by Dr. James Ray, President & General Director

Fredericksburg is no stranger to greatness. George Washington grew up on the outskirts of the city. The house of Mary Washington, George’s mother, still stands in the center of town. Robert E. Lee fought here. Thousands of Civil War heroes from North and South lie buried here in the national cemetery.

During the days of the battle of Fredericksburg there was a great revival among the Confederate Armies. Men of God came into the camp and held Gospel meetings. Bibles were distributed. The soldiers knew that death was near and for many of them - eminent. In the great book “Christ in the Camp,” a soldier described the moving of the Spirit of God in the camps at Fredericksburg as a mighty revival. Hundreds responded to the invitation to accept Christ.

Here in Fredericksburg, on January 13 – 17, 1777, a committee appointed by the General Assembly of Virginia approved a document, authored by Thomas Jefferson, that guaranteed religious freedom.

Recently this author held meetings in Fredericksburg. He too felt the Spirit of God – the same Spirit of God that moved here long ago during the dark days of the Civil War.

The meetings were held at a local church, which began in 1975. In that year a young couple, with their suitcases, came into the city with a vision of building a Bible-believing church. They knew few people and had practically no resources, but they knew GOD.

As Don Forrester spoke from the pulpit, I watched his wife, Shirley. She hung on to every word. Her expression was one of heart and soul with her husband. So much had happened in those years of faith between 1975 and now. The church had become one of the great churches of the State of Virginia. Appropriately, the church was named Faith Baptist Church. Every service was packed, with two morning services on Sunday. The church supports over 100 missionaries. The membership has reached the 400 mark. A large Christian school has been established with 425 students.

There is a large full-time-staff with workers and teachers who are all intensely loyal. Dr. Forrester is now president of the Bible College sponsored by the church.

He is a graduate of West Texas State University and Temple Baptist Seminary, having earned the degrees of M.RE, D.RE, D.ED. Through the years this pastor has been instrumental in starting churches out of his original work and has helped other pastors as they started their own works.

Later, in conversation, I asked Don Forrester if he originally had a vision of all that has happened. He replied, “Yes. Recently I found some old notes detailing what I wanted to do. Almost every goal has been achieved.” Don Forrester had some churches that had agreed to support him for a period of six months. The church in Fredericksburg was started in a townhouse. The church then moved to a one-bedroom house, which had an unfinished basement, no heat and bare walls. The building was waiting for a roof.

A great test came at this point. In December of that year everything that could go wrong went wrong. During a great windstorm the roofing paper blew off. Not understanding that the paper was useless, Don and his wife, Shirley, chased the blowing pieces of paper, placing boards on the paper to hold it down. In the process Shirley caught pneumonia. With no insurance the couple could only rely on friends to nurse her back to health. Attendance was going down.

The final test came in a letter from a supporting church. The pastor told the Forresters that he was dropping their support because a year had passed and the church had not become self supporting. He strongly urged the Forresters to consider another ministry as God was obviously not in their ministry of church planting. It was an honest opinion.

From out of the darkness came the strength to go on. They concluded that the call of God was real and nothing would make them turn back.

Don and Shirley were discouraged. The unfinished building, the low attendance, the serious physical condition of Shirley, and now the letter urging them to quit were almost overwhelming. The couple felt that they should at least consider the option of giving up their quest to build a church in Fredericksburg. They talked and prayed. Their minds went back to the day that God had called them. From out of the darkness came the strength to go on. They concluded that the call of God was real and nothing would make them turn back. Sink or swim they would go forward. There would be no turning back. Miraculously, the tide turned immediately.

By the 19th of January the congregation moved into the building. The building was completely finished by Easter. From the point of discouragement in December, by April attendance increased from 40 to 110. The great lesson from it all, according to Don Forrester, was “When things seem the darkest, don’t quit – victory may be just around the corner.”

After one and a half years the church had grown to 110 in number. At that point he became full-time in the work.

Don Forrester began his work with a heart for the world. On the day the church was officially organized, there were two main items of business. The first was to call him as a full-time pastor. The second was to take on their first missionary. His philosophy was that missions was the thing closest to the heart of God. If the church were to prosper, missions would have to be central.

The people who have come into the ministry of this work have caught the vision. Don mentioned one man in the church who drove a car 400,000 miles before changing so that the extra money could go to missions. Missionaries have been called from the church membership and are serving overseas.

The ministry of Don and Shirley Forrester touches the world through the great missionary enterprises of Faith Baptist Church and its members.

Don took us on a tour of his city, historic Fredericksburg, Virginia. His sense of history and knowledge of the area was impressive. He spoke of the Baptists and their fight for religious freedom.

What Don Forrester saw when he came to Virginia —

— He saw the need of the human heart.

— He saw sinners in need of a Saviour.

— He saw broken people in need of healing.

— He saw lives shattered by sin – that needed peace.

— He saw little children in need of a Christian school.

— He saw young men who needed training for the ministry.

— He saw the world – the millions of China, Romania, Europe, Africa and more.

Don Forrester — a man of vision — with a focus surpassing the ordinary. Remarkable when you consider…

.. that DON FORRESTER is blind.