SENIOR PASTOR - BLAKE GODBOLD
Pastor Blake Godbold was raised in a Southern Baptist Church in Florence, S.C. He graduated from West Florence High School in 1992 and Florence/Darlington Technical College in 1995. In 1998 he met his wife Bridgette and they were married in 2001. They have two children, Kenzie and Jackson.
On January 27, 2008, Blake was saved by the amazing grace of Jesus Christ and his life was forever changed. In 2010 he was called into ministry as a part-time Youth Pastor at South Florence Baptist Church in Florence, S.C. In 2012, what was a part-time ministry became a full-time ministry. In 2014, Blake became the Pastor of Salem Baptist Church in Bennettsville, S.C. He graduated from Luther Rice College and Seminary in 2014 with a Bachelor of Arts in Religion/Ministry and in 2019 with a Master of Arts in Apologetics. In 2021, he became Senior Pastor of Mizpah Baptist Church, Florence, S.C.
WORSHIP PASTOR - STEPHEN HAND
Stephen Hand’s passion for worship began at a young age having grown up in churches in Florida, Hawaii, California, and Georgia as he is the son of a United States Marine. Fayetteville Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta, is where his family settled and where Stephen graduated High School and his love of music took him to Cedarville University (OH) where he obtained his B.A in Music with an emphasis in Trumpet Performance. It was at Cedarville that Stephen met his lovely and musically talented wife Jessica. Stephen continued his pursuit of music by moving to Boston to continue his graduate studies at Boston University. It was here in Boston that God sparked in Stephen a love for ministry and people as he served part-time at Washington Street Baptist Church in Lynn, MA. After their marriage in 2002, Stephen and Jessica embarked on a life in full-time worship ministry first at First Baptist Church of Fort Lauderdale as the Minister of Instrumental and Student Worship (2002-2009), then to Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, GA (2009-2014) and finally and most recently to Ocean View Baptist Church in Myrtle Beach. The Lord has allowed Stephen to be part of some large-scale ministries such as the 1000+ member Emmy Award-winning Fort Lauderdale Christmas Pageant which was televised annually on PBS to the film score team for the Sherwood Pictures film “Courageous”. In 2013, Stephen’s arrangements, published by Lifeway Worship, were featured in the Sherwood Worship project “Jesus, Hope of the World”. Together, Jessica and Stephen have 4 children - Isaac, Ian, Georgia, and Gabriel. He is an active member of the music scene in the Grand Strand through his involvement with such ensembles as the Long Bay Symphony and the Carolina Master Chorale and as a private trumpet instructor. When not serving at Mizpah, Stephen is an award-winning full-time Realtor with RE/MAX Southern Shores.
THE PURPOSE OF MIZPAH BAPTIST CHURCH
The purpose of Mizpah Baptist Church is to bring God glory through the unity of believers as we carry out the Great Commission of our Lord Jesus Christ as recorded in Matthew 28:19-20, Mark 16:15 and Acts 1:8:
Matthew 28:19-20
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Mark 16:15
And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.”
Acts 1:8
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Christ: Promote worship, teaching, and evangelism. Build discipleship and fellowship.
Community: Daily deploy the saints to be on mission
Celebrate: Jesus.
CHRIST
Promote worship, teaching, and evangelism. Build discipleship and fellowship.
COMMUNITY
Daily deploy the saints to be on mission
CELEBRATE
Jesus
History
The first meeting of what would become Mizpah Baptist Church was held on June 1, 1834. The church grew as it served the community. In 1918, the church closed and most of its members moved to other churches. In 1924 the church was reopened, and it has grown to what it is today. Throughout all the years of Mizpah Baptist Church, its mission has remained the same, to reach the surrounding community and spread the gospel for Jesus Christ!