Prestonwood Baptist Church

Prestonwood Baptist Church is a Southern Baptist multi-site megachurch, with locations in Plano, Texas (the Plano Campus) and Prosper, Texas (the North Campus). It is one of the largest churches in America, with a membership of over 45,000 and a weekly attendance of around 17,000.

Prestonwood Baptist Church
Location6801 W. Park Blvd
Plano, Texas 75093
CountryUnited States
DenominationSouthern Baptist
Membership45,000+
Weekly attendanceApproximately 17,000
Websiteprestonwood.org
History
Founded1977
Founder(s)Bill Weber
Architecture
Completed1999 (Plano Campus), 2006 (North Campus)
Clergy
Senior pastor(s)Dr. Jack Graham
Pastor(s)Dr. Jarrett Stephens (teaching), Michael Neale (worship), Mike Buster (executive), Neal Jeffrey (pastoral & preaching), Jeff Young (spiritual development), Gilberto Corredera (Prestonwood en Español - lead pastor), Orbe Perez (Prestonwood en Español pastor - Lewisville Campus)

The Plano campus covers an area of 140 acres (0.219 sq mi; 0.567 km2), and includes a 7,000-seat worship center, a school offering Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 12 (including a football stadium, a baseball field, and a fieldhouse for basketball and volleyball), a fitness center with outdoor sports fields, a café, a library, and a bookstore.

In 2006, the church expanded to include a second campus of nearly 128 acres (0.200 sq mi; 0.518 km2) in Prosper.[1] The North Campus also has a school (K-9 as of fall 2019 with plans to expand one grade each year, so that the Class of 2023 will be North's first graduating class).

History
Dr. Jack Graham is the Senior Pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church

Prestonwood was founded on February 6, 1977, in North Dallas,[2] as a mission church of Northway Baptist Church. Under founding pastor Bill Weber,[3] the new church grew considerably, and in 1979 moved into a permanent facility near the corner of Arapaho and Hillcrest Roads in Dallas.

By 1988, Prestonwood had grown to 11,000 members; that same year, Pastor Weber confessed to an extramarital affair and stepped down from the pulpit.[4] Behind the scenes, however, Weber actively sought to regain his position as pastor; when he was unable to do so he convinced several of the church's wealthier members—including cosmetics magnate Mary Kay Ash—to support a new church he was starting.[5]

In 1989, Dr. Jack Graham replaced Weber as senior pastor of Prestonwood, by this time considered a "megachurch" because of its rapid expansion into one of the fastest-growing churches in the United States.[3] By the mid-1990s, it became apparent that the church had outgrown its north Dallas home; the facility was landlocked with no ability to expand. In 1994, the church's leadership began plans for a 7,000-seat worship center in Plano. Services were first held on May 2, 1999. The church continued to expand its facilities throughout the next decade. Soon after the opening of the new worship center, the first phase of the new Prestonwood Sports and Fitness Center was completed. In August 2003, the church completed the second phase of the building, which featured a new chapel, a 100-foot-tall (30m) "Faith Tower" topped by a cross, a student ministry area, restaurant and commons, additional space for Bible fellowship and administrative offices. Two years later, the Prestonwood Christian Academy Upper School opened on the west side of the church campus.

2006 saw the continued expansion of Prestonwood with the opening of its second campus in Prosper, near U.S. Highway 380 and Dallas Parkway. That same year, the church also completed a new children's wing and updated its facilities for PowerPoint Ministries, including an upgrade to High Definition (HDTV).

In 2009, Prestonwood launched a weekly Worship Service in its Faith Chapel to reach Spanish-speaking communities. Prestonwood en Español has experienced tremendous growth, and in September 2012, the service moved to the Plano Campus Worship Center to accommodate the thriving congregation. A second Spanish-speaking campus opened in Lewisville, Texas originally at Christian Community Action, a local organization providing assistance to families, but later relocated to share space with another Southern Baptist congregation in Lewisville.

On September 23, 2012, Prestonwood's North Campus in Prosper celebrated the opening of a 75,000-square-foot building expansion. The new building provides space for growing ministries, including children's and adult Bible Fellowship classrooms, full-size gymnasium, student ministry space, bookstore and commons area for gathering.

The church reached the 46,000-member mark in 2019, with regular attendance at worship services averaging around 17,000.[2]

Campuses

Prestonwood operates two church campuses: Plano (the Plano Campus, which houses full services in both English and Spanish, as well as smaller fellowships to other ethnic groups) and Prosper (the North Campus). The Lewisville branch of the Spanish services are held at Northview Baptist Church, an existing and independent Southern Baptist congregation.

References
  1. Hodges, Sam & Appleton, Roy. "Booming church not done growing", Dallas Morning News, March 28, 2006
  2. "Our Story - Prestonwood Baptist Church". Prestonwood Baptist Church. January 14, 2014.
  3. Prestonwood Life, February/March 2007, retrieved May 16, 2008
  4. Parmley, Helen, Prestonwood Pastor Resigns, Dallas Morning News, October 9, 1988
  5. https://www.dmagazine.com/publications/d-magazine/1989/july/the-second-coming-of-billy-weber/

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