The Shadow
CLIFTON FORGE – Immanuel Baptist Church in Clifton Forge is celebrating its 50th Church Anniversary this month.
The church was started in 1960 by Pastor Everett McCulley. The church first met in his home until it purchased land in Cliftondale Park. The church experienced real growth when Pastor Lloyd Camp came in 1964. He pastored the church for 20 years.
During his time, the church had multiple building programs. A new church was dedicated in 1970. The church also purchased 14 acres of land on Douthat Road that was used for a Christian School. Cliftondale Christian School operated from 1972-1989.
The current pastor is Bill Dillon. He has been the pastor since 1998. In 2000, the church sold its property in Cliftondale Park to PM Properties of Roanoke. The church broke ground in 2002 on a new church building on Douthat Road. The new church opened in 2006.
The church also employs Mark Harvey as the Youth Pastor. They have active youth ministries for all ages.
“We are very thankful to God for His blessings in the past, but we are excited about the future as well,” Dillon said. His desire is to see the church continue to teach and preach the truth of the Bible. “We leave the growth of our church up to the Lord. We have not used the modern church growth methods and marketing taught by many leaders today. We simply continue to teach and preach the Bible as God’s truth,” Dillon said. His desire, he said, is to see souls saved and Christians grow in their faith.
On February 14, the church celebrated its 50th anniversary. During Sunday school, Pastor Dillon used a Power Point presentation to recount the history of the church.
He showed pictures from when to church was first started up until the recent events of the church. Pastor Lloyd Camp returned to preach during the morning service. “It was a great day for our church”, Dillon said.
He said their focus is also on the future. The church seeks to tell the true message of salvation to the community. “We live in a day of mixed messages. Heaven is only gained by an individual personally accepting Jesus as their Savior. We endeavor to make the Gospel message clear”, Dillon said.
“Once saved, Christians only grow in their faith by the faithful teaching of the Bible. Our objective is to help Christians grow in their relationship to God as they hear and learn the powerful truths of the Bible”, Dillon added.
The church is excited about the future. This year they have three young men graduating from their youth group who are planning to go to a Christian College to go into full time Christian service. “There have been many pastors and missionaries go out of our church in the past. It’s exciting to see that trend continue”, Dillon said.
