From a Bar to a Baptist Church

By Tim Vermilyea

The province of Quebec is among the most needy mission fields in the world. Because of its proximity to the United States, people tend to overlook its spiritual darkness, yet statistics show that only about half of 1% of the population are true believers in Jesus Christ.

In the fall of 1990, Barb and I began Wednesday evening meetings in the town of Pont-Rouge, about 20 miles west of Quebec city. The meetings were held in a home with 20 people attending. In January 1991 a Sunday evening service was started, and by the following September, a morning service was added.

Since the summer of 1991, the church has met in a small basement apartment. For the last six years, we have actively sought a location-either a building or a piece of property-for a permanent home. Our efforts have been thwarted several times because of zoning regulations which seemed to permit anything BUT a church building.

In December 1998, God directed us to a building in the center of town. No "For Sale" sign was posted, so we had not been aware the building was available. A sign saying that the property had been a BAR, however, was visible. Not only is the building strategically located, it has the same zoning as the town's Roman Catholic church.

Discussions, prayer, church business meetings, and more prayer led the congregation of Eglise Evangélique Baptiste de Pont-Rouge to a monumental decision. On March 26, 1999 the bar was no more, and the transformation process began.

We have experienced setbacks such as structural problems, missed deadlines for steel and concrete contracts, but the project is moving forward. We have hosted workteams from Southgate Baptist Church, Springfield, Ohio; First Baptist Church, Johnson City, New York; and Emmanuel Baptist Church, Toledo, Ohio. The ABWE PACE program provided $20,000, and an additional $10,000 has been given for the renovation.

A new and permanent home for our church, which now averages 50 to 60 people, is a great answer to prayer. The ministry opportunities the new location provides are even more exciting.