Bethlehem Baptist Church sits on West Broad Street in Mansfield, Texas, and has been a fixed presence in the city for more than 150 years. The congregation was organized in 1870 by Rev. Green Medlin and has met on the same stretch of road ever since, moving from Brush Arbor and home gatherings to a frame building on East Broad, then to a remodeled structure on West Broad near what is now McClendon Park, and finally, in 1992, into the present worship site at 1188 West Broad Street, the former Willie Earl Brown Elementary School. Under the long pastorate of Rev. Dr. Michael A. Evans, Sr., the campus has grown into a small city of ministries: a gymnasium, a chapel, classrooms, a child care center, and the beginnings of a senior living complex.
Founded in 1870, Still Worshipping on West Broad
Bethlehem's earliest services were held in homes, then under a Brush Arbor, and from 1896 inside a small frame church with an "Amen Corner" and a post in the center of the building. By the middle of the twentieth century, the congregation had joined the Zion Rest District Association and later the Elm Grove District Association, and during the pastorate of Rev. L. E. Billingslea, who served twenty-six years until his death in February 1972, the church led the initial development of homes on West Broad in what was then the unincorporated "Harmony Hill." In December 1975, Rev. C. D. Sammons became pastor; during his tenure the former Willie Earl Brown Elementary School at 1188 West Broad was purchased and converted into the present worship site. The chapel on the campus is named Sammons Chapel in his honor.
Rev. Michael A. Evans was called as pastor in May 1991 at the age of twenty-four, the youngest called to lead the congregation. Under his leadership the church was incorporated; the T.M. Moody Gymnatorium was built and named for a deacon who led the fight to desegregate Mansfield schools in 1955; the BBC Educational Enrichment Corporation was created to tutor area youth; the Community Education Center was completed in 2000; and Pioneer Place, a senior independent living complex, broke ground in April 2018. The Gymnatorium debt was retired in June 2018. Through all of it, the motto has remained the same: "God is the main attraction at Bethlehem Baptist Church."
The Under Shepherd and His Staff
Reverend Dr. Michael A. Evans, Sr. is the proud pastor, a Houston native who has now served the Bethlehem family for more than thirty years. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science (Pre-Law) from the University of Texas at Arlington, a Master of Divinity from Texas Christian University's Brite Divinity School, doctoral work at Southern Methodist University's Perkins School of Theology and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Doctor of Ministry from Baylor University's Truett Theological Seminary. Dr. Evans was elected to two consecutive terms as President of the Baptist General Convention of Texas in July 2018, an organization that serves more than 5,300 churches across the state. He has served on the City of Mansfield's Wall of Honor since 2007 and has been President of the Mansfield Independent School District Board of Trustees. He is Founder of the BBC Educational Enrichment Corporation, the Hope House Community Service Network, and the Historic West Mansfield Texas Community Development Corporation.
Standing beside him is First Lady Lisa C. Evans, his high school sweetheart of more than thirty-four years and a graduate of the University of Texas at Arlington. She teaches in the Room Full of Sisters Ministry, supports the grief and bereavement groups, and can usually be found in the second row of the Gymnatorium or Sammons Chapel on Sundays and Wednesdays. Rev. Zachariah J. Johnson serves as Executive Pastor; he holds a Bachelor of Religious Education from Moody Bible Institute and a Master of Divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Rev. Jade Evans, an ordained minister and a Princeton Theological Seminary graduate, joined the staff in August 2024 as Minister of Education and is a Ph.D. candidate in Religious Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. Rev. Troy Dicks leads the youth and children's ministry and runs the Monday night open gym.
Three Sunday Mornings, Two Wednesday Hours
Bethlehem Baptist Church meets for worship three times on Sunday morning at 7:30 a.m., 9:45 a.m., and 11:45 a.m., and twice on Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. The Sunday School hour runs between the early and late services at 9:00 to 9:45 a.m. and 10:00 to 10:45 a.m. The Wednesday morning Bible study is taught by Brother Charles Jones and is intended for those unable to attend the evening session or who prefer a daytime class; no childcare is provided during that 11:00 a.m. hour. The Wednesday evening Bible study is taught by Pastor Evans himself in Sammons Chapel, and the same evening is the scheduled time for special activities for children and youth.
First-time guests are encouraged to enter the T.M. Moody Gymnatorium through the main entrance, where parking attendants will direct them from the lot. Dress at Bethlehem ranges widely. Suits and dresses are common, but jeans and casual wear are equally welcome. Childcare is available during both Sunday morning services for infants and children up to age 3 in the nursery inside the Gymnatorium; the Kidz Zone handles children and youth of every other age during worship. Services are livestreamed on YouTube so that members at home or traveling can follow along, and a church mobile app is available for iPhone and Android by texting BBC APP to (833) 328-7771.
