A Beacon on Northline Road in Taylor
Beacon Baptist Church sits on the north side of Taylor, Michigan, just west of Detroit in the Downriver community. For more than sixty years the church has organized its life around three commitments: to share Jesus, to train disciples, and to serve others. That three-part purpose carries through every program the church offers, from a packed children's ministry to a men's conference that draws men from across southeast Michigan, to a year-round calendar of small-group Bible studies for every age.
A Sixty-Plus-Year Story
The first gathering of what would become Beacon Baptist took place on September 17, 1961, in the YMCA building in neighboring Southgate. By 1963 the small founding congregation had built its first home, a modest auditorium and a few offices, on Northline Road in Taylor. A second building project in 1973 added classrooms and a gymnasium, and a third campaign in 1981 raised the larger auditorium that now serves as the church's main sanctuary. In November of 2000 the congregation moved into the present auditorium that anchors the property today.
Only three senior pastors have served the church. Dr. Herbert Gilbert and his wife Glenda shepherded the church for many years before retiring at the end of 2017. In 2018, Rev. John Reilly, a Michigan native and graduate of Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Missouri, and Liberty University, stepped into the role with his wife Rhonda. The Reileys are Beacon's third pastoral family.
Share Jesus, Train Disciples, Serve Others
The three phrases that open the church's mission statement are an operating plan, not a slogan. Sharing Jesus happens through personal welcome, neighborhood events, and an active online presence. Training disciples runs through Sunday school classes for every age, midweek Bible studies throughout the week, the New Horizons class for students with special needs, and a free streaming library offered to every church family. Serving others is expressed through men's and women's ministries, the Valor men's conference, an annual Trunk-or-Treat for the wider neighborhood, and partnerships with missionaries serving overseas.
Articles of Faith
Beacon holds to a detailed set of twenty doctrinal statements that shape its teaching and practice. The church affirms that the sixty-six books of the Bible are the inspired, God-breathed Word of God and the supreme standard for conduct and belief. It teaches the Trinity: one true God existing in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It confesses that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man, that He was born of a virgin, that He died as a substitutionary sacrifice, that He was buried, rose again on the third day, ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God.
Salvation is described as the free gift of God, received by grace through faith, repentance, and confession of Christ as Lord. The church practices baptism of believers by immersion and observes the Lord's Supper as a solemn occasion of self-reflection that symbolizes Christ's sacrifice. The Articles of Faith also treat marriage as a lifelong union of one man and one woman, identify the Genesis creation account as literal, and assign the Great Commission as the church's central task.
Pastoral Team
Rev. John Reilly leads the church as Senior Pastor. Jared Barringer serves as Worship, Missions, and Outreach Pastor and also directs local, national, and global missions work. Alec Spiegel is the Student Pastor, working with Beacon's middle- and high-school students. Jennie Barringer directs LifeKids. Melissa Hawks leads the Creative Arts team. Josh Hollon serves as a Pastoral Resident. Nick and Elyse Warren joined the staff in June 2025 as Missions Interns, helping with missionary communication and missions projects while they prepare to serve as missionaries in Germany. Rev. Herbert Gilbert continues as Pastor Emeritus.
Sundays and Wednesdays at Beacon
Beacon meets on Sunday mornings at 9:30 a.m. for Sunday school for all ages and at 11:00 a.m. for the main worship service. A midweek service is held on Wednesday evenings at 6:30 p.m. and includes an adult Bible study. From nursery through fifth grade, dedicated children's programming is offered at every gathering so families can worship and study together.
Both the Sunday 11:00 a.m. service and the Wednesday 6:30 p.m. service are streamed live on the church's YouTube channel, and recent services are archived on the Watch page. Visitors are encouraged to fill out a connection form ahead of time so that the welcome team can greet them personally.
Sunday School for Every Stage
Sunday morning at 9:30 is Beacon's largest teaching hour. Adults choose from several classes that meet in different rooms around the building:
- Heritage meets in the Auditorium and is taught by Pastor John Reilly and his wife Rhonda. The class is open to adults of any age and walks through books of the Bible. Audio recordings of recent lessons are posted online for those who miss a week.
- Connection meets in the Chapel and is taught by Bob Hunter. It is the church's longest-running adult class and serves members from a wide range of ages and stages of life.
- Families in Action meets in the Fellowship Hall and is designed for young families, with or without children up through elementary age. Adam and Lori Pew teach the class.
- Radiance meets in the Fellowship Hall at 9:30 on Sunday mornings and is the church's women's class for women of any age. Pam Brown teaches.
- Young Adults United meets at 9:30 in the YAU classroom. Led by Brian and Lisa Maloney, YAU gathers college-age and early-career adults for singing or a game, a greeting and handshake time, and a Bible-based lesson.
LifeKids and New Horizons
LifeKids is Beacon's children's ministry for children from nursery through fifth grade. The classes meet during the 9:30 Sunday school hour, the 11:00 worship service, and the 6:30 Wednesday evening program. Each gathering mixes Bible stories with songs, games, and crafts that connect with children at their level. LifeKids also comes alongside parents with resources that help families continue the lesson at home during the week.
