Meet the Pastor
Dr. Gary Crawford, Senior Pastor
Dr. Gary Crawford has served Westside Baptist for 31 years. Over the years at Westside Baptist, the Lord has called more than 100 persons into Vocational Ministry and Missions, serving in more than 15 countries and 9 states. Westside has multiple partnerships around the world and Gary has served on mission trips to numerous countries including Brazil, Argentina, Australia, Peru, Africa, England, Sweden, Russia, Asia, and Niger. Gary was born in Lake City, Florida. He was married to Freda Mangle (deceased) in 1970 and has two children, John (married to Tina Rakes) and Christa (married to Bill Latham), and six grandchildren.
We are grateful for all who have gone before us and paid the high price for the freedom we enjoy.
Memorial Day strikes the chord of memory. In the words of a poet of the South, Father Ryan, in Poems: "A land without ruins is a land without history....
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“Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty.”
Lee Strobel writes: People today will admit any problem – drugs, divorce, alcoholism –“but there’s one admission that people are loathe to mak...
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We don’t acquire joy, we assume it, then practice it, then it becomes ours.
Rejoice always! (1 Thessalonians 5:16)
“Delight yourselves in the Lord, yes, find your joy in Him at all times.” (Philippians 4:4 Phillips)
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"When you feel far from Me, whisper My Name."
In her devotional book, Jesus Calling, Sarah Young writes, “I am with you and for you, your constant Companion and Provider. The question is whether...
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Worry has been termed the “official emotion of our age and the most prevalent phenomenon of our time.”
Psychologist Rollo May has called anxiety (worry) one of the most urgent problems of our time. It has been termed the “official emotion of our age a...
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The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is one of the best attested facts of human history.
Sarah Young writes, “I am nearer than you think, richly present in all your moments. You are connected to Me by Love – bonds that nothing can seve...
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The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is one of the best attested facts of human history.
I am nearer than you think, richly present in all your moments. You are connected to Me by Love – bonds that nothing can sever. However, you may som...
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ATTENTION...to God
Eugene Peterson translated the version of the Bible known as The Message. It is fresh and wonderful. He has also written a number of other books. One ...
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Resurrection Sunday is just around the corner. Each year I read “Reliving the Passion” by Wangerin – a daily devotional for Lent. It is powerful...
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We bring our weakness, God brings His strength. We learn to rest in His promise.
“Bring me your weakness, and receive My Peace. Accept yourself and your circumstances just as they are, remembering that I am sovereign over everyth...
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