Lighthouse Baptist Chapel (Texas)
Lighthouse Baptist Chapel is a Southern Baptist congregation located northeast of the city of Frankston, Texas, a small community southwest of Tyler near Lake Palestine.
The congregation was originally formed in 1974 under the name Lakeside Baptist Church, and built the congregation's notable sanctuary (which, as a nod to the area, resembles a boat standing on its back end). However, by 2015 the congregation was down to only five people, who called themselves "the board", decided to meet as a house church but never officially disbanded, and managed to pay the utilities and keep the property mowed.
But in May 2017, George Folmer returned to the area (of which he was a native) and wondered what had happened to the church. By "divine coincidence" he met one of the members at a local Christian bookstore in Tyler; ultimately Folmer was called as the pastor, given the church checkbook (with $800), and set about to rebuild the congregation with just himself, his wife and three remaining members who decided to return. Miraculously, every time Folmer needed funds to do needed repairs on the building, money would come in, enough to pay the bills for the day.
The congregation reopened under its current name in July 2017 and continues to receive miracles (such as a donated portable building, which serves as the church office, and $35,000 of excavation work donated for free). The congregation runs around 65 people and has plans to build a larger sanctuary on the property (which is located on the main road between Tyler and Lake Palestine), as of 2021 the church completed the shell of the new sanctuary (completely debt free).
