by Doug Frazier

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We at First Baptist Church, Woodstock (FBCW) had recently changed our Sunday morning schedule, moving from two services to one and placing Sunday School after worship. As I sat in my office waiting for Sunday School classes to dismiss, I noticed shadows moving toward a rear sanctuary door. What big shadows they proved to be.

I opened the door and was greeted by four well-dressed gentlemen. I invited them into my office, explaining the worship service had ended. After greeting them, I explained the schedule change and apologized for wasting their time. What transpired in the next hour proved this was a divine appointment.

They represented a group of Ethiopian Christians living around Woodstock and Shenandoah County who had been meeting on Zoom and in the home of one of their leaders. The group had grown to about 40 persons, so they were looking for a place to meet. FBCW had been approached by church groups looking for a meeting place before; but for a variety of reasons, we were unable to accommodate.

So I listened to their story. I was struck by their passion for the Lord, for the heart they had for reaching people with the message of Christ, and by their gentle, humble attitudes. I realized we had a kinship as fellow believers and a passion to reach people for God’s kingdom. I began to ask myself, Is God up to something?

My background and training as a NAMB Church Planter Strategist, working for BGAV, and associational work kicked into gear. I found myself in the role of the “person of peace” (Luke 10:6) for whom I had always taught church planters to look.

They had selected a name for the church: Rehoboth Ethiopian Church. They had approached other venues for a place to meet and had been turned down again and again—until now.

“He [Isaac] named it [the well] Rehoboth and said, ‘For now the Lord has made space for us, and we will be fruitful in the land.’”-- Genesis 26:22b CSB

“We had searched for a place that God had in store for us, and our leaders met Pastor Doug, who welcomed us to share his church with open arms,” recalled Yeabsira Ashebo. Ever since then God has sent many blessings our way, and now we have a church called Rehoboth Ethiopian Church where we all can get together for the Lord.”

Many of the Ethiopians in our county work in poultry processing. Dergaso “Dergu” Bachore has worked for the same poultry processor for 10 years. Now a US citizen, he is a human relations administrator. The company does not recruit for workers in Ethiopia, but he has travelled to pockets of Ethiopian populations in the region and recruited for them to relocate to the Shenandoah Valley for work. Since he is often the first contact in the area for new arrivals, if they ask about a place to worship, he is ready to give an answer!

Since the Rehoboth Church started meeting at FBCW in July 2024, they have grown by about 20% in attendance. The worship is lively, with lots of congregational involvement. They meet in prayer every Saturday evening and gather for prayer 30 minutes before the worship service begins at noon on Sundays. Many worshippers hang around after worship, dancing, singing, praising the God who provided them a home for their church.

First Baptist and Rehoboth have developed a love for one another. At a recent baptism, the two churches shared the service where eight persons were baptized—four from each church. The joy in the room was palpable.

When meeting with leadership, I asked about some of the technical realities: Have they secured tax exempt status? Do they have a federal tax ID? Do they have plans to develop a constitution and bylaws? When they inquired about some of these issues, I told them they wouldn’t have to create these things from scratch—perhaps they might consider aligning their church with a larger denomination. After reflecting on this and having a church vote, they decided to align themselves with BGAV, so they could lean heavily on the expertise available in these matters.

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Skip Wallace, our BGAV field strategist, gave strong guidance to the church as they weighed their options. Once their decision was made, we planned a “welcome to BGAV” worship service. It was a wonderful afternoon of worship and fellowship, as Skip Wallace and I welcomed them into partnership with more than 1,300 other BGAV churches.

Now that they have become a BGAV-participating church, they have decided to change their name of to Rehoboth Evangelical Church, with the hope of widening their front door to a larger audience. It’s clearly evident now: God is definitely up to something in Woodstock, VA.

“Since finding a church, I have grown so much being part of a community has brought discipline and focus to my life,” commented Abenezer Nekaro. “I have even discovered new talents, like playing piano and running sound systems which I use to praise God. I’m so grateful for church.”

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Doug Frazier is the senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Woodstock, VA, a BGAV-participating church.