Daytona Beach Baptist Church was started with a vision in the heart of a man named John Strutz. He was influenced to consider starting a church in Daytona Beach by his home pastor, Dr. Bob Engle, pastor of Berea Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Florida. Brother Strutz had previously pastored in Texas for a couple of years. At age 28, with Dr. Engle's blessing, Brother Strutz moved to Daytona Beach in 1965. He began to aggressively knock on doors, inviting people to church, as well as advertising the new church in the local newspaper.

The church rented the Community Center building of Winston Park subdivision, which was on the corner of Clearwater Road and Nova Road, north of Beville Road. Within 1 1/2 years, Pastor Strutz had formed a solid nucleus of members. The church bought a strategic piece of property at 910 Beville Road and built a church building on the new site which seated approximately 200 people. This acquisition of land and the construction of the church building was made possible through a $90,000 church bond program, engineered primarily by John Strutz. The church never received any financial help from other churches. It was self-standing from the beginning. At one point, Pastor Strutz even sold his home and used the equity to provide for his living expenses so the church could continue.

John Strutz resigned as pastor in December of 1967, with the church attendance built up to an average of 90 people. When he retired, he and his wife Lorraine and daughter Jasmine, resided in Austin, TX. After a long health battle, John Strutz went home to be with the Lord in 2004. Our current pastor, Dan Proctor, was present at Brother Strutz's funeral in Austin, Texas, to honor his memory.

In the interim between Pastor Strutz and the new pastor, the church declined in attendance to approximately 30-40 people. In February, 1968, the church called Dennis Wheeler as pastor. He had previously pastored for 10 years in Miami, Florida.

During Pastor Wheeler’s first year at the church, it encountered some internal division. This came to a head in December, 1968, with a historic vote of 15 to 13 in favor of supporting Pastor Wheeler and his ministry. From this point, the church began to grow again. When Pastor Wheeler resigned in July, 1969, the church was again experiencing highs of 80-100 worshipers on Sunday morning. He is now retired and resides in Taylors, South Carolina.

Pastor Wheeler was instrumental in bringing in a new pastor, Lewis Ferrell. He had been assistant pastor for Dr. Ron Schaffer at Bethany Baptist Church in Melbourne, Florida.

Pastor Ferrell came with no salary; Dr. Ron Schaffer gave the Ferrells $50 per week to survive. Once again, the church’s attendance had dwindled to an average of 30-40 people. The church was financially strapped and ready to close its doors. Daytona Beach Baptist Church was Lewis Ferrell’s first pastorate, and his wife, Laura Nell, was the church secretary. Within a short time, under Pastor Ferrell’s leadership, church growth exploded! He also developed a television ministry: “Your Bible & Today” aired daily on one local channel and twice per week on another channel. It was also heard every Sunday morning on W.E.L.E. radio, and the text was published weekly in “The Green Sheet.”

When the Ferrells left Daytona, attendance was at approximately 200. More than 200 people had made professions of faith while Lewis Ferrell was pastor. The Ferrells left in October, 1971, and Lewis Ferrell became pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Baltimore, Maryland. He went home to be with the Lord on November 18, 1997. Laura Nell spent several years as the church secretary for Berachah Baptist Church in Middletown, Ohio, where her son, Lamar, is pastor. She became actively involved in a missions ministry and retired in 2003.

Anthony Price became Daytona Beach Baptist’s next pastor in December, 1971, and served in that capacity for the next decade, bringing stability to the church. He had been the pastor at New Testament Baptist Church in Pelion, South Carolina. When the Prices first arrived, church attendance was back down to 60-70 people, but under Pastor Price’s leadership the church experienced tremendous growth.

With only the church building, Sunday School was held by placing dividers down the sides in the auditorium to create classrooms. In 1973, a two-story school building was constructed, then a gymnasium was constructed, and in 1980 the church auditorium was expanded.

Pastor Tony hired Clifton Thompson in January, 1972, to be the church’s first Assistant Pastor. Bro. Cliff served under Pastor Price, and later under Pastor Dannie Webster, until October, 1987. Pastor Tony Price and his family moved the last Sunday in November, 1981, to Cocoa Beach, Florida, where he became pastor of Bethel Bible Baptist Church.

Dannie Webster, his wife Freddie, and their three children, Deniece, Angela, and Daniel came to Daytona Beach from Temple Baptist Church in Fort Myers, Florida, where Bro. Dannie had pastored for nine years. Bro. Dannie was voted in as the pastor of Daytona Beach Baptist Church in November of 1981. In the early 1980’s the church experienced difficulty with inadequate parking at the Beville Road site. Pastor Webster’s greatest accomplishment was moving Daytona Beach Baptist from Beville Road, where it had operated for 25 years, to its current location. While driving on Clyde Morris Boulevard with other church members, they spotted the property on which our current church stands. After some investigation and negotiations, with full church agreement, the property was purchased. Groundbreaking was in early 1990, with the first service held in the current educational building in November, 1990. Two Sunday morning worship services were held in the Fellowship Hall of that building, which seated approximately 225 people.

