Bethany Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)  is a recent congregation in a historic faith. Bethany's founders met and decided on May 9, 1982, to establish a new Disciples church in Lakeland.

Bethany purchased five acres on South Pipkin Road in 1984 with the purpose of building a permanent place of worship. Until that time, the church had met in the Labor Union Hall on Brannen Road. Groundbreaking for the first building (now the fellowship hall) took place in mid-1986, and was completed a year later.  The building was dedicated on September 20, 1987.

Rev. Bill Ringgold, a Disciples minister from Ocala, came to serve as Bethany's pastor in 1984.  When he left ten years later, Rev. Paul Walker of First Christian Church became interim minister. His wife, Alice Walker, served as Bethany’s church organist and music minister, a position she held until retiring in 2001.

The mid-1990s saw a need at Bethany for more sanctuary space, additional parking, and a fellowship room. In early 1994, a study commenced to examine the church’s needs and how to meet them. That report was completed in late 1994. Retirement of the first building mortgage in 1995 opened the way for construction of a new building. A committee was formed in 1996 to find an architect and contractor. A fundraising campaign exceeded the building fund goal by the end of the year.

Groundbreaking for Bethany’s “second unit” took place in March 1997. Construction was completed in late 1997. The congregation and invited guests met on March 8, 1998 to dedicate the building to the service of God. The theme of the ceremony was Ephesians 2:13, 19-22. 

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ…

Consequently you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built of the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 

         New International Version

Bethany welcomed a new pastor as it sought to build its new sanctuary. In 1995, Rev. Richard Harvey arrived to serve the congregation as its new minister. Ministers and lay people from fellow Disciples congregations across Florida attended his installation on September 17, 1995.  Anna Harvey was installed as Bethany’s youth minister in 1996.

The photographs on this page reflect the vitality of Bethany Christian Church's life as it has grown in the service of God's people in Lakeland.  Click on a photo to see a larger version here.