Missions IMPACT! – Exit 53 Chapel – Robertsdale, AL tagged:

Missions IMPACT! – Exit 53 Chapel – Robertsdale, AL

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Just off I-10 in south Alabama, right off exit 53, in the parking lot of the Oasis Travel Center, there sits a trailer that no longer hauls cargo over America’s roads. Instead, it is a church … for truckers.

The Exit 53 Chapel is a ministry of the Baldwin Baptist Association. The chapel actually began three years ago in the truck stop’s television room. In April 2005 it moved outside into a temporary trailer. It moved into its “permanent” home (if you can call a trailer permanent), a trailer donated by Ralph Stewart’s Trucking Company, last November.

David Blanton, a trucker from Irvington, Alabama, serves as the chaplain at the chapel. He has been involved in ministries to truckers for fourteen years. He help start similar chapels in South Carolina and Wisconsin. He hosts services at 9:00, 11:00, and 5:30 on Sundays, though he keeps the chapel open all day on Sundays. His ministry extends beyond the truckers themselves. He also has the opportunity to minister regularly to truck stop employees.

The Oasis Travel Center is a most gracious host. They allow Blanton and volunteers to hand out Bibles and Christian literature. They also provide the “parking space” and electricity at no cost to the chapel … a huge blessing, indeed. The chapel also gives churches in the local association the opportunity to minister to truckers passing through the area. For instance, they provide 300-400 gift bags for truckers during the Christmas season.

For more information on the ministry, visit their web site at http://truckersoutreach.org. And for a really cool photo-video presentation (with audio statements and interviews), visit The Road to Salvation from a story with the St. Petersburg Times.

If you know of an interesting, unique, effective ministry in your church or association, please consider writing a story, attaching a picture, and sending it to sbc IMPACT! We would love to tell your story in a Saturday post!