No steeple crowns the apex of the roof.

No stained-glass murals tell the story of Christ’s resurrection.

No grand arches dwarf our guests as they come inside to worship.

Our humble structure of wood, cinder blocks, and thin square windows barely compares to the intricate design of Chartes Cathedral, or many of the other houses of worship built throughout the ages. Regardless of its common appearance, it has well served God’s purpose as a meeting place for His children over the past 25 years.

Pastor John Stout came back to his home town Denton with a vision. Meeting in a public facility, Bethel Temple Church was organized on Mother’s Day in 1974. Experiencing rapid growth, the church soon had to find a new place to worship. Property was acquired on Bolivar Street, and construction soon began on the church house.

The building was, for the most part, a one-man operation. Pastor Stout’s father, Ray Stout, took it upon himself to lay the foundation, stack the blocks, and hang the trusses.

"My dad would go to his job in the morning, get home at 5pm, and at 5:30, he would be up at the church," recalled pastor Stout. "He would work continuously up until 11 to 12 at night!"

To younger Stout’s surprise, Ray had raised the large wooden trusses of the roof with no assistance. As if doing that himself wasn’t a hard enough task, a strong wind came about the following night which blew the trusses to the ground! According to pastor Stout, his father did not complain, but continued with the help of his son to hang the large wooden beams over again.

Within 9 months of the church’s organization, the building on Bolivar Street was finished.

In January of 1975, Bethel Temple held their first service in the newly constructed facility. 70 people attended the dedication.

"There was no carpet on the ground, no platform, and only folding seats from an old theater," said pastor Stout. "It was very cold, but the people were excited about it, and we all enjoyed the service."

In 1976, the extension was built, adding a nursery, closet, Sunday school room, and fellowship hall to the building. By this time, there were enough people in the church to help with the construction, although Ray Stout did a great deal of the work himself.

"It was a time of fun and excitement for our church," said Stout. "Even though serving the Lord was our focus, the building projects unified the congregation, and gave us hope."

Reaching nearly 200 attendees, Bethel Temple soon had to find new property. A string was hung across the sanctuary for church members to hang an envelope, containing donations for the building fund. Bethel, by God’s blessing, was able to raise the exact amount needed without ever going into debt. Bethel began construction on a facility east of town on University Drive (highway 380) and sold the Bolivar Street building.

Pastor Gary Adams acquired the facility in 1980 and began Liberty Church. This church flourished in membership and brought many souls to a relationship with Jesus Christ. The late Liberty Church has an outstanding legacy. Liberty Christian Academy (now located on south Bonnie Brae, with hundreds of students K-12) began in our humble fellowship hall. (Note the abundance of chalkboards throughout the building.) The booming success of the Academy forced Liberty Church to find a more suitable location.

At some time after, New Creation Fellowship had acquired the facility. When fledgling University Evangelical Methodist Church could no longer afford their church building on Maple and Welch streets near University of North Texas (see previous issue), New Creation took the burden of the expenses of the Maple street building, and University EMC moved to Bolivar Street—effectively trading places.

Under the leadership of pastor Charles Rodolico, a plaque was placed in the southwest corner of the building, commemorating the official beginning of University Methodist Church. While this plaque may cause a passer-by to believe our church had built the facility originally, the plaque was, according to Rodolico, intended to serve as an earthly monument to the church’s organization.

In the early 1990s, the building’s original color scheme of brown and white was replaced by the brown and tan paint of the present. The gravel parking lot was soon paved—The site of many outdoor ice cream socials and a few outdoor services.

Curtis Hogue, Andy Hogue’s father, installed the sound system, complete with headphone station on the third row and speakers in each room.

Due to faulty wiring and a concentration toward outdoor baptism services, the Baptismal was removed from the platform. Two rows of chairs were added to give room for choir events.

Following the death of Gerald Ferris in 1994, the church named the Fellowship hall after him.

It is obvious that we are meeting on sanctified ground! May the Lord’s work continue through us. May this building continue to serve as a lighthouse to the community.

"Every group that has ever met there has been some of the most loving people around," said pastor Stout.

And may the church that inhabits our facility after we outgrow it, continue in the love of Christ and go on to do even greater things for His glory!