HISTORY OF BLESSED HOPE BAPTIST CHURCH

The first service of Blessed Hope Baptist Church of Jasonville, Indiana was conducted on Sunday morning, May 13, 1973 under the direction of Pastor Robert Ross. Thirty-four people were in attendance.

The Lord moved the hearts of Bob and Anita Swaby to open up their home in Midland as a meeting place for this new body of assembled believers. During the first months of the church, their living room served the preaching room and the other rooms of their house as Sunday School classrooms and a nursery. By June of 1973, construction began on a two and a half car garage attached to the Swaby’s house, which would serve as the new auditorium for the church. This much needed building was dedicated on Sunday, September 2, 1973 and was equipped with a pulpit, a piano and 108 theater-style wooden seats.

The church was chartered at a special meeting held on Monday, September 10, 1973. There were 37 charter members who, “came forward before witnesses and openly testified of their salvation and baptism by immersion and asked for membership.”

On Sunday morning, May 13, 1973, Pastor Robert Ross conducted the first service of Blessed Hope Baptist Church of Jasonville, Indiana. At that service, there was a surprise awaiting this young pastor. Below is the story of the Tree-Stump Pulpit.

Robert L. Ross pastored one other church before he founded Blessed Hope Baptist Church of Jasonville, Indiana. It was a small country church several miles outside of Jasonville. This was his first pastorate, and he was preaching the Word of God straight and true and as a result, many were getting saved and Christians were growing – but not everyone was happy. A core group of people in this old established denominational church didn’t care much for old-time religion and hell-fire and brimstone preaching.

So trouble began, yet Pastor Ross remained true to the Bible. He often said from the pulpit, “The day I’m not allowed to preach the truth of God’s Word from this pulpit, I’ll go find a tree-stump and preach the truth from it!”

A few months later, the church voted him out as pastor. Furthermore, that same group let it be known that anyone who wanted that kind of pastor wasn’t welcome back either.

Pastor Ross’s phone rang again and again during the following days. “What are we going to do?” came the question from many new converts who no longer had a church home. Finally, it was decided that a Sunday service should be held and one of the families offered their home as a meeting place. Thirty-four people assembled together on Sunday morning, May 13, 1973 in a borrowed living room.

When Pastor Ross arrived to conduct the service, there was a surprise awaiting him. One of the men had taken the time to secure a stump from a nearby woods. From that stump this dear brother made a pulpit for his preacher. Some dirt hung from its roots, sap dripped slowly out of its bark, and a few ants crawled up and down its length, but Pastor Ross thought that it was beautiful. And from that old tree-stump pulpit, the truth rang out once again and a church was birthed that day, Blessed Hope Baptist Church of Jasonville, Indiana.

The Bus Ministry has always been an intricate part of history ofBlessed Hope Baptist Church. At present, our church runs four buses and two vans every Sunday, scouring the “highways and byways” in our rural Indiana setting, and bringing in many boys and girls, teenagers and even entire families to the services.

However, it all started back in May of 1974 with the purchase of our first bus, a bus we all affectionately called, “Friendly Freddie”. At our church’s 30^th anniversary held on May 11, 2003, the following story was read about the first bus the church ever owned.

The first old school bus Blessed Hope Baptist Church purchased back in 1974 is somewhat of a legend around out church. No one seems to remember why we decided to paint it a bright, fire-engine red with white stripes, but all of the old timers remember its name. Yes, they gave that first old bus a name. It was christened, Friendly Freddie.

Friendly Freddie’s first bus captain was the pastor of that new church. Pastor Robert Ross had such a burden to reach children and teenagers for the Lord and, as usual, he led by example. I was a pre-teen at the time, and can still remember riding Freddie to youth activities and special meetings. That little bus (a 36 passenger most think) criss-crossed the surrounding townships every Sunday, picking up people of all ages and bringing them to the church house. I found in the church archives some old, hand cranked mimeographed handouts with a hand-drawn, animated sketch of Freddie complete with headlight eyes and a big smile on its grill. Below the picture the caption read, “COME RIDE FRIENDLY FREDDIE!!!” Untold numbers rode that old bus on Sunday. Many climbed on that bus, lost and without Christ as their Savior, but returned home saved, having heard the gospel and receiving the free gift of salvation.

