CHURCH  History

In June of 1903, five girls met with their teacher, W.S. Farmer and formulated the Philathea Class of First Baptist Church.  Realizing the spiritual needs of the people who lived in the Wilkinson Street area, the Philathea Class bought a lot on Wilkinson Street.  They sold 1,000 shares of stock at $1.00 each and built a 24 X 30 foot building in which they started a Sunday School.  This was the first regular religious service held in that section.  It is interesting to note that the first Sunday School classes were held on Sunday afternoons.

The Sunday School grew, and it became necessary to enlarge the building.  In
March 1920, this task was completed.  Worship services were later added, and
the church became known as First Baptist Chapel of Frankfort, Kentucky, a mission of First Baptist Church.  It was often called by the name Baptist Mission.

Some of the early pastors of the First Baptist Chapel were Rev. Fulton, Rev. George Redding, Rev. Hugh Shelton, Rev. Elroy Lamb and Rev. Herman Marx.
Rev. Marx was ordained in 1948 and served as pastor until 1968.

Due to road construction necessary for a four lane highway, it became necessary to tear down the First Baptist Chapel building on Wilkinson Street.  The members met at the Wilkinson Street School for a period of time.  In 1967, the congregation of the First Baptist Chapel decided to become an independent and self-supporting church.

On March 14, 1967, a meeting was held at the Wilkinson Street School for the purpose of organizing a church.  The following three trustees were chosen: Harry True, Chairman, Norman Sallee and Kenneth Rayborn.  Nine names were suggested for the church, with Faith Baptist Church finally being chosen.

Other officers elected at that time were: Vernon Jones, Moderator, Danny Collett – Assistant Moderator, Frances West – Treasurer and Nancy Rayborn – Church Clerk. Rev. Herman Marx was the first pastor of Faith Baptist Church.

The Faith Baptist Church was constituted as First Baptist Church on July 30, 1967, with seventy (70) charter members.  The following deacons were ordained at that time: Vernon Jones, Chairman, Danny Collett, Jesse Hedges, Harry True and Kenneth Rayborn.

Plans were made to build on Old Harrodsburg Road on Colon Jones’ property; however, this did not materialize.

Due to ill health, Rev. Herman Marx, was forced to resign in December of 1968, effective January 1, 1969.

The work of the Lord went on, and on March 5, 1969, the church voted to buy property in Bridgeport. Property was purchased on April 5, 1969 through the generosity of one of the church members, Frances West.  The property purchased was a house and lot.  The house was used for the sanctuary and Sunday School.

The first prayer service was held in the building on April 30, 1969, with the first Sunday worship service being held on May 4, 1969.  Rev. Jerry Barker was called as pastor in August 1969.

Construction was begun on the new church building in the summer of 1969.  Once again, the congregation had to remember what the name of our church implied, as on Friday, October 31, 1969, the church building under construction collapsed while shingles were being put on the roof.

Our hearts were saddened by the death of our former pastor, Rev. Herman Marx on October 27, 1970. He had labored faithfully in the work of the Lord at the Chapel for over twenty years.

Rev. Jerry Barker resigned in August of 1971 to accept the call to Panther Creek Baptist Church in Owensboro, Kentucky.

The Faith Baptist Church building was completed in the summer of 1971.  Dedication service was held on August 29, 1971, at 2:30 p.m. with Dr. George Redding as guest speaker.

Rev. David Royalty was called as pastor in August 1971.  The first Roll Call Service and Homecoming was held in the new building on September 26, 1971, with 31 members answering the Roll Call.  Rev. David Royalty was the speaker.  Rev. Royalty resigned as pastor in July of 1972.

In September of 1972, Rev. Elmer N. Lee was called as pastor of Faith Baptist Church.

The church debt was paid off and a note burning service was held on March 2, 1975.

Dwight Parker was hired as Minister of Youth, effective July 20, 1975, and served until May 16, 1976.

Rev. Lee resigned on December 12, 1976, effective January 9, 1977, to accept the pastorate of Marathon Baptist Church in Marathon, Florida.

Rev. Robert G. Cook was called as pastor of Faith Baptist Church on February 23, 1977.   He began his work as pastor on February 27, 1977.

Barry Marston was ordained as deacon on March 27, 1977. Homecoming and Roll Call Service was held on September 11, 1977.

Robert Proctor resigned as Youth Director to accept the pastorate of Mt. Carmel Baptist Church in April 1978 and Mark Coldiron was called to replace him.  Mr. Coldiron served until July 15, 1979.

Robert Proctor was ordained into the gospel ministry in May 1978.
A big step was taken by the congregation when in July 1978, additional land and a vacant building was purchased from George Gaines.
In August of 1978, the church auditorium was renovated. New light fixtures were installed, the interior painted, and paneling was added.
August 1979 was an important month for our church as we a participated in a yard sale and walk-a-thon for our building fund. The yard sale raised over $300 and the walk-a-thon over $2,000. As a result of these activities, the church was able to pay off debt on the property purchased in 1978. A note burning service was held on Sunday, September 16th on Homecoming and Roll Call Day.
In September 1979, the church voted to get an estimate on building a concrete block sanctuary 40 ft. x 80 ft. This was later changed to a frame building.
Our building program was the highlight of the 1979-80 church year. The church originally voted to build on the site of the Sunday School building, which they wanted to sell with the understanding that the buyer would move it. It was later discovered that the house could not be moved because of obstacles. It was then that the church decided to build the educational wing on the sanctuary.
The contract was awarded on May 7, 1980, to Mr. James Norton to construct this new addition, as well as remodeling the pulpit and choir area. Construction began on July 9, 1980.
Bricking the entire building and installing central air conditioning was also included in the contract.
The church members also paneled and decorated the front of the
Sunday School building.

