God is in the business of gathering people! The word “gather” is found in the Bible 419 times and in 43 different books. First Baptist Church, Aztec, will continue to gather people that God places in our paths and brings to our church. We need more space.
God has shown us that we are to gather people from the north, south, east, and west so that they can receive hope (which is Jesus), healing (emotional, mental, physical, spiritual, sexual, and financial healing), and a church to call home (loving, accepting, non-judging, taking people where they are and leading them to where they need to be with Jesus).
The Church approved the building of a new Worship Center in 2021. After much planning and prayer, we are ready to begin. This means you are allowing God to lead us and fill us with a Spirit of Generosity. We are so glad to be on this journey together!
Gathering – Are You Willing?
God has burned into Pastor Mike’s heart that he and Cindy are here to do the work of evangelism and building based on 1 Chronicles 28:20. David also said to Solomon his son, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work for the service of the temple of the Lord is finished.”
Are you willing to be a part of what God is doing at FBC Aztec? Are you willing to sacrifice? When the seed of sacrifice is planted, it always produces fruit.
Pledge Goal: $3,750,000.00
Pledged Amount: $672,742.00
Amount Received: $220,183.41
FAQ about Gathering
Gathering is the title of our worship space building capital campaign. It comes from Psalm 107:1-3, “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. Let the redeemed of the LORD tell their story—those he redeemed from the hand of the foe, those he gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south.”
God has shown us that we are to gather people from the north, south, east, and west so that they can receive hope (which is Jesus), healing (emotional, mental, physical, spiritual, sexual, and financial healing), and a church to call home (loving, accepting, non-judging, taking people where they are and leading them to where they need to be with Jesus).
The church has voted to build a worship space seating 500 people. This will be a multi-use space with a small kitchen, offices, etc.
The new worship space will cost approximately $3.75 million.
Some money may need to be borrowed, but we do not want to become a servant to debt. The church desires to be good stewards as we all give sacrificially and generously; God will provide.
No, you will be asked to pray and to allow the Holy Spirit to lead you in what to give.
The pledge will be for three years starting April 1, 2023 and conclude March 31, 2026.
Yes, the giving for Gathering should be over and above your regular giving.
Jesus gave you the Great Commission which says as you go out, you are to share the gospel of Jesus Christ, making disciples and baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. Our prayer and desire is to see more people reached for God’s Kingdom. We live in spiritually dark days and we know the return of Christ is coming. We are currently in two worship services with the prayer and expectation that we will enter a third service at some point. This is the why: to make room for more souls (your family, your friends, your neighbors, your co-workers) to come to Jesus.
Pastor Mike and Cindy have stated that their intent is to be here. Although no one wants to limit God, they feel confident that God will allow them to be here to see this through, for the glory of God.
Yes! When you seek God, asking Him to give you a spirit of generosity, and then out of obedience to God sacrificially give, we will certainly see God fulfill this.
The church has voted to sell the property and apply the net proceeds from the sale to Gathering.
The current location is a good location. We are across the street from a major school; we have prospects and homes all around us. God used recent worldwide health events and other things to bring people to FBC Aztec. We worshiped outside for many months, often running about 300 in attendance, and we did not use the North parking lot for parking at all. There was ample peripheral parking. Also, Aztec Public Schools have stated we can use the Park Avenue School for parking.
A concept drawing is included in the Gathering Packet and can be found by clicking here. Detailed drawings will be made available later.
Make a Pledge
I/We have prayerfully considered my/our commitment to the Gathering expansion project and have decided to give the following gift(s) over and above my/our current level of giving during the next three years.
Note: Your commitment is an intention to give. At any time in the three-year period, you may adjust your pledge up or down by calling the church office.
Prayer Guide
Prayer is an intricate part of Gathering. For the first four weeks of Gathering, we invite you to set aside a brief time each day to specifically direct your prayer focus on building a new facility that will be a blessing to our community and a House of Worship that will honor God. The prayer guide contains scripture and a prayer focus for 5 days each week as we seek God’s direction.
Concept Drawing
Click the image to view or download the Concept Drawing. This is a concept drawing of the proposed Worship Center and Offices. This drawing is used to visualize the layout of the building and will change, it is not final.
God Stories
The following are stories of people whom God has “gathered” to our fellowship from the north, south, east, and west. In each of these videos, you will learn how God has miraculously worked in their lives. We all have God Stories to share…what is your God Story?
Mike Colson
Growing up, Mike gave his life to God. He was saved and baptized at age 14. He and his family always went to church, but at some point their church split and they stopped going. Mike did not drink or party in high school but in 2003, he deployed to Iraq and while there, he started drinking. After he came back, he had a drinking problem and had a hard time keeping his life together. Eventually, he met his wife, and they had children. When he left the Navy, he found a job as an Aztec police office, but he still struggled with drinking. In June of 2012, a kid he grew up with committed suicide; Mike was first on the scene. It devastated him and he eventually quit. He did different jobs after that but drinking continued to be an issue. After an incident on his job in November 2020, his drinking got even worse, but…God began to speak to him. He got together with Pastor Mike and some other men, and they walked with him as he slowly came back to a relationship with God.
Gina Carter
Gina grew up in church in Bloomfield. Eventually, after she had grown up, she had a family of her own and moved to Aztec. Gina felt that she needed to find a church home that was hers and not her parents and felt that God wanted her to lead in some way. It turns out that the house she and her husband bought was a block from First Baptist Church, Aztec. After visiting a couple of times, Gina thought, “This is where we need to be.” She started leading a women’s Bible study, then Pastor Mike became pastor at FBCA, and Gina said he has a way of knowing where people belong—completely God-driven for him. He started introducing her, saying, “She heads up our women’s ministry.” And before she knew it, she was indeed leading the women’s ministry at FBCA. God has put on Gina’s heart a passion for seeing women connected to Scripture and to Him.
Walker Moore
Walker Moore recently shared some exciting news! He says that when you step out in faith, God just does things that are incredibly miraculous. Walker’s been working in Ukraine, Panama, Mexico, and Peru, and for about a year now working out of a storage unit. The other day God blessed him with a 1,500 square foot office space at no cost—the people are going to pay for the heating, electricity, the telephone, the wi-fi, everything! It’s five blocks from his house. In the video, Walker takes us through the office space and shows us what God provided—beautiful decorations and desk items, computers, telephones, everything already in place. He has a study office with a stained glass window. There’s even a kitchen and two storage areas—everything came equipped! Walker says, “Where God guides, He provides.” And, “…trust God today…for what you need…being his word and praying…[He will] continue to be faithful.”