First Baptist Church Arnold, at 2012 Missouri State Road in Arnold, Missouri, is known for making room for the whole family: three Sunday worship gatherings, age-specific Bible study, a broad Family Life Center, and mission work extending from local neighborhoods to international partners. Its mission is to build God's Kingdom through life-changing relationships that are biblical and relevant, and its pattern is simple: Gather, Grow, Go, Glorify.
Your First Sunday on Missouri State Road
First Arnold offers Sunday worship at 8:00 a.m., 9:30 a.m., and 11:00 a.m. The 8:00 and 9:30 services are typically led by the Worship Ministry Choir and Orchestra, while the 11:00 service is typically led by the Worship Band. Adult and age-specific small groups meet at all three times, allowing a first-time guest to choose a worship service and a class that fit the household.
- The 9:30 a.m. service includes American Sign Language interpretation in person and online.
- The 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. services are livestreamed through the church's livestream, YouTube, and Facebook.
- Children have dedicated check-in areas and age-appropriate worship or small groups.
- Guest parking is available in Lot A, with a shuttle offered when needed.
Visitors enter through the glass doors of the lobby, where the Connect Team can answer questions and show them around the campus. First Arnold suggests arriving 15 minutes before a service to allow time for parking and meeting a team member. The atmosphere is friendly and relaxed, and dress is comfortable rather than formal; whatever a visitor wears, others will be dressed similarly. Detailed visitor information covers parking, entrances, and arrival tips.
Gather, Grow, Go, Glorify
The church's mission is to build God's Kingdom through life-changing relationships that are biblical and relevant. Its vision expresses four connected actions: First Arnold gathers to worship and fellowship, grows into the image of Jesus, goes to make disciples of all nations, and glorifies God. Gather means worshiping because of Jesus, proclaiming the word, and finding encouragement and healing in community. Grow describes becoming like Jesus as increasingly active disciples who make other disciples. Go places the church as a gospel witness near and far. Glorify directs everything toward the honor that belongs alone to God.
First Arnold describes three practical expressions of that vision. Invite means hosting events that welcome people into the life of the church. Invade means going out as a church into local communities and around the world. Invest means helping believers live intentionally and engage people who do not yet know Christ with the gospel. This outward emphasis is built into the church's regular schedule rather than treated as a separate activity.
What First Arnold Teaches
First Arnold identifies with Southern Baptists and uses the Baptist Faith and Message as a guide to its convictions. Copies are available at the church. The teaching emphasizes God's sovereignty and kingship, the church as a covenant community of believers, salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, the Bible as God's revelation, and the one true God revealed as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It also holds that every follower and every church has a duty to seek the lost and make disciples of all nations.
The biblical foundation is also reflected in the church's threefold next-step framework:
- Follow Jesus addresses sin, spiritual death, Christ's death for sinners, and the call to receive Jesus.
- Declare your faith points to baptism and provides a growth guide for new and growing believers.
- Live out your faith calls believers into mission, using their gifts and lives to serve God and others.
The church's teaching is presented through preaching, Bible classes, Bible reading plans, worship, discipleship groups, and conversations shaped by Scripture. The message archive allows the congregation to return to past messages, while the library and reading plans support ongoing study.
Sunday Small Groups for Every Stage
All Sunday small groups meet in the Family Life Center at 8:00, 9:30, and 11:00 a.m. The groups are organized by age, marital status, and shared interests rather than forcing every learner into one format. Some classes work through Lifeway's Explore the Bible series book by book, others use Bible Studies for Life topical materials, and many combine books, videos, Scripture, and discussion. Several groups specifically welcome questions, while participation in conversation is always optional.
The 8:00 classes include groups for men and women over 60 and a coed group largely made up of couples, singles, and empty nesters. The 9:30 choices range from a coed class for adults ages 25 to 60 to groups for adults in their twenties, married couples, single adults, and women in different seasons of life. At 11:00, groups include coed classes, men's groups, women's groups, married couples, and a deaf Bible study that follows the interpreted 9:30 service. Study methods range from relaxed open-format classes to detailed verse-by-verse work examining historical background and practical application.
Discipleship groups, or D-groups, use a 100-day essentials plan that moves from creation to eternity through key passages. Additional reading routes cover the New Testament in six months, the Old Testament in one year, the Bible in one year, and Scripture in chronological order. Small groups also gather for meals, trips, service projects, and fellowship beyond their Sunday classroom time.
