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Tri County Bible Church – This is our History. . .

“I will build my church . . .”

On December 29, 1995, a small group of believers met in a private residence to discuss their mutual concern about identifying with a local church. All who gathered that day had visited a number of local assemblies, but did not sense the peace of God about committing themselves to any one body. They could not discern a niche where they would have an opportunity for service. When the thought of establishing a new local assembly entered the discussion, the group immediately sensed the power and presence of the Holy Spirit, and the indescribable peace that confirmed a true leading of the Lord.

“How shall they hear without a preacher…”

A representative of the group called Lee Hallman to ask about his availability to pastor a new local assembly. Pastor Hallman marveled that just two hours before this call, he learned that God had wondrously provided for him a replacement to assume pastoral responsibilities for the assembly of believers resulting from a church planting ministry in North Carolina. Lee knew that this invitation to pastor was a Divine arrangement, and he accepted the call to shepherd the new assembly.

“And all that believed were together…”

The very next morning, Sunday, December 30, 1995, a group of 29 people gathered in the Stroble home in Harleysville for worship and fellowship. Realizing that they needed a larger facility, the group, by now calling themselves the Tri-County Bible Church, rented a conference room at the Holiday Inn Express Motel in Pottstown for Sunday morning, January 14, 1996. Fifty-four people came out for that first worship service in a public place, and sixty came the second Sunday. Already they know they would outgrow that facility, and thus they made arrangements to meet in the Trumpet Museum in Kenilworth. Our God is faithful! In amazing ways, the Holy Spirit led different ones to assume leadership roles in the music ministry and the children’s ministry. The charter members chose men to serve as Directors, enabling the church to pursue incorporation in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

“And the Lord added to the church…”

The Kenilworth facility accommodated the new assembly until November of 1996, at which time the congregation moved to the North Coventry Elementary School in Hanover Heights, a property ultimately purchased by the West-Mont Christian Academy. The congregation grew to an average Sunday morning attendance of 150 worshippers. Since the church was growing, the leadership felt that it was necessary to establish various ministries to accommodate the needs of the families in the church. In order to do that, it became a priority to seek the Lord’s guidance in finding a building that could be called home. After actively pursuing various possibilities and closed doors, the Lord provided for the purchase of the current facility in Gilbertsville in the spring of 2000.

“My God shall supply all your need…”

At first glance, it appeared that the $350,000 asking price for the Gilbertsville property was far out of reach. In ways made possible only by the great faithfulness of our Heavenly Father, we were able to make settlement on the property in April of 2000 and begin having worship services in that same month. To God is the glory! In the years since moving in, we have been able to make many enhancements to the facility, not the least of which were the remodeling of classrooms for additional teaching stations and the beautiful patio with the gazebo this past summer. These projects were made possible by the wonderful willingness of many volunteer workers to provide the labor. As we wait upon the Lord and seek His guidance, we hope to continue improvements that will enable us to maximize our efforts to glorify our Savior.

“Without a vision, the people perish…”

Even greater than all the amazing provisions of building, supplies, and equipment is the joy of seeing God build His church with living stones, the souls of men and women, teenagers, and boys and girls. What a joy to welcome people into our assembly with a common vision to glorify our Beloved Savior. The unique vision of our assembly is to be a GROUND LEVEL, LEVEL GROUND church. Our personality is to make all people feel welcome; we see differences in people as strength and welcome all who want to follow secure in sharing with each other, and they pray fervently for each other. We try to meet people where they are, providing Biblical counsel to deal with the common everyday problems and challenges of life. We truly praise God for this assembly of believers who are carrying out the Great Commission of our Beloved Savior and touching our world with the love of God.

To God be the Glory!