A Word from Our Pastor, Rev. Gary F. Rothwell
Welcome to Creekwood Baptist Church, a new Christian
ministry in the quickly vanishing corn and bean fields of eastern Rockford.
Creekwood was the vision of an established church to move from their inner city
location and begin a new church that would minister to the spiritual, emotional,
relational, and physical needs of the expanding housing and business areas of
eastern Rockford. Our goal is to provide a holistic ministry to all ages, all
types of families, in an ethnically and racially mixed environment as we share
the love of Jesus Christ in both word and deed.
Personally, I was first attracted to the Creekwood family when I sensed their love for one another and their commitment to work together to accomplish their vision. I wanted to be part of these healthy relationships and join in a ministry that I felt would make a significant difference in the lives of many people. Creekwood had completed the first phase of a three phase building program of their ministry center. I came as their pastor in August of 2002 and am excited about what we are doing.
In June 2005 we completed the second phase of our ministry center by adding a gymnasium and eight additional classrooms. This allows us to better match our ministry to the ages of the adults and children to whom we are ministering. The gym is used to help us expand not only our monthly children's ministry and youth programs to become a year round ministry, but will also minister to the physical needs of all our members and friends of all ages.
Because of our desire to reach all ages, we have chosen a blended worship style with both contemporary and traditional music. We have a choir as well as a worship team, piano as well as organ, drums as well as hand bells and chimes. Our worship center is decorated with a stunning hand-made cross as well as beautiful praise banners. Our preaching and teaching of God's eternal truths found in the Bible are directed toward application into our everyday family lives and work situations.
Our ministries are expanding from the established Sunday School for all ages and our Youth Program into new ministries that are meeting other needs. These ministries include a mentoring ministry for women, and another one for men, a Marriage Builders for couples seeking to grow in their relationships, and marriage training for couples considering marriage. We also have an active men's and women's ministries and children's choir, providing a fun night at church for children ages 4-11.
Whether you are just exploring what it means to be a Christian or have followed
the teachings of Jesus for many years, we invite you to come and visit Creekwood.
Just like the congregations new start, Creekwood is a place of new beginnings,
new friends, new experiences, new knowledge and life skills, and new challenges.
It is a place where you can share your own experiences and gifts to help change
our community and the world as we seek to know Jesus Christ and make Him known.
In Christ's love,
Pastor Gary
MEET OUR PASTOR
Pastor Gary Rothwell comes to Creekwood Baptist Church from New Jersey
where he was pastor of Scotch Plains Baptist Church. He was also the pastor of Temple
Baptist Church in the San Francisco Bay Area and managed the Oakland office
of the Bay Area Billy Graham Crusade in 1997. He has served in the US Army as
an Air Defense Artillery Officer and as an American Baptist endorsed Chaplain.
He retired from the reserves at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in 1998. He has
a Masters of Divinity from Golden Gate Baptist theological Seminary in Mill
Valley, California. His undergraduate degree is in math and physics from Ouachita
Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas.
Pastor Rothwell's original roots are in southern Arkansas where he committed his life to Christ at the age of nine in the First Baptist church of Fordyce. Pastor Gary felt his call to the ministry even earlier in his life. He recalls lining up his stuffed animals and "preaching" to them as a young boy. He surrendered to the gospel ministry while at church camp as a youth in high school. This call to ministry was affirmed by the First Baptist Church of El Paso, Texas. He was later ordained by Temple Baptist Church in Richmond, California on August 7, 1988.
He attended graduate school in Texas and spent extended time in Germany while on active duty in the service. His wife, Carol, joins him in many ministry related opportunities. Together they conduct marriage training and enrichment sessions both for individual and groups of couples. He likes to play golf, fish, garden, and travel back roads. Carol is employed part time at a local Financial Planning firm. She leads Creekwood’s Children’s Worship, and also is a trained volunteer counselor for Crown Financial Ministries. In her spare time, Carol enjoys the out of doors, gardening, and scrapbooking.