On Saturday, July 19, 1980. Mrs. Adah Marx. wife of our former pastor, Herman Marx, passed away.
A dedication Service for the new Educational wing was held on September 21, 1980, in conjunction with Homecoming and Roll Call Day.
A church steeple was erected and a Church Steeple Dedication Service was held on November 2, 1980. The church steeple was donated by Joe Yancey.

The church Constitution and By-Laws were adopted by the church on February 27, 1981.
Rev. Robert Cook resigned as pastor in July of 1981 and moved to Georgia, where he accepted the pastorate of Double Heads Baptist Church.
Rev. Victor Johnson was called as pastor of Faith Baptist Church effective November 1, 1981.

In March of 2006 the church voted to hire Joe Oney to replace Bill Draper as our Youth Minister. He remained in that position until December 6, 2006, at which time the Youth Program was temporarily suspended.
In April of 2006 the church voted to allow Faith Hall to be used as the Bridgeport Voting Precinct.
On September 28, 2008, Bill Nelson and Ed Whittaker were ordained as deacons. Don Brewer was installed as deacon at this time.
In December of 2010, our Youth Program was re-established and Jody Short was called as our new Youth Pastor. His wife, Charity, will be assisting him.
In September of 2011, the church voted on the cost and a contractor for having the parking lot paved. The actual paving was done in October of 2011. The money which Mrs. Hazel Buffin had donated covered a large portion of the cost of the parking lot pavement.
The church voted to build additional classroom space by expanding Faith Hall. A contractor was hired and construction began on June 6, 2011.  A new entrance and a drive through portico were also built. The entire
construction project was paid for from the church’s building fund. The project was completed and used for the first time on Homecoming Sunday, October 16, 2011.
On March 4, 2012, Jody Short was ordained into the Gospel Ministry. On April 22, 2012, Kenny Hall and Jeff Harrod were ordained as deacons. Jack Lee and Frank Wagoner were installed as deacons at this time.
On Wednesday night, January 8, 2014, the congregation began coming into the church for prayer meeting only to find that the sprinkler system had frozen and burst. The entry way received the most damage and had to have new dry wall, light fixtures, pictures and carpeting. The entire church building was flooded and all of the carpet had to be replaced. The kitchen floor also had to be taken up and replaced. Kenny Hall, a deacon of our church, contracted to remove and replace damage done by the flooding. Many of the church members worked to help with this effort. The church did not miss a worship service. Under Kenny’s leadership, the work was completed by the end of April.

A special thank you from the Pastor to all those who worked so hard. Once again,  Faith lived up to her name and the Lord brought good from bad.
On August 31, 2014, Jason Colston and David Morrow, Jr. were ordained as deacons.
On March 8, 2015, Jody and Charity Short resigned as Youth and Children’s Minister, effective March 29, 2015. The church had a reception on March 22, 2015 in honor of their ministry at Faith. We pray for them in their new calling at Glens Creek Baptist Church.
Over the years, God has blessed Faith Baptist Church in many ways. He has blessed Her with many changes in the facilities, but more importantly, in the salvation of the souls. He has saved through the preaching of His Word by the church. It is those victories that we celebrate as we look at the numerical growth God has blessed Faith with. As of April 1, 2015, our membership is 615, each number representing a soul God has saved and placed in His Family at Faith. May our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ continue to bless Faith Baptist Church to the praise of His Glory.
In January of 2015, the church voted to have a website built with information regarding the church, the meeting times and activities. A committee was appointed and met for several months to assist in the design of the website. Roger Barkley of Barkley Music and Media was selected to build the website and it was completed and opened for viewing in June of 2015. The website is www.faithbaptistfrankfort.org.
On May 7, 2015 the church had a security system installed covering all classrooms, the parking lot, Faith Hall, the church entry and the white building.
In August of 2015, new windows were installed in Faith Hall and the Sunday School rooms.
The year 2016 was a year of sadness and of great joy. In February, we lost one of our deacons, Kenny Hall, to cancer. Kenny was a tremendous asset to the church and will be greatly missed.
In April our pastor, Brother Everett Hawkins, was diagnosed with cancer and  underwent treatment for several months. In his absence, Brother Tom Hall filled in as interim pastor. Brother Tom was a real blessing to the congregation and helped the church keep our spirits up and our faith strong.

During the January 8, 2023 service, the pulpit committee recommended Joshua Rayborn as the next Senior Pastor of Faith Baptist church with call weekend being on January 21 and 22.  Josh had the opportunity to meet the congregation on Saturday, January 21 during several meetings throughout the day.  Brother Josh preached the morning and evening services on Sunday, January 22.
Faith Baptist Church unanimously voted Brother Josh Rayborn as the next pastor during the service on Sunday, January 29 with him taking the  position as Senior Pastor on Sunday, March 12.