History of BBC
In the fall of 1981, a small group of people from the Brenham area met for a home Bible study. At this meeting, they discussed the importance of the expository study of God's Word. In the spring of 1982, another home Bible study met. This time the specific purpose of the meeting was to discern God's will and to discover the community's desire for a new Bible church that would emphasize expository preaching and teaching. Kyle Woodruff, alumni of Dallas Theological Seminary and engineer for the Lower Colorado River Authority, began teaching Ephesians. The study met on Sunday evenings in the home of Kenneth and Theresa Long.
After a time of prayer and counsel, the group decided to move forward with a church plant. In the summer of 1982, Joe Wall, who at the time was pastor of Spring Branch Community Church in Houston and president of Church Multiplication Ministries, offered to help this new church plant and began a six week study, also from the book of Ephesians. Thirty to forty people attended this study with Joe Wall. The study was held in Sleepy Hollow Studio, which Brenham Bible Church purchased a few years later. The church still meets in this same facility.
In the fall of 1982, the evening Bible study switched to a Sunday morning worship service. A children's church began meeting in the home of Kenneth and Theresa Long. Wayne Martin, lay minister from Spring Branch Community Church, began serving as the interim pastor. Unfortunately, Martin's physical health prevented him from continuing in this new role after two months. Kyle Woodruff took over the primary teaching role. During this time, the church filed Articles of Incorporation, and Brenham Bible Church was officially born.
In the summer of 1983, the church began to seek its first full-time pastor. Spring Branch Community Church and Katy Bible Church served as parent churches and provided leadership, counsel and financial assistance. With financial assistance from these two churches along with monthly grants from one foundation, the church was able to search for a full-time pastor. In July of 1983, Randy Crook was called as the church's first full-time pastor.
Over the next ten years, the church experienced a series of ups and downs not uncommon for church plants. Through it all, the Lord continued to bless this local church, and its vision to reach people in the Brenham community with Word of God continued. The highlight of this time was the purchase of the Sleepy Hollow Studio in 1988, which was renovated and the auditorium enlarged.
In the spring of 1993, the congregation voted to adopt Brenham Christian Academy as a ministry of the church. The school was in the very early stages of organization and began that fall with about 40 students in grades 6 through 10. Diane Keller became as the school's first Headmaster.
During the fall of 1993, the church purchased the house next to the church building. The house and garage were remodeled and used for classrooms, libraries and office space for Brenham Christian Academy. Over the next several years, the church continued to grow. They added an associate pastor to the staff and expanded various ministries and programs. In 1995 the church acquired a tract of land on Loop 577 from an anonymous donor. This land eventually became the present home of Brenham Christian Academy.
In February of 1997, the church joined the Evangelical Free Church denomination. In July of that same year, the congregation celebrated 15 years of God's faithfulness and ministry to and through the people who have been Brenham Bible Church.
Woody Woodward became the church's second full-time pastor in 2000. He and his wife, Tracey took over the worship leadership and also led the high school youth program. Dan Plesha also joined the pastoral staff, becoming Brenham Bible Church's first worship pastor. His wife, Sandi, is from Ecuador and immediately after their arrival, BBC developed a new mission focus, taking trips from BBC to Ecuador during the summers.
In 2007, Clover Carroll, the church's current Youth and Family Minister, joined the staff. Over time, Clover also took over the responsibility of leading worship on Sundays. In the spring of 2008, Woody Woodward accepted a call to a church in the Houston area and Dr. J.B. Hixson became the interim pastor on April 13, 2008.
Sensing the Lord's clear direction, and recognizing the unlimited potential to impact the community through the ministry of Brenham Bible Church, Dr. Hixson became the church's third full-time pastor on January 1, 2009. J.B., his wife, Wendy, and their six children live in Washington, TX. While serving as Senior Pastor, Dr. Hixson continues to teach courses for Grace School of Theology in The Woodlands, Texas. The school also has launched a satellite campus on-site at Brenham Bible Church, with Master's level Bible and Theology courses offered in the Spring, Summer and Fall semesters.
The mission of Brenham Bible Church is: To build an ever growing team of fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ. As we enter our 27th year of existence in the Brenham community, Brenham Bible Church continues to fulfill this mission by proclaiming the Gospel clearly and accurately, and by teaching the Word of God to those who are already believers. Romans 10:17 reminds us that "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." We believe that for those who are lost, the faith to be saved comes by hearing the Word of God; and likewise faith for those who are already saved, growing up into spiritual maturity also comes by hearing the Word of God.
We invite you to come join us in this mission!
