Trinity RPC

Location: Beltsville, Md.

Presbytery: Alleghenies

Organized: Feb. 1990

Membership: 78 communicant, 31 baptized (includes 12 communicant and 4 baptized in Harper’s Ferry)

Pastors: Steve Bradley (senior), Kent Butterfield (associate)

Web Site: www.trinityrpc.org

Our History

In the mid-1980s, a group of Covenanters embarked on a mission to establish Reformed Presbyterian churches in the Washington, D.C., area. Harold Hutcheson and Brad Stewart lived in the area and worshiped at a local church. Randy Van Osdol moved to the area as a tentmaking pastor. Ken A. Smith entered a doctoral degree program at the University of Maryland. This group of men and their families began meeting for Bible studies in hotels and a public school. Local residents and a number of new Geneva College graduates later joined the work, and the Trinity RPC was officially established in 1990 with Randy Van Osdol as the first pastor. A few years later, a second congregation, Anchor Fellowship RPC, was established in Waldorf, Md.

By the mid-1990s several of the early members had moved out of the area, and Trinity RPC was without a pastor. While this was a discouraging time, the congregation was blessed by the ministry and encouragement of men from the Pittsburgh area who came to fill the pulpit. Then Pastor Bob McCracken and his wife, Lynn, served the church from 1994 until his retirement in 2000. During this time, the congregation began Bible studies in northern Virginia with the intent of starting another church.

Today, the congregation continues to worship in the public school, located 20 miles northeast of the nation’s capital. Steve Bradley now serves the congregation as senior pastor. Kent Butterfield, the associate pastor, ministers to the Shenandoah Valley RPC, the northern Virginia church plant that recently relocated to Harper’s Ferry, W.V.

Our Ministry

The primary ministry of the congregation is through worship on the Lord’s Day. A secondary ministry is the study of biblical doctrine in weekly Sabbath school classes and a monthly Calvin’s Institutes class. Many in the congregation are new to Reformed theology, and these times of worship and study on the Lord’s Day provide opportunities for both spiritual and intellectual growth. A prayer meeting is also held midweek.

Initially, the church was primarily comprised of families with young children. As the children have grown older, they have begun to participate in the youth ministries of the denomination, including the Alleghenies Presbytery youth retreats, Presbytery Youth Leadership Team, Theological Foundations for Youth program, and short-term RP missions. Various members also provide opportunities for fellowship by hosting dinners, game nights, trips to local attractions, and weekend retreats.

Because several families travel over an hour to attend worship services, individuals typically minister in the context of their local communities rather than in church-sponsored activities. Some have adopted children; others regularly visit local nursing homes. The church plant hosts a Bible school each summer, with some of the youth from the Trinity RPC spending the week there to assist them.

Fun Fact

Trinity is home to the founders of www.rpcnayouth.com.

Prayer Requests

1. Pray for God’s leading in the work of the Shenandoah Valley RPC.

2. Pray that God would provide deacons for the church.

3. Pray for God’s direction in finding land or a church building to purchase.

4. Pray for the congregation as they seek to know and minister to one another better.