New Horizons is a specialized class that meets during the 9:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Sunday services for children age three through young adults. The class is designed to bring the same Bible teaching to students with special needs in a smaller, more personal setting, and it has been part of Beacon's ministry for years. Families are invited to call ahead of a first visit so the team can be ready to welcome their student.
Revolution: Middle School and High School
Revolution is Beacon's student ministry for grades six through twelve. Middle school and high school meet in separate rooms on the second floor of the church building at 9:30 on Sunday mornings and at 6:30 on Wednesday evenings. Students study the Bible, build community in small groups, and enjoy activities and games that make the church a social hub as well as a teaching center. Revolution keeps its own Instagram and Facebook accounts to share updates with parents and students.
Valor Men's Ministry
Valor is Beacon's men's ministry. All adult men are welcome at the Wednesday evening Bible studies, which begin at 6:30 p.m. through the school year. Studies work through books of the Bible or topics shaped to men's lives, and recordings of recent series are available online. Longer studies on books like Job and Galatians have been posted for ongoing listening.
On the first Saturday of every month, Valor hosts a prayer breakfast at Leon's Family Dining on Telegraph Road in Taylor from 8 to 10 a.m., with food, fellowship, and a brief time of encouragement. The Valor Men's Conference, a one-day fall gathering held at the church, brings in speakers from across the country. The Valor podcast and YouTube channel carry many of the men's lessons in audio and video form.
Women's Ministry and Little Steps Next Steps
Women's ministry at Beacon runs weekly Ladies' Bible Studies on Wednesday evenings at 6:30 p.m. Studies follow a video curriculum and feature teachers such as Lisa Harper, Kelly Minter, Angie Smith, Priscilla Shirer, Blair Linne, and Jennifer Rothschild, with an emphasis on digging into God's Word together and building relationships across generations. The ministry also plans occasional conferences and retreats, often traveling out of state for events featuring national speakers.
Little Steps Next Steps, known as LSNS, is a ministry designed specifically for mothers. Little Steps serves moms with children from conception through kindergarten; Next Steps continues through fifth grade. The group meets during the school year on Wednesday evenings from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., and the church provides childcare for nursery through fifth grade so moms can take an hour of respite, fellowship, and teaching.
Missions: Locally, Nationally, and Globally
Missions are a defining part of Beacon's identity. The Articles of Faith treat the Great Commission as the church's central task, and the church supports missionaries and projects across the United States and abroad. Missionaries and ministries serving in Brazil, Bolivia, and Nepal are part of Beacon's regular partnership circle, along with ministries such as Freeway Ministries in Fort Worth, Texas.
Each fall the church sets aside a full Missions Emphasis Week. Sunday evenings feature a missionary documentary; the Wednesday evening Bible study hour hosts missionaries who share in adult classes; Thursday evening is set aside as a worship and prayer night that focuses on the work of these missionaries; and the closing Sunday features missionary guests in both morning services. The week closes with a fellowship dinner for the whole church.
Beacon's Missions Interns, Nick and Elyse Warren, are working toward becoming missionaries to Germany. Church members pray for the Warrens and other missionaries throughout the year and stay connected through the church's missionary communication program.
RightNow Media and GriefShare
Beacon provides its members with a free RightNow Media account. RightNow Media is a streaming library of more than twenty thousand Bible study videos for children, youth, parents, couples, and adults. Studies cover parenting, marriage, doctrine, and books of the Bible, with discussion guides available for personal or small-group use. Members can sign up and watch on phones, tablets, computers, or televisions.
GriefShare is a thirteen-week grief support program held on Thursday evenings during the fall session. The gatherings are open to anyone in the community who has lost a loved one. Study guides are available at the first session.
The Valor Conference and Trunk-or-Treat
Two annual events shape the church's outreach calendar. The Valor Men's Conference each November draws men from across the region for teaching, worship, and small-group breakout sessions. Recent conferences have featured speakers like Ken Bevel of Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia, who is widely known for his roles in the films "Fireproof" and "Courageous," along with breakouts led by pastors from across southeast Michigan.
Trunk-or-Treat opens the Beacon parking lot to families from the neighborhood on the Saturday before Halloween. Children visit decorated trunks for candy, enjoy a petting farm and pony rides, sample donuts, cider, popcorn, and cotton candy, and spend an evening in a safe, family-friendly setting with their church friends.
Plan a Visit
Beacon Baptist Church is located at 21721 Northline Road in Taylor, Michigan. Sunday school begins at 9:30 a.m. and the worship service at 11:00 a.m. The midweek service and Bible study meet on Wednesday evenings at 6:30. Both Sunday worship and the Wednesday service are livestreamed online. Childcare is provided for nursery through fifth grade at every service.
The church office is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and can be reached at (734) 287-3090 or at info@thebeaconbaptist.com. Visitors can plan a visit so that the welcome team can say hello in person.