Discipleship at the Heart of Pascagoula
Arlington Baptist Church is located at 2101 Market Street in Pascagoula, Mississippi. For years, the congregation has been known as warm and loving, bringing together people of various ages, backgrounds, colors, and cultures around one shared heart and purpose. Its central work is stated plainly: make disciples of Jesus Christ. Arlington calls the local church a “disciple making factory,” where faithfulness grows and the glory of God is promoted in Jesus Christ.
The church's mission is “to glorify God by making disciples in all nations.” Its vision is for God's glory to be known, experienced, and made known by every human heart. Disciple making is the central function of the local church, and the people of Arlington are disciples who are making disciples through Christ-centered fellowship. The vision begins in homes and neighborhoods before extending outward with the Gospel message.
Sunday: Learning Together, Then Worshiping Together
Sunday begins at 9:15 a.m. with Sunday School for students through adults. Age-based classes study the Bible, pray together, and cultivate Christian friendship. These classes are for renewing the mind, growing in understanding of Holy Scripture, and learning practical Christian living. Greeters are ready to help newcomers find their way, and Sunday School also serves as a natural place to meet other Christians.
Morning worship follows at 10:30 a.m. in the auditorium. The service joins prayer, Scripture reading, congregational singing, and preaching of the Word in the power of the Holy Spirit. Arlington seeks to worship as the Bible instructs. During the service, children from pre-K through first grade are welcome in Children's Church.
Families may keep their children with them during worship. A cry room is available at the back of the sanctuary, while volunteers care for children in the nursery during the morning service. The nursery is in the Children's wing of the Education Building.
Wednesday Evenings Put the Whole Church to Work
Wednesday gathers the church around a shared meal at 5:00 p.m., except in summer. Three groups then meet at 6:00 p.m. Children have Adventure Club and Children's Choir, adults have prayer meeting and small groups, and students meet for Student Bible Study and worship. Small groups are emphasized in the spring and fall. Students gather in the student room for fellowship, small-group Bible study, and prayer, while adults spend the same hour in prayer and group fellowship.
From 7:00 to 8:15 p.m., the choir and band rehearse in the sanctuary. The children's choir meets at 6:00 p.m. The worship ministry is open to anyone from sixth grade through adulthood, welcomes all skill levels, and requires neither prior experience nor an audition. Childcare is provided during rehearsal.
Children's World, Adventure Club, and Trail Life
Children's Ministry is built to serve parents and help them raise children for God's glory. At 9:15 Sunday morning, children meet in Children's World for Bible lessons in age-specific classes from kindergarten through fifth grade. Adventure Kids, the program named Adventure Club in the Wednesday schedule, centers on Bible memorization and teaching children the truth of God's Word in a fun, meaningful way. Its groups are Trackers for pre-K, Scouts for kindergarten through second grade, and Trailblazers for third through fifth grade.
Trail Life USA adds a weekly, hands-on dimension for boys. Meetings are held outside whenever possible and center on outdoor skills, life skills, heritage, hobbies, values, science and technology, and sports and fitness. The activities are designed to develop character, deepen faith, and hone practical skills through hiking, camping, fishing, tree climbing, storytelling, and campfires. Summer Vacation Bible School is another recurring part of children's ministry for children who have completed kindergarten through fifth grade.
The children's volunteer team serves in the nursery throughout the morning worship service. The nursery, cry room, Children's Church, and age-graded classes give parents several ways to include children in congregational life. For families who prefer a quieter option during the 10:30 service, the nursery places care in the hands of volunteers in the Children's wing.
At 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, children's Adventure Club and choir meet as part of the full evening schedule. Adventure Club focuses on Scripture memory and the truths of God's Word, while choir gives children a place to participate musically in worship. The overall worship ministry welcomes sixth graders through adults without requiring an audition.
Students, Seniors, and Women at Their Own Pace
Student Ministry exists to support parents as they seek to raise young adults to be men and women of God. The group meets for fun, fellowship, Bible study, and worship. On Sunday mornings at 9:15, students meet in the student room for Sunday School. Wednesday at 6:00 p.m., they return for age-specific fellowship, small-group Bible study, and prayer.
Senior Adults meet for Sunday School at the same Sunday morning hour and also gather for social events each month. Arlington's senior adults are an active group who love Jesus, love his Word, and enjoy passing stories of God's faithfulness to the next generation. Their participation in regular study and monthly gatherings keeps them connected to the church's life across generations.
Women's Ministry brings together several recurring forms of gathering: an annual Ladies Tea, a women's conference, Bible studies, and Sunday School classes. These activities give women regular opportunities to study, fellowship, and serve alongside the rest of the congregation.
