our congregation rose to the occasion–serving, giving and supporting in a way that brought glory to the Lord.
Church leaders had no idea that rebuilding the worship center would be a six-year process. While the new construction likely could have been completed more quickly under normal circumstances, the global pandemic that caused supply chain interruptions and issues with the insurance company understanding the complexities of rebuilding a worship center prolonged the process.
Through it all, church bonds remained strong, with many showing gratitude for a space to worship, even if it was a gymnasium. Because of space constraints, the church began meeting in two services to accommodate all attendees. A praise for the newly opened worship center is that the congregation once again can worship as one collective group each Sunday.
“When a church faces adversity, the congregation tends to decline in attendance,” said Cory Pitts, senior pastor. “We saw very few people leave, and the core of our congregation rose to the occasion–serving, giving and supporting in a way that brought glory to the Lord.”
While a gymnasium does not provide great acoustics for music, the new worship center more than makes up for those years. The new worship center’s state-of-the art technology far exceeds anything the church used previously. The newly constructed facility has beautiful lighting, a full and rich sound system and a comfortable and inviting atmosphere. Advancements in heating, ventilation and air conditioning allowed structural changes to include more open space for gathering before and after services to welcome guests and visit with members.
Moving into the new worship center is a homecoming for the church, which plans a dedication service Oct. 13.
“The church stayed united through the storm, the pandemic and when our senior pastor retired. We stayed united in prayer as we searched for a new pastor and as Dr. Cory Pitts joined us last October. We have enjoyed a new season of growth that is exciting to see,” said Rick Mitchell, administrative pastor.