Community outreach has always been a core part of Oklahoma Baptist churches. Whether it be food drives, after-school ministries or prayer walks, Oklahoma Baptists will always find a way to love their neighbor. In the past few years, God has enabled Lone Grove, First to increase their community outreach in ways pastor Bill Black never expected.

“We are humbled by where we are at,” he said.

Black had a humble upbringing as the son of an Oklahoma peanut farmer. He was called to ministry while attending East Central University in Ada, where he received a degree in business. After leaving there, he attended Southwestern Seminary to get his master’s degree in divinity. This is also where he met his wife of 30 years, Sandy. Their family now consists of two daughters and a son-in-law.

Black’s first position as a pastor was at a small church in Carson, Okla. Following this he served as pastor for a Southern Baptist church in Denton, Texas for 18 years. In 2012, Black returned to Oklahoma and began serving as pastor at Lone Grove, First.

In 2023, Lone Grove, First began construction on a new church building to provide more space for their growing congregation. Through generous donations and God’s grace, they were able to move into their new building debt free. “We took a step of faith,” said Black. “And right now we are debt free.”

Even with the new space, the church was running out of room for their Sunday morning congregation. Over Labor Day weekend, Black said that there were about 324 people in attendance in Sunday morning worship, not counting those in children’s ministry. “We know two services is in our near future,” Black said.

On Wednesday nights, Lone Grove, First’s focus is on their community, specifically the children’s ministry. Even before Black started as pastor, the church would provide meals for children in need and eventually they would provide meals to the parents as well. During the COVID years, they would send home meal boxes, a practice they had to resume while building the new church building since they had no room for people to sit and eat.

“Our church was our fellowship hall, and we were elbow to elbow there,” said Black. “We went back to that COVID protocol from 2023 until recently with the meals because we didn’t have a place to feed them.”

With all their children’s ministries combined, Lone Grove has the same number of attendees on Wednesday night as they do on Sunday morning.

Additionally, the congregation sets aside a day in the fall to feed the school faculty members, sometimes driving all the way to Moore to get chicken to show that the church members care about them. During this time, the church also asks for the faculty members to write down prayer requests so their congregation can pray for them during the whole school year. At every turn, Black asks what he can do to build connections in his community.

Black believes that this is his calling, to be a pastor at a small-town church where he can interact with the community and build relationships that are difficult to foster in the big city. In addition to serving as pastor at Lone Grove, First, Black also serves as an announcer for Lone Grove High School baseball games and as a chaplain for the fire department.

“I just love being a pastor to the community,” Black said. “Lone Grove was it. It’s growing. The church is growing. Since we’ve opened the doors, we’ve added seven new families to the member’s board.”

In all these things, Black has remained faithful, attributing all the growth and success to the Lord. He acknowledges though that the journey isn’t easy, saying that everyone at Lone Grove, First has made sacrifices and worked very hard to build the church. For all that has been done though to build the church, Black is grateful.

“This is what God has done,” he said. “We are in awe of the goodness of God.”