Bethlehem Tribes: Twelve Small Families Inside One
Every member of Bethlehem Baptist Church is assigned to one of twelve "tribes" named after the sons of Jacob: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Zebulon, Issachar, Manasseh, Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Joseph, and Benjamin. Each tribe is led by a long-term deacon or deaconess, and tribes function like small connection groups inside the larger body. They meet together every fifth Sunday at various locations around the BBC campus, host their own special events throughout the year, and gather for occasional church-wide fellowship, mission work, and friendly competition. The tribes also serve as a practical watchcare network: members are asked to notify their tribe leader of hospital admissions, prayer needs, or bereavements so that the small church feel is preserved even as the congregation grows.
Sunday School for Every Age and Stage
Sunday School is described by the church as "the foundational strategy in a local church for leading people to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and for building great commission Christians," and the list of classes on offer is wide. Deacon Charles Grooms serves as Sunday School Superintendent, with Deacon Thomas Hill overseeing the youth division and Bro. Frederick Harris as Assistant Superintendent.
Adults can choose from Men Adult Class #1, Men Adult Class #2, a Women Adult Class for women of all ages, two couples classes for those married six years or more (Couples Class and Couples United Class), a Singles Class for single, single again, divorced, and widowed members, a Bible Studies for Life class for all adults, a 9:00 a.m. class that meets right after the 7:30 a.m. worship service for those hungry for the Word but not breakfast, and a College and Career Class for twelfth graders through college. Children move through age-based classes: Kindergarten (preschool), Primary (grades 1-2), Junior Boys and Junior Girls (grades 4-5), Intermediate, and Teen Boys and Teen Girls (grades 9-11).
Discipleship Training and the New Members Path
Alongside Sunday School, Bethlehem runs an extensive Discipleship Training program built around two parallel tracks: Core Discipleship Classes, which include Articles of Faith, Mind of Christ, and Experiencing God, and Ministry Training Classes such as New Teachers Methodology and The Hands and Feet of Jesus: Discerning Your Call to Serve. A set of General Discipleship Classes covers topics like Relational Intelligence, Pathway to Financial Wisdom, Victory in Spiritual Warfare, Recovering From Losses in Life, The Black Baptist Tradition, and Who Is This Jesus?, an adult journey through the Gospel of Matthew. Some classes meet in the Michael A. Evans, Sr. Education Complex on the BBC campus, and others are offered online through Microsoft Teams or Zoom.
Prospective members go through the You Are Welcome Here New Members Class, a short series taught in Education Complex Building B on Sunday mornings during the Sunday School hour, covering orientation to BBC, stewardship, and theological foundation. Membership itself is received by profession of faith and believer's baptism, by baptism affirming a previous profession of faith, by transfer from another Baptist church, by statement, or by watchcare for temporary residents. Members present themselves during the invitation time Sunday morning or at Wednesday Bible Study.
The Brotherhood, the Women, the Young Adults, the Seasoned Saints
Each major life stage has its own ministry at Bethlehem. The Brotherhood ministry carries the motto, "Study the word at home with a consecrated heart following the footsteps of the savior leading all men to God," and gathers men for fellowship, discipleship, and service. The Women ministry is open to women aged twenty-one to one hundred and offers Bible study, prayer, fellowship, and a role in BBC's evangelism efforts. The Young Adult ministry, made up of twenty-one to thirty-nine year olds, recent graduates, young professionals, and married couples, aims to "cultivate a dynamic community of young adults, offering a safe and welcoming environment where individuals can deepen their faith, build meaningful connections, and contribute to God's kingdom." The Seasoned Saints Ministry is for seniors over fifty-five and focuses on maintaining spiritual bonds, providing outreach to the aged, sick, shut-in, and bereaved, and organizing social outings and regular fellowship meetings.
Children, Youth, and the Kidz Zone
Children and youth at Bethlehem have an entire wing of the church to themselves. The Kidz Zone, dedicated with a ribbon cutting on April 27, 2014, is a dedicated facility where children worship, attend weekly activities, and learn through the Bethlehem Children's Academy. Beyond Sunday mornings, the church runs a long list of programs for kids and teens: Bibles and Basketball on Monday nights at 7:00 p.m. in the Gymnatorium with Rev. Troy Dicks, G.E.M.S. (Girls Empowered by Ministry Service), Fine Arts, Greeters, Media, Mime Ministry, Music Ministry, Praise Dance Ministry, Speakers for Christ, SEAAMS (Successfully Educating African American Males), Ushers, and Vacation Bible School. Youth also participate in Bounce missionary trips and an annual youth choir.