Next Generation: Six Weeks Through College
First Arnold's Next Generation ministry spans babies, children, students, college-aged adults, and families. It works through a biblical strategy of collaboration among parents, leaders, and students, with the goal of spiritual formation. For the youngest children, First Kids Jr welcomes babies six weeks old through preschool at all three Sunday services. Families check in at an area to the right of the auditorium, where leaders help children become familiar with the room. Midweek Puggles and Cubbies classes introduce biblical truth while helping parents continue teaching at home. The ministry follows the normal school year and pauses during summer.
First Kids serves kindergarten through fifth grade with Bible teaching, Kids Worship, small groups, and activities designed for children. During the 9:30 service, kindergarten through second graders participate in Kids Worship while third through fifth graders attend small groups. At 11:00, the arrangement reverses. Once each month, the older group joins the main service so children can experience the church as one body with adult leaders present. Midweek AWANA adds games, crafts, Bible memorization, awards, and opportunities to learn and serve.
Middle and high school students gather for Segue and Synergy. Segue serves middle schoolers, whose transitional years are described as a distinctive and formative season. Synergy focuses on high school students knowing Jesus and sharing his name. Their Sunday pattern includes student-led worship, games, teaching, and small groups divided by grade and gender. Segue meets in the Lower Fellowship Hall and Synergy in the Upper Fellowship Hall at 9:30. Their Wednesday gatherings run from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. with food, games, fellowship, and more relaxed Bible teaching.
College ministry for ages 18 to 25 meets in the college building during the 9:30 service for community and chronological Bible study, then gathers there on Wednesdays at 6:30 for large-group worship. Boost serves children with special needs through an individual buddy, an intake meeting, and a personalized plan for worship and small-group participation. Parents and the child first meet the buddy and review the plan before the first service. Firm Foundations provides the church's daycare ministry, while First Kids Jr, First Kids, AWANA, student groups, and college ministry complete a wide discipleship pathway from infancy through young adulthood.
Adult Ministry Through Every Season
Adult ministries are organized around the different realities of adult life. The men's ministry uses Bible studies and events to help men develop faith and fulfill their purpose as leaders at home, work, and church. Its desired qualities are missional, accountable, and never alone. The women's ministry combines gospel-centered teaching, Bible studies, authentic relationships, discipleship, and service, with a vision for women who are passionate about Jesus and live lives that glorify God.
Single adults are encouraged to know God in a real and personal way through social gatherings, relevant Bible studies, training for following Christ, and opportunities to serve. The ministry helps participants find a suitable Bible-study group, identify a preferred worship gathering, and use their time, talents, and spiritual gifts in service. The married adult ministry seeks stronger families, solid marriages, and community where families grow together in Christ-likeness. Its resources include biblical marriage material and recommendations for biblical counseling, family conferences, internet accountability, and support for parents of preteens.
Senior adults study Scripture in classes at all three Sunday services. Their Wednesday gathering combines prayer and Bible study from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. in the Family Life Center, and their Nursing Home Care Ministry conducts a Sunday worship service at a nearby facility. The Koinonia widows ministry offers prayer, monthly meetings, and fellowship. Seniors also take active roles in the nursing home ministry, hospital visitation, food service, choir, children's ministry, small-group leadership, church gardening, maintenance, missions, and disaster relief. Their local and global mission work includes eye-glass clinics and clothing and food collections.
Worship Ministry and the Performing Arts Academy
Worship at First Arnold is presented as a daily life of praise that is fueled by gathering together. The Worship Choir includes singers from high school age upward and leads the 8:00 and 9:30 services. The Orchestra also leads those services and brings instrumentalists together to proclaim the good news through music. Both rehearse on Wednesday evenings at 6:30 p.m., with the choir in the Worship Suite and the orchestra in the Auditorium.
The Worship Band is made up of vocalists and instrumentalists with strong musical backgrounds who use singing, playing, and reading God's Word to lead congregational praise. The Kids Choir gathers kindergarten through fifth grade and rehearses Wednesday evenings from 5:30 to 6:15 p.m. The Handbell Ensemble provides special music throughout the year, including at residential care facilities and other events, and rehearses Monday evenings at 6:30 p.m.
The Performing Arts Academy provides private, weekly 30-minute lessons in piano, voice, guitar, percussion and drums, woodwind and brass instruments, and music theory and software. Most instructors are professional educators with qualifications in musical pedagogy and performance. The program emphasizes musicianship, technique, professionalism, and semester recitals, with all lessons taught in the church facility by instructors who have passed background checks.
