By Wayne Guinn
When most of us think of a church planter, we don’t picture a man in his 70s. However, James Hollingsworth was 74 years old when he started Mid-City Baptist Church and 76 when he attended the NCPO Candidate School. He and his wife, Ann, have had 60 years of fruitful ministry. June 7, 2009, marked his retirement.
Pastor Hollingsworth was first called into ministry in 1948 while a pre-med student at North Texas State University, Denton, Tex¬as. This is also where he met Ann, who was studying to be a medical technician. They were married in 1948.
After graduation, Hollingsworth became the assistant pastor at Corinth Baptist Church in Abilene, Tex¬as. He was there for two years and received practical, invaluable training. In 1952, he entered the Louisiana Missionary Baptist Institute and Seminary where he earned his doctor of theology degree while a full-time pastor in Springhill, Louisiana. He was at this church seven years.
In 1968, Hollingsworth accepted a position as head of the Bible Department of Baptist Christian College in Shreveport, Louisiana. He was there for a year and a half, but still deeply desired to pastor. He and Ann prayed that God would lead them to a church in a large city where they would have the opportunity to reach many people with the gospel and where they could stay for many years. Two days later Kings Park Baptist Church called Hollingsworth to be their pastor. This church was home to the Hollingsworths for 30 years. He retired as their pastor in 1998.
Mid-City Baptist Church of Benton, Louisiana, was started out of the Baptist Tabernacle of Shreveport, Louisiana. They began meeting in a small Catholic chapel. The first service was held in March of 2003. Since then, the church has grown and has been able to build their own building. The building was a project of the BBF Builders which saved the church more than $300,000. When Pastor Hollingsworth graduated from the NCPO Church Planting School, the NCPO was able to guarantee a loan to pay off the land and complete the building.
Pastor David Phillips, a 2008 graduate of Louisiana Baptist University, Shreveport, Louisiana, follows Hollingsworth as pastor of Mid-City Baptist Church. Phillips was the pas¬tor of New Life Baptist Church which merged with Mid-City Baptist Church in April 2008. He has served as a bi-vocational associate pastor and banker until Hollingsworth’s retirement.
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Church Planting Forums
October 26-27
BBC, Springfield, MO
Our featured speaker will be Eric Geiger, co-author of Simple Church. Along with challenging the students about church planting, Eric will conduct a four-hour instructive, round-table presentation of Simple Church on Monday afternoon for pastors and staff that attend.
November 16-17
BBC, Boston, MA
Our featured speaker will be Nelson Searcy. He planted a phenomenally successful church in Manhattan, New York, seven years ago. He has authored several books and is a popular speaker around the country.
Make plans now to attend one or all these events. For further information email office@bbfincpo.com or call (417) 889-1017.