The miles began to accumulate on the old bus and as the church grew, other buses were purchased and painted that same red and white. Soon Friendly Freddie was retired and put up for sale. No one really remembers who bought the old bus. I mentioned to a few of our members that it would be fun to find it and get a memento from him – the steering wheel or one of its mirrors – to have at the church’s 30^th anniversary celebration. Soon everyone was telling me where an old red and white, BHBC bus was abandoned in a field or resting in some old scrap yard. I visited all I could find, but was still unable to say if any of them was Freddie for sure. Each though, was a shrine of sorts, all descendents of that first friendly bus. I could not help but wish that each one could tell its stories. I wished each grill could smile and talk. As I stood by these old chariots of God, I could almost hear the laughter of the children who rode them, the songs shouted and sung up and down the gravel roads and paved highways of Greene County.

Now every Sunday, four buses and two vans, all painted to resemble Friendly Freddie, leave Blessed Hope and head out to every corner of our community. Different people now man them, but much has not changed – same songs, same contests, same excitement, same Bible, same Gospel, same love, same compassion, same results. Boys and girls are still getting saved and people’s lives are still being transformed.

Every number represents a person. We rejoice in all that God has allowed us to do, and every person whose life we have been able to impact. In heaven will be revealed the number of people who truly met Christ as their Saviour as a result of some service or outreach of Blessed Hope Baptist Church. We do not worry about such things, but only want to continue to plant and water and then rejoice when God gives the increase.

Below is a summery of the attendance records of the Sunday morning 10:30 preaching services of Blessed Hope Baptist Church since its conception in 1973.

YEAR	AVERAGE ATTENDANCE	HIGH DAY
1973	38	53 present on July 22
1974	53	106 present on November 24
1975	94	133 present on October 19
1976	156	221 present on December 19
1977	208	221 present on December 19
1978	220	314 present on March 5
1979	228	314 present on April 15
1980	249	320 present on March 30
1981	245	329 present on April 12
1982	244	311 present on August 2
1983	235	292 present on April 3
1984	214	257 present on January 15
1985	208	307 present on April 7
1986	203	268 present on March 30
1987	204	235 present on Mar 22 & Dec 20
1988	192	224 present on October 9
1989	181	277 present on April 30
1990	153	221 present on May 13
1991	188	239 present on March 31
1992	180	230 present on April 19
1993	188*	251 present on June 15
1994	198	240 present on March 20
1995	200	269 present on March 26
1996	196	250 present on December 22
1997	222	277 present on October 26
1998	220	274 present on April 12
1999	223	314 present on June 13
2000	218	310 present on October 1
2001	223	274 present on December 2
2002	227	258 present on October 6
2003	241	423 present on May 11
2004	249	285 present on April 25
2005	252	343 present on March 27
2006	253	340 present on April 9
2007	244	314 present on April 8
2008	257	443 present on May 11
2009	260	328 present on April 12th
2010	281	377 present on October 10th
2011	289	665 present on May 1st

We are thankful for the men who have led our church, the Senior Pastors, both former and present.

“And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord and admonish you; and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves.” I Thessalonians 5:12-13

Pastor Robert was used of the Lord to organize the Blessed Hope Baptist Church. He is the founding pastor and also started the Blessed Hope Baptist School in August of 1977. He served with his wife, Donna, and his four children, Lori, Bob, Jerry and David.

Pastor Al Jewell was originally from Delaware. He served with his wife, Margaret, and children, Michele, Pam and Albert. Tom Fry served under him as an assistant pastor.

Pastor Stan Kiefer served faithfully with his wife, Joyce, and his children Jeremy, Jason, Amy, and Joel.

Pastor Robert Ross, the founder of Blessed Hope Baptist Church, was recalled as pastor in February of 1991. At that time, he was serving as the pastor of the Wilfred Baptist Church in Sullivan County, Indiana. When he agreed to return to Blessed Hope, the Wilfred Baptist Church and Blessed Hope Baptist Church voted unanimously to merge together. Pastor Ross served with his wife, Donna. Pastor Jerry Ross served under him as assistant pastor.

Pastor Jerry Ross began serving as the assistant pastor of Blessed Hope Baptist Church in April of 1994. He began serving as Senior Pastor in July of 2005. Brother Jonathan Ryser serves under him as assistant pastor.

Many folks prayed for our May 1st Sunday. We chose the theme, "Be ONE of 501 on 5-01". The congregation set a goal to do what we had never done in the 38 year history of our church -- have over 500 in attendance on the property, at our 10:30 AM preaching services. God blessed and gave us 665 in attendance with 36 people trusting Jesus as Saviour. Click on the provided link and enjoy the pictures from our special Sunday