A Christ-Centered Community on Pine Island Road
Tucked at the corner of South Pine Island Road and Nova Drive in Davie, Florida, New Life Baptist Church describes itself as a Christ-Centered, Biblical, Relational, and Missional Community of Worship. The motto, "a Christ-center church with plenty of room for you," captures the spirit of a congregation that has grown from a borrowed movie theater in 1993 into a 10,000-square-foot building on 11.6 acres of debt-free land. As a member congregation of the Southern Baptist Convention, the Florida Baptist Convention, and the Gulf Stream Baptist Association, New Life holds to the Baptist Faith and Message 2000 and preaches through books of the Bible week after week.
How It All Began: A 1993 Church Plant
New Life's story began in 1993, when the Gulf Stream Baptist Association surveyed the Davie area and saw roughly 60,000 people with very few evangelical churches and no Southern Baptist churches. Mark Coleman, then graduating from Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary in Memphis and feeling called back to his native South Florida, was identified as the planter. Three churches, Sheridan Hills Baptist Church of Hollywood, Flamingo Road Baptist Church, and First Baptist Church of Deerfield Beach, together with the association, agreed to jointly sponsor the new work, a relatively new concept in Broward County at the time.
A core group formed in June 1993, and three neighborhood Bible studies were launched before launch Sunday. To get the word out, 150 volunteers spent three hours a night, five nights a week, for six weeks making 15,000 phone calls and building a 15,000-name mailing list. On September 19, 1993, 206 people showed up for the first worship service, held in the AMC Ridge Plaza Theater at Pine Island Road and State Road 84. About 50 of those present were volunteers from the sponsoring churches. Within weeks, people were coming to faith in Christ and being baptized, and roughly 60 people formed the nucleus of the new church.
Land, Miracles, and a Building on Nova Drive
Six weeks after launch, zoning issues forced the church out of the theater and into Silver Ridge Elementary School, where Sunday morning Bible study at 9:00 a.m. began in January 1994. The church continued to meet in the elementary school for years while looking for a permanent home.
In March 1998, the church purchased seven acres of land just south of the corner of Pine Island Road and Nova Drive. Half the purchase price was given as a matching gift by a family outside the church, and the other half came in over the following two months from donors across South Florida and several other states. The church's leaders made it a matter of conviction to remain debt-free.
To reach the property, the church needed to cross a canal and obtain road access to Nova Drive. The neighboring property owners refused an easement but offered to sell. An 18-month negotiation followed, ending with New Life buying two houses and 3.6 acres for $585,000. Once again, the members prayed and gave sacrificially. Four days after closing day appeared impossible, the remaining money came in, and the church held 11 acres debt-free. A final acre was added in 2004, bringing the campus to its current 11.6 acres.
After several years of construction, the church's approximately 10,000-square-foot building opened on December 8, 2013, with space for the main worship gathering and classrooms. Additional expansion is planned as the church grows.
What New Life Believes
New Life teaches that the Bible is the inspired, infallible Word of God and that it contains all that Christians need for life and godliness. The church holds to the Baptist Faith and Message 2000 in its entirety. In brief, the confession affirms one true and triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; the deity and incarnation of Jesus Christ; the full inspiration and trustworthiness of Scripture; salvation by grace through faith in Christ alone; regenerate church membership; the two ordinances of believer's baptism by immersion and the Lord's Supper; the autonomy of the local church; the eternal security of the believer; the priesthood of all believers; the return of Christ; and the Great Commission.
On marriage and the family, the confession holds that marriage is the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime, that children are a blessing from the Lord from the moment of conception, and that the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture. The church also affirms religious liberty, the separation of church and state, and cooperation among Southern Baptist churches for the spread of the gospel.
The Weekly Rhythm
The church's weekly schedule is built around three gatherings: Sunday school, Sunday worship, and Wednesday Bible study.
- Sunday school meets at 9:00 a.m. in classes for every age, from infants through adults, on the main campus.
- Sunday worship gathers at 10:30 a.m. in the main building. Nursery is provided for ages 0-5, and Children's Church is offered for ages 6-7 during the service. Quality, secure childcare is always available.
- Wednesday evenings feature Children Desiring God for ages 0-11 at 6:55 p.m., with adult and youth Bible studies meeting at 7:00 p.m.
Services are livestreamed on the church's YouTube channel, and a sermon archive is hosted on Vimeo.
