At Home in East Dallas
Wilshire Baptist Church sits on a three-acre plot at 4316 Abrams Road, just north of Mockingbird Lane, between Dallas's Lakewood and Lake Highlands neighborhoods. With about 1,200 active members, the congregation describes itself as "a vibrant and flourishing intergenerational community" that is "justice-oriented, inclusive and affirming." The motto is "Be you. Belong. An inclusive community."
Founded in 1951, Wilshire is large enough to offer a deep menu of programs and small enough that many members say it feels like a family. The church is a founding congregation of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and a member congregation of the Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists, and it has spent seven decades working out what an open, progressive Baptist identity looks like in practice.
Two Worship Services on Sunday Morning
Sunday at Wilshire begins quietly in McIver Chapel, the original worship space dedicated in July 1954 and now set aside for a 35- to 40-minute contemplative service at 9 a.m. Timothy and the pastoral residents share homily duties, and the service follows a different spiritual practice each month - Visio Divina, Lectio Divina, the Examen and others. Communion is offered the first Sunday of each month. Childcare for preschoolers is provided. The chapel service takes a summer break each year.
At 9:45 a.m., Sunday School convenes for all ages across the building. A Welcome Center in James Gallery opens at 9:30 and staff members help newcomers find the right class, walk them to it, and occasionally point out that "many of our adult classes start with a time of socializing and don't begin their lesson until around 10." Adults can choose from nineteen classes organized loosely by age and stage of life - Discovery, Ithaka, Labyrinth, Avodah, Shiloh, Epiphany, Koinonia, BEST, Whosoever Wilshire and others - along with the single-gender Women's Bible Class and a class designed to center the experiences of LGBTQ+ members called Shiloh.
At 11 a.m., the Sanctuary fills for the congregation's principal weekly gathering. Worship at Wilshire is called "traditional" in the sense that it features hymns, a Sanctuary Choir and a pipe organ and has no screens, but it is not stiff or formal. "You might hear songs with an acoustic or gospel vibe," the church explains, and the choir regularly mixes new hymns in with longtime favorites. The service follows the liturgical calendar, which gives shape to the seasons of Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter and Pentecost. The Lord's Supper is celebrated the first Sunday of each month, and all followers of Christ are welcome to participate regardless of church membership. The Sanctuary service is livestreamed each week on the church's YouTube channel, with a podcast of the sermon available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and iHeartRadio.
Wednesday Night Live
Half of Wilshire's congregational life happens on Wednesdays, and the weekly rhythm begins with a buffet dinner at 5 p.m. in Community Hall. A full meal is $10 for ages 10 and up, $5 for ages 4 to 9, free under 4, with a $35 household maximum and a $7 soup and salad option. First-time guests eat free. Cash, check and credit are accepted at the door.
At 6 p.m., the building sorts itself by age. Preschoolers aged 3 through pre-K gather for Music & More, a preschool choir with songs, activities and lessons centered on God's love and caring for others. Children in kindergarten through fifth grade move into KidConnect, where each week brings a different rotation of art, music, recreation, science and more; kindergartners have choir as part of their evening. Adults settle into one of the week's Spiritual Formation offerings - Bible and book studies, topical series, mission activities and resident-led Vespers. Guest speakers through the year have included professors from Brite Divinity School, storytellers and authors such as Kaitlin Curtice and Sally Gary.
At 6:30 p.m., Wilshire Student Ministry's Watershed pulls students in grades 6 through 12 into the Youth Center for an hour of Bible study and music. The Sanctuary Choir rehearses at 7 p.m. in Choral Hall - new singers are always welcome and no audition is required. Childcare is offered from 6 to 7:15 p.m. for infants and two-year-olds whose parents are involved in other activities.
Friday Night Live arrives roughly once a month, running from 6:30 to 9 p.m. with parallel programming for couples (Marriage Connections, in James Gallery), kindergartners through fifth graders (Kids Night Out) and birth through pre-K (Preschool Night Out).
Music from the Pipe Organ to the Handbells
Music at Wilshire is not something only a few gifted people do; it is described as "an expression of joy for the entire congregation." The Sanctuary Choir sings most weeks and has premiered commissioned works, toured and recorded a CD titled Prayers We Love. Nova, a smaller auditioned adult ensemble co-directed by Mike Capps and Candy McComb, sings several times a year. The Youth Choir, open to grades 6 through 12 with no audition, sings monthly in worship and travels each summer for a concert and mission tour; recent destinations have included New Orleans, San Francisco, Denver and Boston. Shekinah is the smaller, auditioned high school ensemble.
