Where in the world is Enid, Oklahoma? And why would someone from just outside New York City want to come to the Bible Belt to preach the gospel? But paradoxes are what we are all about here in the Midwest—trying to eke out an existence in an area dominated by free-will believers, much like the fiddler on the proverbial roof.

Almost two decades ago, Bruce Parnell had a desire to plant a church. The people in Stillwater, Okla., called him and his family to come to that church plant. His emphasis has been on expanding the kingdom wherever he happens to be. So in Stillwater his people ministered to American students at Oklahoma State University and the foreign students as well.

The Lord continued to fan that desire into flame. So it would be natural for the Stillwater church and elders to want to reach out to the military—particularly the Air Force pilot training base in Enid. They asked one of the members who drove the hour-long distance from Enid if he and his family wanted to have a Bible study in his home on Sunday night. The natural thoughts of “hey, what’s in it for me?” were quickly overcome by the opportunity to put childish ways behind and focus on building the kingdom. That was four and half years ago.

The Bible study has been small but consistently attended over those four-and-a-half years. The mother church has provided the requisite “rent-a-crowd” to make it look like a full house, but there have been other stalwarts. A few die-hard student pilots have always been there, going against the grain and attending something other than a discussion group with a “facilitator.” But there are still even younger people who want a good, solid Bible study and are willing to sacrifice to get it. Although they normally stay at the base for only a year, they transfer with a reference point of what a good Bible study should look like.

Now that Bible study has moved to the next level and become a church plant. Noah Bailey is the new pastor. Fresh out of RPTS, he still has the “new-pastor smell” about him, but you would be wrong to gain an initial opinion on that alone. He is well versed in the Scriptures and powerfully preaches the Word of God, in spite of his abrupt Northeast exterior. His preaching series on the Psalms has demonstrated the Christ-centeredness of the Old Testament.

In the past six months he graduated, uprooted his family (his wife, Lydia, and three young children with another one on the way), transplanted them in the heart of quite a different culture from the Big Apple and, under the direction of the Stillwater elders and Bruce especially, has begun a regular church service with a Bible study and a weekly prayer meeting.

Noah has always had a heart to plant churches. He even commented to some in the congregation, “Don’t be offended if, in a few years, I want to go out and plant another church.” That naturally made some of the people nervous, but it shows a heart to begin new works for the glory of the Lord. A congregation could not ask for more in a church plant. Our congregation is comprised of four families and four singles now. Three of the families are Air Force or retired Air Force. Three of the families have young children; we have just baptized our newest member, born on Nov. 27. One of the singles is currently going through pilot training, one awaits training, and one is a teacher at the local Christian grade school.

The members of the Bible study have gone out into the Air Force flying various airframes. One is currently deployed to Qatar, dropping bombs in Afghanistan; one is instructing in the C-17 in the Northwest and traveling around the world. One is flying air refuelers; one is flying the biggest aircraft in the Air Force inventory, the C-5. One is living in far-off England flying the F-15E, also known as the Strike Eagle. They are all over the United States and the world defending our country against terrorists. This worldwide breadth shows the scope of the ministry of the church here.

The Word instructs us not to despise the day of small things. The mustard seed serves as an effective symbol for us as we begin this work. The Lord will not forsake His people or His promises, and we are trusting in those and not in ourselves as we put our hands to the plow. Please pray for us and for God’s kingdom work here on earth.

—Bill Wagner

Bill is a retired lieutenant colonel in the Air Force. He is a seminary student and an elder-in-training for the Enid RPC, having previously attended Stillwater RPC. A home missions article appears semiannually in the Witness. If you have an idea for a home missions article, contact Sue Wilkey at sswilkey@gmail.com.