The Family Life Center: Fitness, Sports, and Gatherings
Opened in 1998 as an outreach to the community, the Family Life Center remains a major part of First Arnold's life beyond Sunday worship. It offers a free fitness center with a large gymnasium, weight rooms, cardio equipment, and an indoor walking track. Orientation sessions are held at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesdays and 6:30 p.m. on Thursdays, introducing participants to the church and the center before they begin using it.
The center's activities include 45-minute group fitness classes for strength, endurance, and balance. Youth sports emphasize skill development, teamwork, and faith through soccer, basketball, cheer, and day camps. Adults can take part in leagues and tournaments, including volleyball, three-on-three basketball, and ping pong. These offerings give families and groups ways to build relationships while remaining connected to the church campus.
The Family Life Center's banquet space accommodates birthdays, reunions, conferences, school banquets, showers, weddings, and wedding receptions. Some wedding-related events are limited to church members. Groups of up to 500 can be accommodated, and catering is available. The facility is accessible, with accessible parking, multiple ramps, an elevator, and accessible restrooms. Outside food is allowed under specified conditions, while the campus remains free of tobacco, alcohol, drugs, gambling, and dancing events.
The culinary team supports Wednesday Meals, where families are served a homemade dinner in the Family Life Banquet Center. The team also provides meal preparation, event catering, and food service for church ministries. These practical programs connect the Family Life Center with the church's wider mission of serving people with hospitality, care, and tangible assistance.
Serving Neighbors and Partnering With Nations
First Arnold's missions work follows three verbs: pray, give, and go. Prayer supports the church's local and global partnerships, unreached people, and believers serving in the field. Giving includes the missions offering and sponsorship of participants on short-term mission trips, with online giving available through the church's giving portal. Going means carrying the gospel both across the street and around the world, whether through local outreach, mission teams, or partnerships with churches and organizations.
Local mission work takes several forms. The church shares food and hospitality with neighbors at Arnold Park, supports weekly ministries in neighborhoods of great need, and partners with Oasis International in welcoming activities for refugee families. Seasonal service includes collecting new backpacks and school supplies for children in local communities. The annual Serve Our City effort sends teams throughout the region to assist with schools, city projects, apartment communities, first responders, churches, and neighborhood organizations. A meal partnership with Message and Meal places particular emphasis on serving people experiencing homelessness, while other teams stock and clean warehouses for an organization supporting people facing unplanned pregnancies.
Global mission connections extend through South America, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Liberia, the Czech Republic, and Spain. First Arnold works with international believers, churches, and missionaries and provides opportunities for short-term mission teams. The missions office also encourages people who cannot travel to participate through prayer and financial support. This approach keeps missions connected to the life of the church throughout the year rather than treating it as an isolated trip.
Operation Christmas Child is another recurring expression of that commitment. Church families pack shoeboxes for children in need around the world, including the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Online resources help participants build a box and handle the associated shipping cost. Together, the local meals, neighborhood service, refugee outreach, school-supply effort, international partnerships, and shoebox project show how the church's Gather, Grow, Go, and Glorify pattern reaches both near and far.
Care, Recovery, and Ways to Belong
First Arnold's care ministry includes biblical counseling by pastors, support groups, and referrals to trained, licensed counselors through biblical and God-honoring organizations such as True Vine Christian Services and Life Pointe Counseling. GriefShare meets on Wednesday evenings at 6:30 p.m. in Family Life Center room FL103. Celebrate Recovery is a Christ-centered 12-step program for people struggling with hurt, pain, or addiction and meets weekly on Monday evenings at 6:00 p.m. in the Upper Fellowship Hall.
The Homebound Ministry connects with people who cannot attend church activities through home visits, phone calls, and flower deliveries. Pastoral staff and laypeople also participate in hospital visitation. These ministries, together with the nursing home worship service and the pastoral care team, make support a regular part of church life.
Deaf Ministry is woven into congregational life through worship, fellowship, events, and a dedicated Bible study group. American Sign Language interpretation is provided for the 9:30 service in person and online. Accessibility also extends to the physical campus, which includes accessible parking, ramps, an elevator, and accessible restrooms, while Boost gives children with special needs a planned way to participate with a dedicated buddy.
For those considering membership or wanting to understand the church more fully, Welcome Home is a four-week class covering the redemptive purpose of the church, spiritual gifts, and a life of service. First Arnold's identity remains centered on its fourfold rhythm: Gather in worship and fellowship, Grow into the image of Jesus, Go as witnesses near and far, and Glorify God. At 2012 Missouri State Road, that purpose connects worship, discipleship, family life, care, recreation, and mission within one church family.