New Multipurpose building gives kids their own “church” at the First Christian Church of Cimarron

The youth membership at Cimarron’s First Christian Church has been increasing recently under the direction of youth pastor Gary Bailey and the church decided that it was time to give them their very own building.

So, following pastor David Johnson’s philosophy of “Do God’s will and he will take care of things,” the church set out to explore building a youth and multipurpose building for the church.

Pastor Johnson said that the idea started when the church body decided to serve the community and made the decision to grow. As with any major project, some members of the church questioned the addition at first, but they have now turned around their attitude as the challenges have been met. Pastor Johnson added, “And we’ve grown closer during the process.”

The 60-or-so young people needed room and facilities to gather and worship, and now they have it with the recently completed addition to the church. It is more than just an entertainment facility. It’s a complete church inside the church for pre-school through high school students. They presently meet Sundays for Sunday School and church and Wednesday evenings. Pastor Bailey said, “We wanted the building to be relevant and interesting and to keep the kids involved and teach them responsibility.”  Since the church serves communion at every service, Gary added, “even the kids serve communion to their own members.” He went on to add, “We want the kids to learn to be involved in the church so they will be ready when they grow up.”

The new facility encompasses approximately 7,000 square feet and includes rooms so that each age group from pre-school to high school has their own complete area. As you enter the facility from the main church, the walls are actually “chalk boards” so the young people can express themselves for everyone to see.

The two largest rooms are the “Teenage Worship Room” and “Multipurpose Center.” The teenage worship room allows the young people to enjoy their own youth band without disturbing the “older folks.” The room also includes complete audio and video facilities.

The multipropose room is large enough for games such as dodge-ball, but can also be used for church-wide dinners. Located next to this room is a complete café and kitchen area.

Pastor Johnson has been with the church since 2006 and he brought Gary Bailey on-board as youth pastor in January 2014. Gary had previously served as a traveling missionary where he worked primarily with youth and summer camps, so his background aided him in developing the youth ministry for the church.

As the church looks at the outreach opportunities for the new facility, some ideas under development include providing 5th quarter programs during football season, an after-school program, community-wide concerts and nights of worship for the young people.

Pastor Johnson noted that taking on such a financial responsibility was no small matter for the church, but many of the items were donated to the church. He said, “We’ve got many more plans and ideas for the facility, but it’s OK if God changes or adds to these plans.” He said that the other Cimarron churches have been very supportive of the new facility.

The First Christian Church of Cimarron is located at 302 N. Main in Cimarron. If you would like more information about their youth program, give pastor Gary Bailey a call at 620-855-3311.