Walnut Grove Missionary Baptist Church History

The Walnut Grove Missionary Baptist Church, (formerly known as Little Walnut Grove Missionary Baptist Church), was probably established a few years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Our forefathers, under the leadership of the Reverend Caleb Barker, organized The Little Walnut Grove Missionary Baptist Church, having neither land, money, or building material. The church was located at its present location, known as “Brush Harbor” around the year of 1871. Under the “Brush Harbor” the Church continued to worship God and their faith grew and spread throughout the community. On August 17, 1886, one acre of land was purchased for twenty-five dollars from Mr. T.H. and E.P. Manson. The purpose of this land was to build a church and school building, out of logs. The school was located next to the church. In 1921, under the leadership of Reverend John Coleman, a new church was erected and the church services were held there for the next 55 years. Meanwhile, Reverend J.E. Ladd was elected Pastor in April of 1952 and served for 24 years. During his years, the church was steadfast and blessed to remodel the building several times, eventually adding a separate fellowship hall to accommodate growth.

Dr. Leroy Burgess was called to pastor the church in March of 1976. Under Pastor Burgess’ leadership, the ministry experienced exponential growth, requiring them to expand their facilities in December of 1976. Likewise, in 1991, the church was remodeled and shortly after, the Walnut Grove Outreach Ministry was established. On July 22, 1995, The Walnut Grove Alcohol and Drug Teaching Ministry was opened, to assist substance abusers in overcoming addictions. Both ministries care for the spiritual and physical needs of all those who seek help at no charge. In 1993, due to even more growth in membership, the sanctuary was once again enlarged to seat approximately 500 worshippers and other new additions were added. Finally, in 1994, the Lord blessed us to purchase 27.3 acres of land. On July 21, 1998, we broke ground, building our present facility: the sanctuary has the capacity to seat 1200 worshippers, upper and lower classrooms, multi-purpose rooms, a gymnasium, fellowship hall, full service kitchen and adequate office space. Pastor Burgess was a firm proponent of the authority of scripture and of the centrality of Jesus Christ. He led the ministry to become a full-service church, serving the needs of the people. Accordingly, he instituted approximately 25 Christian service programs for the betterment of the community and of the church. He actively involved the church in missionary work throughout the United States and overseas.

Dr. Carl E. Livingston a son of Walnut Grove, was called to Pastor in February of 2003. Pastor Livingston has lead the ministry to new growth in the Spirit and in the Word. He is committed to the task of expositional preaching and teaching and the clear delivery of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He does this with the express intent of building up healthy Christians in their most holy faith. Pastor Livingston places a tremendous emphasis on the Great Commission and Great Commandant, as he encourages the people of God to pursue souls for Christ and to love one another as themselves. In addition, Pastor Livingston has integrated a variety of relative ministries into the church’s infrastructure and has successfully launched the ministry into the 21st century. During his tenure, he has led the ministry in new growth: spiritually, numerically, and financially. On his watch, the church was blessed to dissolve its $1.5 million mortgage and to fund several renovation projects. Under his leadership, the church received recognition two years in a row as the best Baptist Church in Clarksville by the Clarksville Chamber of Commerce. Pastor Livingston was the first pastor in the churches’ history to serve in the military as a chaplain with the U.S. Army Reserves. He subsequently was activated for deployment to Operation Enduring Freedom in 2010. During that time, our associate Pastor, Reverend Vernon L. Harbin served faithfully and successfully as Interim Pastor (2010-2011). This was a smooth transition which included a godly and successful transfer of leadership, when Pastor Livingston returned in September of 2011. This experience expanded the depth and width of the ministry and contributed to a broadened sphere of leadership. To God belongs all the glory as we continue to march forward in pursuit of the high calling of God which is in Christ Jesus.

STILL ON THE MOVE FOR GOD!