The House of Bread and the Open Gym
Bethlehem's longest-running direct service to the wider Mansfield community is the House of Bread Food Pantry, open every Wednesday from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Families in need drive through and are served, and the church maintains a published grocery list of items most useful for replenishing the shelves each Sunday. The Monday night open gym, "Bibles and Basketball," opens the Gymnatorium at 7:00 p.m. for high school students and up. The church also operates the Hope House Community Service Network, which helps people rebuild their lives physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually through programs such as the Christian Women's Job Corps and a Health Care Ministry; partners with local homeless and women's shelters through the Common Ground Community Service Network; runs the T.M. Moody After School Program; and was a partner in the construction of the Caring Place Free Clinic.
Mission Trips from Nigeria to Japan
Missions are central to Bethlehem's identity. Members regularly package thousands of meals that are sent to people in need around Texas and the world. Since 2000, the church has sent missionaries to West Africa (including Nigeria, where Dr. Evans also serves as Director of Life Touch Cottage Ministries Inc., a Christian education and evangelism organization serving children and youth in Ilorin, Kwara State), South Africa, Spain, Japan, Austria, Senegal, and Australia. The Great Commission framing makes the through line plain: "We teach, baptize, and save the lost in the name of Jesus Christ."
Sammons Chapel, the Gymnatorium, and the Mansfield Community Cemetery
The 1188 West Broad campus includes Sammons Chapel, the original worship space and still the home of Wednesday Bible study and several smaller gatherings; the T.M. Moody Gymnatorium, named for a deacon and trailblazer who led the desegregation of Mansfield schools in August 1955, which now serves as the principal Sunday worship venue and the home of the open gym; the Michael A. Evans, Sr. Education Complex, which houses Sunday School classrooms and Discipleship Training; the Kidz Zone for children; and the Bethlehem Children's Academy for child care and early education.
The campus also overlooks the Mansfield Community Cemetery, the 2.5-acre historic African American cemetery that dates to the early 1870s on land believed to have been donated by Ralph Man, one of Mansfield's founders. After a 2010 Eagle Scout project at Boy Scout Troop #1703 uncovered nearly thirty unmarked graves, Bethlehem Baptist Church raised fifty thousand dollars in cash and in-kind donations to pave the road, install a brick and wrought iron dedication fence, and build an interment pavilion. The cemetery was rededicated during a Unified Weekend celebration in June 2011, and each year on Good Friday, BBC and the Mansfield community come together to clean the grounds.
The Bethlehem Academy and Pioneer Place
The Bethlehem Academy is a private school and child care center on the church campus that provides spiritual, social, and intellectual growth for its students under the direction of Dr. Nebra Brown, the Bethlehem Children's Academy and T.M. Moody Educational Enrichment Director. Its mission is to provide a safe, quality education of the highest academic standards while developing young minds and bodies to become Godly leaders.
Just down the road, Bethlehem's Pioneer Place is an independent living facility for senior adults. The land was paid in full and anointed in a special November 2015 ceremony led by Pastor Evans in the presence of First Lady Lisa Evans, dignitaries, staff, and congregation members; the city approved the project in March 2017; and the long-term vision includes an adjoining memory care facility for aging residents.
A New Sanctuary in the Works
Bethlehem's next major project is a new sanctuary complex that will seat 1,200 people and add a Welcome Center lobby, a Fellowship Hall, classrooms, offices, support spaces, and storage, all master-planned for long-range growth. The church has invited members to enter into a Spiritual Journey Personal Commitment that includes a daily one-minute prayer, daily Scripture reading of one verse in the morning and evening, a forty-day fast from midnight to noon, and a 3:14 daily stop, drop, and pray for the building efforts. The project is called the "Faith" project, after Philippians 3:14, and the church describes its work as "the supernatural act of building God's house."
Beliefs and the Weekly Compass
The church's stated beliefs center on the Great Commission. Its mission is "to work while it is day, as no one can work when it is night," with a Great Commission that consists of discipleship and evangelism to all: "From feeding the poor to providing Christian education, at Bethlehem Baptist Church Mansfield, our promise is to God. We teach, baptize, and save the lost in the name of Jesus Christ." Membership is by believer's baptism, and the congregation is affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas. The Weekly Compass, a church-wide devotional aligned with the upcoming Sunday School lesson, is published most weeks to support daily Christian life between Sundays.
Giving and Getting Connected
Members and guests can give through PushPay online, by texting BBCGIVE to 833-328-7771, through Cash App at $bbcmansfield, or by mailing or dropping off a gift at 1188 W. Broad St., Mansfield, TX 76063. Zelle giving is also available through most bank apps. Those looking to get involved can request a Right Now Media subscription, fill out a Join a Ministry form, or attend the You Are Welcome Here New Members Class. Prayer requests can be mailed to the church's Intercessory Prayer Team at the West Broad address or phoned in to the church office.