Wilshire's Children's Choirs meet after Sunday worship during the school year, with choirs for grades 1 through 5. Preschool choirs for ages 3 through kindergarten rehearse on Wednesday evenings at 6 p.m. Wilshire Winds, an all-volunteer woodwind, brass and percussion ensemble, plays in worship about once a month and presents concerts through the year. Carillon Ringers, the adult handbell choir, plays up to seven octaves of bells and rehearses on Sunday afternoons.
The Sanctuary organ was completed in 2004 and was designed and built for Wilshire by the Schantz Organ Company of Ohio. Each of its 4,594 pipes is an individual windblown instrument, with the largest pipe running 16 feet long and more than 9 inches in diameter and the smallest no bigger than a pencil. Sixteen ranks from the previous organ were incorporated into the new instrument to maintain a connection to Wilshire's musical heritage. Minister of Music Ariel Merivil oversees the program; Associate Minister of Music and Organist Jeff Brummel is the Sanctuary organist. The music ministry posts recordings on YouTube, with separate playlists for the Sanctuary Choir, Nova, Youth Choir, Shekinah, Children's Choir, Wilshire Winds, Carillon Ringers and the Wilshire organ.
A Teaching Congregation
Wilshire calls itself a "teaching congregation," the way some hospitals are teaching hospitals. The Pathways to Ministry initiative began with summer and academic-year internships for college and seminary students and expanded in 2002 with the founding of a two-year pastoral residency for recent seminary and divinity school graduates. The program has produced more than three dozen alumni now serving as senior pastors and in other ministry roles across the United States and overseas, and Timothy Peoples - who was a Wilshire resident from 2015 to 2017 - was called as senior pastor in December 2022 from a church in High Point, North Carolina.
Residents come from schools including Duke Divinity School, Wake Forest University School of Divinity, Harvard Divinity School, Princeton Theological Seminary, Yale Divinity School, Truett Theological Seminary at Baylor University, the Candler School of Theology at Emory University and the McAfee School of Theology at Mercer University. George Mason, who served as Wilshire's senior pastor for 33 years and is now senior pastor emeritus, founded the program at Wilshire and continues to be involved with it as Pathways to Ministry Alumni Director. Annette Owen, herself a Wilshire pastoral residency alum, became director of Pathways to Ministry in 2026.
Over the course of their two years, residents learn to preach, teach, lead worship, plan mission trips, baptize, celebrate the Lord's Supper, officiate weddings and funerals, manage committees, build a church budget and serve as the personal presence of Christ to congregants in difficult seasons. The program is funded today through contributions to the George A. Mason Pathways to Ministry Endowment Fund.
Coming of Age, By Age
Children's ministry at Wilshire runs from birth through fifth grade, with a separate preschool ministry serving infants through pre-K. On Sunday mornings, the preschool hallway is secured by a code and houses a year-round Sunday School for babies and toddlers; Worship Care is provided during both worship services by paid staff and trained volunteers. Children in kindergarten and above attend worship with their families, and Children's Worship Folders with quiet activities are available at the Sanctuary entrances. On Wednesday nights, preschoolers gather for Music & More while older children move into KidConnect.
Summer adds a full slate of camp experiences for children. Vacation Bible School typically runs one week in June from 9 a.m. to noon. Cooking Camp teaches students in grades 1 through 5 about food safety, nutrition and meal preparation. Listen to Your Art! Creative Arts Camp rotates children through music, drama, dance, visual art and other art forms in the afternoons. Passport Kids! is a four-day, three-night sleepaway camp for third through fifth graders who travel by bus, stay in air-conditioned cabins and participate in worship, Bible study, recreation and missions.
Wilshire MomCo (formerly MOPS) has met since 1997 to encourage and support mothers of children from birth through kindergarten, meeting Friday mornings during the school year with brunch, a speaker, a creative project and curriculum-based childcare for ages 0 to 5. The Adoption and Foster Care Ministry hosts monthly Parents Nights Out during the school year, with childcare available for infants through sixth grade.
Youth ministry, led since 1998 by Associate Pastor Darren DeMent, gathers students in grades 6 through 12 for Sunday School, front-row Sanctuary worship and the weekly Watershed Bible study on Wednesday evenings. The youth choir rehearses after Sunday lunch and sings throughout the year. The youth group travels by bus each fall and spring for a weekend retreat and each summer for a week of camp, music, study and service described by generations of students as "The Best Week of the Year."
