Hi, I'm Keoni!
God is authoring an incredible story here in West Michigan, and we're humbled to be a part of it.
We'd love to learn more about how God has worked in your story. And if you don't have a church home, we want to explore with you whether Grace is where God wants you for this next chapter.
ENCOUNTER
GOD
God’s Word reveals God-initiated encounters that begin in a Garden and end in the Eternal City. We believe these encounters have transformed lives and the course of human history all because God is gracious and merciful. Therefore, we want to call everyone to encounter God in His Word daily and weekly for His worship and for transformed lives, homes, and communities.
Genesis 1:27-31; 12:1-3; Exodus 2:1-3:22; Malachi 1:1; Matthew 4:18-22; Acts 9:1-21; John 1:14
TRAIN
THE FOUND
Jesus modeled intentional training with his disciples that focused on their spiritual maturity. Ephesians 4:11-14 teaches us that the church is responsible for training the people of God for ministry and toward spiritual maturity. So, we believe our responsibility as a church is to intentionally train followers of Jesus to grow in their love for God with all their heart, soul, mind, and body.
Ephesians 4:14; 2 Timothy 2:2; 3:16-17; 4:7-8; 1 Corinthians 9:27
SEEK
THE LOST
We believe that every Christian is called to make disciples who make disciples. The New Testament model of multiplication is to proclaim the message of the Gospel through intentional evangelistic ministries (large and small scale) that seek to reach the lost/unchurched/dechurched in a city/town or region. Our desire is to follow that model to reach Hudsonville, surrounding communities, and our region with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Romans 10:12-15
TRUTH DRIVEN,
SPIRIT LED
Jesus said that "true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth” (John 4:23). He also said that "when the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth" (John 16:13).
We want to live our whole lives this way, worshiping him with our eyes on his Word and our ears attentive to the Spirit's help to see clearly and obey.
FAMILY FIRST,
MISSION ALWAYS
Jesus told his disciples to "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations...teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:19).
This teaching starts in our families. We believe that monitoring the health of our families at home and our church body is part and parcel of the mission.
LIVE LIKE JESUS,
LEAD LIKE JESUS
Jesus said, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Matthew 4:19). He also said, "Whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:27–28).
We believe that Jesus is our primary example and trust that He will help us be like Him, even in the difficult ways we give our lives away for others.
FOUND PEOPLE,
FIND PEOPLE
Simply put, those who Jesus finds and saves cannot help but go and find others.
This is not just a command but an absolute joy, like when the woman at the well runs into town after being with Jesus and cannot help but share all that he said and promised to her. Many in that town "believed in him because of the woman's testimony...” (John 4:39).
PRAY NOW,
PRAY OFTEN
The apostle Paul wrote to believers to "Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer" (Romans 12:12). In another letter, he wrote, "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
We want to be marked by an earnestness to pray that often causes us to ask ourselves, "Why pray later when I could pray now?"
BEGINNINGS (1935)
Almost 90 years ago, in 1935, a small group of believers calling themselves Wayside Mission stepped out in faith to establish a new church. God was at work in their hearts and their city, and soon, they found a place to meet in a vacant "beer garden." C.M. Beerthuis was the leader of this new venture, and his passion for people and the truth of God's Word was contagious.
Wayside Mission was small, but through the faithfulness of the close-knit families and the teaching of Pastor Beerthuis, it began to grow. A constitution was written, and the official title of Hudsonville Community Church was adopted.
TRANSITIONS (1953–1984)
Over the next few decades, Hudsonville Baptist Church was served by several pastors. Roger Walcott (pictured) served for 13 years from 1971 to 1984, during which time the church grew in its evangelistic fervor.
Jamestown Baptist Church was planted by a number of families wanting to reach another community for Christ closer to where they lived. After a year of being under Hudsonville Baptist Church's "sheltering wing," it became an independent church on June 11, 1978. At the beginning of this period, a new sanctuary was also built and moved into (pictured).
OUR TRAJECTORY (2015–NOW)
God has continued to be faithful to Grace Community Church over the last several years, growing the congregation, leading pastors to Grace who are committed to the Word, and helping the church move toward the communities around them.
Our current lead pastor, Keoni Hughes, accepted God's call into this role in 2019. Along with his commitment to the truths of God's word and the strengthening of this body, he has led our current team of elders and the congregation in the call to make disciples. We want to continue, in greater ways by the Lord's help, our history of multiplying our gospel presence throughout West Michigan and beyond so that others may come to know our great Savior Jesus.
EARLY YEARS (1937–1952)
In 1937, we called our second pastor, John Douglas, who served for 15 years. It wasn't long after he began his ministry that World War II began. The church experienced many ups and downs, including economic hardship, numerous forms of pain, and the war death of John Douglas's son.
The 1950s brought about more stability, and there was a wave of renewal that brought some significant changes. A name change to Hudsonville Baptist Church and the planting of Baldwin Heights Baptist Church in Jenison were a couple of those changes.
NEW VENTURES (1985–2014)
In 1985, Dan (pictured) and Lonette Cummings came to Hudsonville Baptist Church. This period commenced a powerful transition in the church's history as the church began to understand more about grace, the depth of our depravity, and the power of Christ's forgiveness. This transition marked a decision to change the name to something better representing its mission and focus: Grace Community Church.
The church grew in leaps and bounds, breaking ground (1994) on a new building at 3500 New Holland St, which remains our building today. It began evolving from a close-knit, family-oriented church to a broader community more representative of the growing city around it. Dan served as senior pastor for about 15 years, and Steve Krogh served for roughly 15 years as well. The church deepened in its knowledge of the Word and community life.
Learn more about our...
Is Jesus exalted in your heart and life? The Old Testament (the first part of the Bible written thousands of years ago) consistently points to a coming King that will rule forever and save us from our sins (Luke 24:27, 44–47), and this coming King was Jesus.
In John 3, Jesus describes perfectly the mission he was sent for. "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so the Son of man must be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life" (John 3:14–15). Jesus uses a story from the Old Testament to communicate that he will be lifted up on the cross so that everyone who looks upon him will be saved. And this is the Gospel message we have been called to proclaim to everyone around us. Jesus—God in the flesh (John 1:1–14)—has lived the life we could not and died the death we deserved (Romans 6:23; 2 Corinthians 5:21), and rose again as the exalted King where he will remain forever (Philippians 2:6–11).
Our exalted King Jesus has called his disciples to go and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). Our desire is to see all kinds of people in our context come to know and exalt him.
If we truly believe that transformed community begins with seeing Jesus exalted in someone’s heart and home, then we want every heart and every home to be exalting him (Psalm 67:3). Do we have a limited mission mindset, or a limitless mission mindset? We want to give it all and leave it up to Jesus to determine how far we get, for he promises to be with us and working all the way to the end (Matthew 28:20)!
Jesus gives us this limitless mission mindset not only for the people we are commanded to preach the Gospel to (every nation or people) but also for geographical regions.
Acts 1:8 says, “And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem [where they were], in Judea [the surrounding region], in Samaria [the greater district], and the ends of the earth." Start here, go further, don’t stop, keep it going! That Gospel proclamation should halt at some point is not a biblical vision. The Gospel must be proclaimed to every heart and every home—not only in Hudsonville, but also in Georgetown Township, Ottawa County, West Michigan, the Midwest, the country, and the world.
Encounter God | Train the Found | Seek the Lost