History

Some excerpts taken from the "History of Frenchport Community Church," by Betty Moore.

Around the year 1936, Joe and Ida Rowland and Sister Maude Wilson became Christians in a little one-room schoolhouse at Pigeon Hill near Strong, AR, with Sister Hall preaching a revival. The Lord called Sister Maude to preach. She didn't drive a car, so Joe and Ida Rowland took her to the revivals all around southern Arkansas.

Joe Rowland built a brush arbor in the Frenchport community, where the church is now located. A lot of meetings were held in this brush arbor. In some of the meetings, the Holy Spirit was so strong that it shook the top of the arbor (everyone thought it was raining). In 1949, the Lord spoke to Joe Rowland to build a church, so with the help from his son, Robert, and others, they built the one room building on the land that was donated by Dale and Betty Moore. Sister Maude was the preacher; Joe Rowland did the preliminaries; and Sandra Moore Parker was the pianist. Sister Maude passed away in 1969, and Elray Fife took over as pastor. After they resigned, Mack Ables became pastor in 1977. He was pastor when the new Frenchport CommunityChurch was built in 1982. He resigned after serving seven years.  The dedication of the new church drew a crowd of approximately 300 people.

The church has since undergone many changes and updates. The original sanctuary built by Joe Rowland still stands. 

Frenchport Community Church has been busy reaching the lost for Christ. Just a few years ago the church had a television ministry with weekly broadcasts of the services on the local cable network. Frenchport Community Church supports many missionaries and has always had a heart for those in the field winning the lost to Jesus. The members raised funds to construct a church in Haiti in memory of Marie Moore, through International Missions Outreach (IMO), a foreign mission the church has supported since 1979. Members have taken mission trips to YWAM Houston; IMO and other organizations to further the message of Jesus.

The church has also undergone many construction changes. The most recent additions have been the construction of a playground and multi-purpose facility. The multi-purpose facility, or Family Life Center (FLC), is currently under construction, but the building is being used for fellowships, women's conferences, Youth Ministries and Children's church.

Frenchport Community Church is a non-denominational church and is affiliated with the Full Gospel Evangelistic Association (FGEA)..

Frenchport Community Church is rich in history and effectiveness. The lives of many people all over the world have been affected by the obedience of those God called to start Frenchport Community Church and we are continuing to impact every generation for a lifetime.