Wilshire Adventurers is a fellowship for anyone 60 and over that meets at least once a month for game days, guest speakers, day trips and larger travel tours - including an annual Road Scholar trip and a monthly Midday on Abrams gathering on the first Wednesday at 11:30 a.m., with a $10 lunch and a speaker or program. Knit Unto Others meets Thursdays at 1:30 p.m. to work on individual projects and prayer shawls. New Song, a senior adult community choir open to anyone 60 or older, rehearses Wednesdays at 9:30 a.m. in Choral Hall and sings in the community about once a month.
Women of Wilshire
Wilshire's women's ministry, Women of Wilshire, hosts a Tuesday Evening Book Club on the second Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m., a Brown Bag Book Club on the first Thursday of each month at noon, a hiking group and Knit Unto Others. The ministry also gathers once a year, usually in February, for a weekend retreat offsite. Women who are part of the ministry can be found in the WOW Instagram account (@womenofwilshire) and a private Facebook group.
Inclusion, Justice and the Wider Table
Wilshire's identity as a welcoming and affirming congregation took shape over decades. The congregation voted in 1991 to allow women and divorced people to become deacons. In 2000, the church cut ties with the Southern Baptist Convention and helped launch the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship in 1991, which remains the church's primary partner in global missions. In 2012, Wilshire began recognizing other forms of Christian baptism, and in November 2016 the congregation voted to recognize a single class of membership "so that all members would be treated equally, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, with respect to leadership, ordination, baby dedications and marriage." Wilshire is a member of the Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists and an affirming member of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.
The church's Inclusion Statement reads in part: "Wilshire wholeheartedly affirms the capacity of 'every body' to bear witness to God's expansively compassionate stance toward God's creation. ... every body is afforded equitable opportunity to grow, learn, serve and lead - regardless of their racial, cultural or religious background; family configuration and structure; age; sexual orientation; gender identity; disability; educational history; economic background; and political perspective." Before worship services, the church also reads a land acknowledgment recognizing the Jumano, Wichita, Kickapoo and Tawakoni peoples as the original stewards of the land.
Wilshire's missions and advocacy ministry is led by Associate Pastor Heather Mustain and Interim Missions and Advocacy Coordinator Christina Evans. Local partners include Cornerstone Baptist Church, the Dallas Advocacy Eviction Center, Empowering the Masses, Gaston Christian Center, Gateway of Grace (refugee resettlement), Genesis Women's Shelter, Light of Hope Immigration Law Center, the Prison Entrepreneurship Program, White Rock Center of Hope and the Wilkinson Center. CBF Texas, Baptist Women in Ministry, Together for Hope, Delta Hands for Hope, FaithWorks and Pastors for Texas Children extend Wilshire's reach at the state, national and global level. Adam's Baskets, a food donation ministry coordinated by the Compass Class, accepts non-perishable food in hallway baskets throughout the building to support a partner food pantry.
Care Ministries
Wilshire's pastoral care ministry, led by Minister of Pastoral Care and to Senior Adults Katie Murray, works alongside a small army of trained laypeople. The Care Notes prayer list is distributed daily by Pastoral Care Assistant Barbara Clayton, who also serves as the first point of contact for benevolence requests, coordinates ushers and greeters, and supports the homebound ministry and Adventurers senior group. Members of the congregation can submit prayer requests online or by emailing prayer@wilshirebc.org.
Stephen Ministry has been a fixture at Wilshire for years, pairing trained laypeople (after 50 hours of training) one-on-one with individuals facing grief, hospitalization, divorce, job loss, terminal illness, chronic illness, spiritual crisis and other life challenges. Stephen Ministers from Wilshire may serve non-members. Information about receiving care, or about training to become a Stephen Minister, is available through stephenministry@wilshirebc.org and through Linda Garner, Wilshire's parish nurse since 2003.
Parish Nurse Linda Garner, R.N., Ph.D., promotes and educates on health matters, answers questions, points members to resources, and teaches CPR and first aid. Linda and her certified therapy dog also make hospice visits. The Grief and Loss Center of North Texas, which is based at Wilshire, provides support groups, individual consultations, children's day camps, services of remembrance, seminars and workshops for children, teens and adults who are grieving - free of charge. The Center for Integrative Counseling and Psychology maintains offices at Wilshire and provides therapy and psychological assessments for kids, teens and adults, accepting insurance. Charlie Fuller, a credentialed coach through the International Coaching Federation, offers free personal coaching to Wilshire members and staff.
