Two Conway preachers praying for different needs got just what they wanted by joining together.
Cornerstone Bible Church pastor Mike Ford and his congregation had prayed for years for an infusion of new members; The Summit Church in Conway’s lead pastor, Kyle Reno, and his team had prayed for months to find a building for its new location.
The Conway pastors’ prayers were answered in a way that surprised them both.
Cornerstone Bible Church simply gave its debt-free, 41-year-old church to the new kid on the block, and its members were absorbed by The Summit.
“It’s very unheard of, very unheard of,” Reno said.
“It came out of left field. I say out of left field — we know it was divine intervention,” Ford said.
The 50-year-old Ford, recently retired from Acxiom Corp., had been a member of Cornerstone Bible Church on Dave Ward Drive for about seven years and had been lead pastor for the past five.
Membership was stagnant. “It had been flat for a long time. It’s an older congregation; we didn’t have any kids, any small children. When I got there, my three kids were the only ones,” he said. “Since I’ve been there, it’s fluctuated anywhere from 30 to 40 [members].”
The faithful flock had a great attitude, Ford said.
“As long as three years ago, we had a few of us from Cornerstone really just begin to pray, ‘Look, we don’t get it,’” Ford said, laughing. “The facilities are great, and the facility will accommodate 300 people comfortably, and there we are with 30 to 40 people week after week.”
The church participated in outreach projects, hoping for a revival. The thought was, “We just haven’t quite hit it, yet. God’s going to bless us. It’s just never taken off.”
While the Cornerstone congregation was praying and waiting for an answer, The Summit core team was looking all over Conway for a building. Small groups had been meeting for a year in various homes, Reno said.
The Summit started 16 years ago in North Little Rock, and a lot of families from Conway were driving to church there, Reno said. The 34-year-old Reno became part of a team to plant The Summit Church in Conway.
“We had looked for months and months and months,” Reno said. “There were opportunities, but everything was too expensive and limited in space. We couldn’t find an open door from the Lord for months.”
Jerene Marable, who had previously attended Cornerstone Bible Church, had a daughter, Ginger Johnson, on The Summit’s core team. Marable told her daughter to suggest that the two preachers meet.
Ford said the former member of his church was still involved in a prison ministry that Cornerstone supports.
“She knew it was an aging congregation,” Reno said of Marable. “[Cornerstone members] had an incredible kingdom heart. The cool part of the story is their group at Cornerstone is praying, ‘Lord, fill this house’; we’re praying, ‘Lord, give us a place to gather.’ Those prayers collided in heaven.”
Reno called Bill Elliff, directional pastor at The Summit in Little Rock, and they met with Ford at a Conway restaurant.
“It just clicked; it was great,” Ford said.
Starting in September, Cornerstone Bible Church let The Summit Church share its building at 1905 Dave Ward Drive. At first, The Summit Church held worship services at Cornerstone Bible Church after the latter held its services.
Ford said the church had a history of letting community groups, such as the Girl Scouts, use its facility.
“They started with 80, 90, 100 members,” Ford said of The Summit. “Their growth was explosive and immediate. We were just excited to see them doing so well. They grew like crazy, and then it became pretty obvious they had to go to two services,” Ford said.
Ford said he suggested the Cornerstone congregation move to the Fellowship Hall.
“We said, ‘Hey, this is kind of crazy. We can move 30 people back there.’ They were very appreciative,” he said of The Summit members. They built a stage for Cornerstone and set up audiovisual equipment in the Fellowship Hall.
“Before you know it, our relationship just got stronger and stronger and stronger,” Reno said. “Mike and I and their leadership said, ‘God’s got something stronger. I think the Lord’s making us family.’”
Ford said The Summit was doing all the things his church had wanted to do.
“Then it became pretty obvious — you know what, they’re the happening thing here. I’m not trying to build an empire or anything; let’s just throw over to them — turn it over to them and join with them,” he said.
Cornerstone’s building was paid for. “That’s the real blessing that made it so cool and made it work out,” Ford said. “Faithful people years ago that got it paid off; we were able to just deed it over to [The Summit] and say, ‘It’s yours now.’”
The celebration of becoming one church was held April 19.
“It gives Cornerstone a gracious way to leave a legacy instead of it coming down to a financial decision: What do we do?” Ford said. “Wow, we get to just fold right into them, and away we go.”
Ford said he’s never heard of such a transaction between two churches.
“Never. It just doesn’t happen. That’s unique. Usually churches go the other way; they get to squabbling, and they split,” Ford said.
Reno agreed: “Unless there’s just a kingdom heart and a desire for the future, this doesn’t happen,” he said.
Ford took a part-time staff position at The Summit Church; he’s the pastor of spiritual formation, and Reno said some remodeling is planned for the building.
“As blessed as we are, with the facilities, we were more excited about the people. … There’s an awesome maturity and love for Christ,” Reno said.
On a recent Sunday, attendance was 408, kids and all.
Prayers answered.
Senior writer Tammy Keith can be reached at (501) 327-0370 or tkeith@arkansasonline.com.