1931-Present
Judson Memorial Baptist Church
Lansing, Michigan MI
The webpage of this congregation tells the historical highlights of Judson Memorial Baptist Church in succinct fashion.[1]
In the 1920’s a group of missionary-minded Christians started what would become Judson Memorial Baptist Church in South Lansing, Michigan. Their goals were to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people and to demonstrate His love to the needy in practical ways.
Judson began as a Sunday school which first met in a small brick building at Everett School. On January 11, 1931, the church was officially incorporated and, in June of that year, the congregation broke ground.
Despite the intense economic hardship of the Great Depression, “penny suppers” were served by the church women to help finance a building program. During the 90+ years that have followed, the people of Judson have maintained their original mission of reaching people with the Gospel and adorning that Gospel with works of love and compassion.
The church is blessed with a great heritage. Especially important to this congregation is the missionary vision of the American Baptist Churches, as demonstrated by Adoniram and Ann Judson, two American Baptist missionaries to Burma (among the very first foreign missionaries from America). The church’s founders were inspired by the Judsons’ example and the congregation has maintained a strong history of providing financial and prayer support for American Baptist mission efforts.
The founders organized Judson Memorial Baptist Church and began its first building project in the midst of the Great Depression because no churches existed in South Lansing and the existing space for Sunday school participants was bursting at the seams. It says a lot for Judson’s commitment that over the past 85 years, the church has been served by only seven pastors.
In 1941, Rev. Gilbert miles began a pastorate at Judson which spanned almost 19 years. Under this leadership, a Sunday school wing and basement for a chapel were completed in 1956 primarily with volunteer labor.
Rev. Clyde Masten pastored the church in the early 1960s. In February 1966, ground was broken for a larger sanctuary. The first service was held in it on February 5, 1967. Again, most of the labor was donated.
In June 1967, Dr. Charles Jones became Judson’s pastor. Under his leadership, Judson moved in new directions of ser ice, especially in visiting the homebound. Mission giving reached record levels and four members of the congregation joined the ministry, including two who graduated from seminary and were called to pastorates. A multi-purpose room and a small chapel were completed.
Rev. Thomas Bayes, Jr. came to Judson in December 1983. He led the congregation in a five year strategic planning effort which inspired new programs of service, outreach and creative worship. Upon his retirement in Illinois, he was installed as pastor emeritus in 2018 and continues to support the church.
In 1989, the Love Clothing Center opened its doors at Judson. The Center provides complete outfits for needy school age children. Volunteers from Judson and other area churches work together to provide clothing free of charge. This need increases every year. Since its inception, the Love Clothing Center has more than 35,000 children.
In the late ’80s, Rev. Frank McAuley, Jr. guided Judson in an interim pastor role and accepted a permanent pastor position in 1999. Under his leadership Judson continued its strong commitment to Christian education and mission support.
During this time, Judson opened our building free of charge to Doors of Healing Tabernacle Church, a congregation whose church was destroyed by fire. The Doors congregation called Judson home for almost two years while repairs were completed and members of both congregations enjoyed several joint worship services and fellowship experiences drawing closer together in Christ.
In 2005, Judson Memorial Baptist Church called, Rev. Zachary Bartels as their minister. He has brought a deep love for traditional Christian service and worship, as well as an energetic commitment to innovation. He has focused on expository preaching, education, visitation, and efforts to welcome more visitors and new members into the congregation.
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[1] Judson Memorial Baptist Church, Lansing, MI. http://www.churchlansing.com/about/history.html