The Building on Abrams Road
Wilshire's three-acre campus holds more than 230,000 square feet of space in interconnected buildings. The Sanctuary, dedicated in 1966, seats up to 800 and houses the Schantz organ. McIver Chapel, the original 1954 worship space, seats up to 135. Community Hall seats 288 for banquets and 400 for lectures. James Gallery seats 128 for banquets and is also the home of the Sunday morning Welcome Center. Choral Hall seats 120 for lectures and recitals; the Parlor is suited for smaller receptions. There are classrooms of various sizes for breakouts and meetings, a Youth Center, a fully equipped commercial kitchen and a library of several thousand volumes.
The Sanctuary, McIver Chapel and other facilities are available to host weddings, funerals, civic and business gatherings, lectures and recitals; weddings of any couples seeking to be legally married in a Christian ceremony are welcome, including couples who are not members of Wilshire. The church has a large on-site columbarium for the inurnment of cremated remains of members, their spouses and immediate family members. Adam's Baskets food donations and a clothing closet partner Cornerstone Baptist Church's feeding and clothing ministries.
History: From 55 Members to a Teaching Congregation
On June 14, 1951, 55 Christians met at the Lakewood home of Dr. and Mrs. Winston Carswell determined to start a new Baptist church. There were 123 charter members. The new congregation first met for worship at the Wilshire Theater at Skillman and Mockingbird, then purchased the Abrams Road plot in 1952 and dedicated McIver Chapel in July 1954. Huber Drumwright was the first pastor; Ralph Langley served from 1955 to 1958.
Bruce McIver, one of Wilshire's own members, was called as pastor in 1958 and led the church for 30 years. Under his tenure the present Sanctuary opened in 1966, education space was greatly expanded in 1982, and Wilshire began to understand itself as a global citizen through long-distance mission partnerships. McIver was named senior pastor emeritus at his retirement in 1988.
George Mason succeeded McIver in 1989 and led Wilshire for 33 years - through the women's ordination vote of 1991, the founding of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, the 2000 vote to leave the Southern Baptist Convention, the 2002 launch of the pastoral residency program, the 2012 decision to recognize other forms of baptism and the 2016 vote for a single class of membership that gave Wilshire its formal identity as a welcoming and affirming congregation. Mason retired in 2022, was named senior pastor emeritus and continues to be involved with the residency program. Timothy Peoples was called in December 2022 and began as senior pastor in January 2023. In November 2025, Wilshire launched the 9 a.m. contemplative Chapel Worship service as a permanent weekly offering, and in spring 2026 the congregation opened a Visioning Process to discern together who Wilshire is called to be in this season.
What to Know Before Visiting
Wilshire's small south parking lot (the lot with the steeple) and the large north parking lot both reserve spaces for guests. Street parking around the building is available, and Hillside Village, the shopping center south of the church, is a backup. There is no single main entrance - greeters are stationed at the most commonly used doors and are happy to help visitors find their way; some doors are locked at 11:15 a.m., after worship begins. All but a few exterior doors are wheelchair accessible, and elevators reach every floor of the building.
Dress runs from jeans and sneakers to suits and ties, with most people choosing business casual. Worship lasts about an hour. Guests are not asked to stand or raise a hand; connection cards or a QR code inside the worship folder are available for those who want to share their contact information. Childcare is offered for preschoolers (infants through pre-K) during both the 9 and 11 a.m. services in a secure hallway with coded entry; children in kindergarten and above attend worship with their parents.
Baptism at Wilshire is by immersion. The church practices believer's baptism and welcomes those who have been baptized in another Christian tradition or by another method, as well as those who wish to reaffirm a previous profession of faith. New babies are recognized in worship with a family dedication. Visitors and newcomers are invited to the monthly Wilshire Welcome class during Sunday School in the Prayer Room near McIver Chapel, or to Time with Tim, an informal session with Senior Pastor Timothy Peoples held about once a month. Carolyn Murray, coordinator of congregational life, leads in outreach to guests and can help with any of these steps.
The church's stated vision is "to become a bold witness to the way of Christ in our time," and its mission is "to build a community of faith shaped by the Spirit of Jesus Christ." Wilshire teaches tithing as a normative practice and operates on a one-fund Unified Budget model. Gifts can be made in the offering plate, by check, online through Realm (the church's giving platform), through the Realm Connect app, by text ("wilshire" plus an amount to 73256), by automatic bank pay, by mail or through IRA distributions and stock gifts.
Public office hours run weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The main number is 214-452-3100 and the general inbox is info@wilshirebc.org. The prayer request form, the Wednesday Night Live sign-up, the MomCo registration, the Stephen Minister application, the Wilshire Welcome RSVP, the Marriage Connections registration and other sign-ups are all available through the church's online portal at wilshirebc.org.