Every Member Belongs to a Deacon Family
Each church member is placed under the care of an ordained deacon. A deacon serves the church by supporting and caring for a deacon family through prayer, encouragement, and help in times of spiritual and physical need. Deacons also care for people who are sick and for widows and homebound members. Every member therefore has an ordained deacon assigned to support and serve that family.
Worship Defined by Truth Rather Than One Style
Arlington deliberately avoids making musical style the definition of worship. Its priority is the theological truth carried in song: whether the church sings choruses or hymns, the music should teach the truths of the Bible and direct praise to God. The Worship Ministry is made up of men, women, and children who serve by singing, playing instruments, acting, speaking, and creating. Its purposes include leading corporate worship, growing in Christ, inspiring others, building supportive lifelong relationships, honing creative abilities, and serving through mission trips and other events.
The Sunday worship is led by a choir and band made up of volunteers. Sermons are also available through the church's YouTube sermon channel. Rehearsal takes place Wednesday night in the sanctuary, with the children's choir meeting earlier at 6:00 p.m. and the full choir and band rehearsing from 7:00 to 8:15 p.m. Participation is open from sixth grade through adulthood, with all skill levels welcome and no audition required. The emphasis remains on God speaking through his Word and the congregation responding through prayer and songs of praise.
Discover Arlington: Lunch, Questions, and a Place to Serve
Discover Arlington is a class for people interested in membership. It takes place after the morning worship service and includes lunch, an explanation of what membership means at Arlington Baptist Church, time for questions, and ways to plug in and serve. The class is designed both for those ready to explore church membership and for those seeking to understand how the congregation works. The church office is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; its listed phone is 228-769-2789 and its email is office@growatarlington.com.
From Pascagoula to Alaska, Uganda, and El Salvador
Arlington ties missions closely to Southern Baptist life. A percentage of weekly tithes and three annual special offerings support more than 6,000 Southern Baptist missionaries serving around the world. The church's missionary house has also served through the decades as a place for missionaries to stay while home on furlough. A percentage of the church budget is set aside for sending mission teams, so support includes both funding missionaries and going to serve.
Mission outreach begins close to home. Arlington organizes neighborhood Vacation Bible School throughout Pascagoula, seeking to invite neighbors to experience Jesus Christ. The church also partners each summer with a missionary in Alaska who leads a sports evangelism camp centered on soccer and basketball. In El Salvador, teams work with Pastor Omar Claros in Morazan, training local churches in Vacation Bible School and taking part in door-to-door evangelism.
Uganda has been part of Arlington's mission story for years through IMB missionaries George and Geraldine Smith. Multiple teams from Arlington have traveled there, and the congregation regards the connection with them as one of the great blessings of its missionary house.
This combination of regular giving, a missionary home, neighborhood outreach, and teams traveling abroad gives missions both a daily and a sent shape at Arlington. The Great Commission begins at home, where evangelism and outreach are to occur in the day-to-day lives of members, and then extends to every corner of the city and the wider world.
Giving Directed to Its Intended Purpose
Online giving is available through give online. Arlington requests that donations use an ACH bank draft rather than a debit card because debit-card transaction fees are much higher. The church does not accept gifts via credit card. This preference is intended to direct as much of each donation as possible to its intended purpose.
Baptist Faith, Held Locally and in Partnership
Arlington holds to a set of essential Baptist beliefs. The Bible is inspired by God, free from error, infallible, and sufficient, and is the rule of faith and practice in the church. God is one eternal God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The church affirms the full deity and humanity of Jesus Christ, including his virgin birth, sinless life, substitutionary death, bodily resurrection, ascension, and return in power and glory.
Salvation is available to sinners by grace alone, through faith alone, in the finished work of Jesus Christ alone. The Holy Spirit indwells every believer at conversion, enabling obedience, spiritual growth, and eternal perseverance. The universal church consists of all the redeemed throughout space and time, and commitment to the local church is necessary for spiritual health.
Baptist baptism is understood as the immersion of born-again believers in water in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It outwardly displays death to the old self and new life in Christ. Arlington is autonomous, yet it voluntarily associates, partners with, and supports the Southern Baptist Convention, the Mississippi Baptist Convention, and the Jackson County Baptist Association. It is in agreement with the Baptist Faith and Message 2000.
Arlington Baptist Church's identity is found in this whole pattern: disciples made in classrooms, homes, and small groups; worship that gives God preeminence; deacons who serve families; children and students taught in their own settings; and missionaries sent from a community rooted at 2101 Market Street. The Sunday rhythm of 9:15 a.m. Sunday School and 10:30 a.m. worship anchors a church life that stretches through the week and outward through mission.