Sunday was dedication Sunday at Open Door Fellowship. Interim Pastor J.P. Handy cited Second Chronicles chapter 7 as the basis of the dedication. This chapter details King Solomon’s dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem.

Handy told the congregation “in Solomon’s time the people saw the glory of God fill the temple.” He added, “We’re dedicating more than a building today. We the people must first rededicate ourselves to the Lord.” And he said, “We can dedicate the building, but if we ourselves are not dedicated to the Lord, we just have a nice shiny building.”

At the beginning of the service, former Open Door pastor Tom Smith told those gathered, “this church is an answer to prayer.” Smith recalled the founding of Open Door back in 2006, that 102 charter members had met at the American Legion Hall in the beginning. He also told the history of the church’s prior location and the acquisition of the present land and old sanctuary building.

Smith challenged the church “None of this is by accident. Life is a relay race. We have to hand the baton to someone else.”

Open Door Fellowship has been holding services in the new facility for about a month. They are located on 40 acres on Esparanza Road.