The Beginnings of Crossroads
Phil Pippenger is a life-long resident of Bradley County. Not only did he attend Bradley County schools, he taught at the former Trewhitt Junior High (Now Lake Forest Middle) for 11 years. He enjoyed being a health and physical education teacher among 7th and 8th grade students. However, many of the youth would ask him questions about social concerns, current issues, theology, and defending the Christian faith. Phil began praying about what God would desire for his family and himself. After seeking guidance from his church's mission council at Woodland Park Baptist Church, Chattanooga, he set forth to establish Crossroads at Bradley Central High School and Genesis, now also known as Crossroads, at Lake Forest Middle School. These ministries are under the Umbrella of Crossroads of East Tennessee. Phil and his wife Amy hope to equip students in applying God's wisdom to other students on the local campus. This is done in several ways: afternoon inductive Bible studies, the sports chapels, visits to the juvenile center in Cleveland, and student conferences.
The Future of Crossroads
This ministry is designed to create a sense of campus movement. Seeing students sharing their Jesus relationship with others on the local high school campus. There is coordination among area churches (Candies Creek Baptist, Clingan Ridge Baptist, Waterville Baptist, Mt. Carmel Baptist, and Westmore Church of God) beginning to take root in this effort. The Pippenger's mark of ministry comes from a Charles Spurgeon statement that WPBC has adopted, "True ministry is received, not achieved." Whatever God initiates, He will finish. It is Phil's authentic hope that this ministry does not live and die on him. At the same time, he hopes to see God draw people with the similar view of ministry. Rome was not built in a day, so they say; even ministry developed by a local man cannot be built in a matter of days. Building one relationship at a time will stand the test of time.