KidLife: Children from Birth Through Fifth Grade
KidLife is the church's children's ministry, designed to encourage and connect families to the Christ-centered community. Each week, KidLife offers Sunday school for ages 0-11 at 9:00 a.m., nursery for ages 0-5 and Children's Church for ages 6-7 during the 10:30 a.m. worship service, and Children Desiring God at 6:55 p.m. on Wednesdays. Children Desiring God includes Scripture memory, age-appropriate Bible study, crafts, and games for children from birth through age 11. Every summer KidLife hosts a Vacation Bible School for kids ages 4-12, and the ministry also runs quarterly family fellowship events.
Crosswalk: Middle and High School Students
Crosswalk, the youth ministry named from Colossians 2:6 ("Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him"), serves middle and high school students. Students meet at the Youth House, a separate building on the main campus, for Sunday school at 9:00 a.m. and a small group Bible study at 6:15 p.m., gather on the soccer field for a 5:00 p.m. youth activity each Sunday, and return to the Youth House for Bible study on Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. Each summer Crosswalk takes a mission trip to serve another church. Recent trips have included Southside Baptist Church in Honea Path, South Carolina, and Northside Baptist Church in North Fort Myers, Florida, where students have led Vacation Bible Colleges and completed service projects.
Crosswalk also runs an annual summer discipleship event for students called Vacation Bible College. Past themes have included the assurance of salvation, a study titled "What You Want: A Biblical Look at Desire," and a 2026 week on humility.
Young Adults, Women, and Men
The Young Adults Ministry, called Christ, Community, Culture, is for anyone beyond high school through their thirties, single or married. The group gathers on Saturday evenings at 6:00 p.m. for dinner and at 7:00 p.m. for Bible study and fellowship, rotating between the homes of church members. They also meet for Sunday school at 9:00 a.m.
The Women's Ministry exists to guide women to live Christ-centered, biblical lives. Regular Bible studies meet on Thursdays at 9:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. during the fall and spring, with a women's retreat each year; the 2025 retreat was held at Lake Placid Camp and Conference Center.
The Men's Ministry gathers for twice-yearly book studies on Thursday evenings during the fall and spring, a monthly breakfast at the church office on Saturdays at 8:00 a.m., men's work days, and an annual retreat; the 2023 retreat was held in Lake Placid, Florida.
Sunday School for Every Age
Every Sunday morning at 9:00 a.m., New Life offers Sunday school classes for the full span of life. Children's classes for infants through fifth grade are located in the main building. The youth class for ages 12-18 meets in the Youth House. Adult classes include a Young Adult Class for singles in their twenties and thirties, a Young Families Class for parents of young children, and two adult classes taught by Elder John Rabe at the New Life Office and by Ron Smith at the Youth House.
Mission: Local, National, and International
Following the command of Jesus in Matthew 28:18-20, New Life seeks to be missional in everything it does. Members are encouraged toward weekly gospel engagement in their neighborhoods. The church has planted Gospel Life Church in Sunrise, about six miles north of the Davie campus, and supports several ministries and mission boards, including Sheridan House Family Ministries, Hope Women's Centers, Love Life, the North American Mission Board, and the International Mission Board. Pastor Mark Coleman has participated in ten mission trips to Tanzania, teaching pastors in remote areas who have little or no ministry training.
Leadership
Mark Coleman has served as senior pastor since planting the church in 1993. A Hollywood, Florida native, he came to faith through the ministry of Sheridan Hills Baptist Church, graduated from Georgia Tech in 1988 as an electrical engineer, worked at Florida Power and Light, and later earned his seminary degree from Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his wife Jeanine have two daughters, Grace and Glory.
Zack Pursell joined the staff as youth pastor in 2015. A South Florida native, he holds a Bachelor's degree in Pastoral Ministry from Boyce College and a Master of Divinity from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his wife Lauren have four children.
The elders are John Rabe and Ron Smith. The deacons are Beshoy Awadallha, Jo Pardo, and Phil Slocum. Dale Smith leads the maintenance team.
Getting Connected
New Life Baptist Church is located at 2400 South Pine Island Road, Davie, Florida 33324, at the corner of Pine Island Road and Nova Drive. The church office can be reached at (954) 423-3933, Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., or by email at office@newlifeindavie.com. Giving is available online, services are livestreamed on YouTube, and a sermon archive goes back many years. New Life welcomes anyone looking for a Southern Baptist church home in the Davie area to come and see what God is doing.