In November, 1991, the congregation agreed to forge ahead with construction of the church building. The 700-seat sanctuary was finished in January, 1994. Pastor Webster resigned soon after the new sanctuary was occupied.

Pastor Webster had hired Dan Proctor in June, 1989, as assistant pastor. When Pastor Webster resigned, Pastor Dan acted as interim pastor until he was voted in as senior pastor on March 6, 1994. Pastor Dan was only twenty-seven when he took on the pastorate, yet God has used him in a mighty way. Although Pastor Dan inherited the heavy debt from the building programs, missionary outreach was made a top priority. While our missions budget has been able to increase from approximately $30,000 annually to over $270,000, supporting numerous missions projects, God allowed the church to retire its entire 3.5 million dollar debt in only eight years! Pastor Dan spearheaded the first debt retirement program in 1995, and through the sacrificial giving of God’s people, on May 1, 2002, we made the final payment and became debt free!

God has blessed the ministry under Pastor Dan’s leadership in many different ways. As attendance grew from around 300 at Sunday morning services to over 700, two services became necessary. The first Sunday with two services was October 4, 1998. Attendance now averages around 1,000 with highs of 1,700! As church attendance grew, Sunday School attendance grew, and on April 8, 2001, we expanded to two Sunday School hours on Sunday mornings. Our classes are called L.I.F.E. Groups. We now have two L.I.F.E. Group hours and two new buildings to accommodate growth.

After several years of needing to use the offices at the rear of the church building as classrooms, we outgrew every space available. In 2008, we built a staff office building. Within a short time we found ourselves using the new building to help accommodate our ever-growing number of L.I.F.E. Groups. We broke ground on a 15,000 square foot L.I.F.E. building in 2011. It includes a collegiate gymnasium, 12 classrooms, and a long-awaited kitchen. Beyond allowing space for more L.I.F.E. Groups, this building has been invaluable for our community outreaches. Just one example is that within months of its completion, the gymnasium averaged 100 young men coming out on Tuesday nights for basketball where they heard a short devotion and a clear presentation of the gospel.

More important than any other growth enjoyed by the church is the spiritual growth. Since 1994, we have seen hundreds of people believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and multitudes have participated in and completed our discipleship course. In 2007, the CrossRoads Bible Institute was introduced, providing an opportunity for our members to take college-level Bible courses for credit or audit. We offer over 40 classes and the opportunity to earn a 3-year diploma. The Institute was the vision of Pastor Dan, and was created and established by Pastor Rich Costanza. After the first year, the Institute was made available to the community and, literally, to the world. We have added a Distance Education option and have online students throughout the United States and in several countries all over the globe. So far (2015), we have had 50 students earn diplomas from the CrossRoads Bible Institute.

We have men and their families who have gone to the mission field, with CrossRoads as their “sending church.” This includes our former assistant pastor, Bill Daab, who is on the field in the Middle East. Euler Falcao and his family are our missionaries to Brazil. Numerous families have been sent out from the church to engage in full-time ministry. All of Pastor Dan’s pastoral staff and most of the church staff are men and women who surrendered for full-time Christian service right here at CrossRoads!

A significant aspect of our church’s history was brought “full circle” in October, 2002. After many phone calls, Pastor Dan located the founding pastor of Daytona Beach Baptist Church, John Strutz. The church flew Bro. Strutz and his family to Daytona Beach to honor them in the Sunday services on October 27, 2002. It was an awesome celebration for the church and a privilege to meet the humble gentleman used by God to start this church. Little did John Strutz know the far-reaching effects and the impact on eternity his ministry here as a young man would have on countless lives in Daytona Beach and throughout the world.

The following year, in October 2003, the church held a special service with every former pastor, except Lewis Ferrell who was already home with the Lord, in attendance with their families. Pastor Ferrell’s wife was able to attend and participate as all of the pastors were honored for their roles in the heritage of this church. 1 Timothy 5:17 – “Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.” We honor those who came before us, and we thank God for their labor of love that is now called CrossRoads.

As related in the prologue, Daytona Beach Baptist Church became CrossRoads Church in 2005. We are no longer confused with any other church or ministry, and we are no longer limited by a location-based name. The transition went smoothly, and CrossRoads is recognized in the community as “a church for others,” carrying on the reputation garnered as Daytona Beach Baptist, and for the outreach ministries that have been developed and implemented in the recent past.

Building and hosting a Walk Through Bethlehem outdoor Christmas event was the vision of our leadership in the summer of 2003, and by the Christmas season that year the massive undertaking was a reality. This free gift to the community is reconstructed every year and has drawn thousands and thousands of people to our property. The sights, sounds, and smells of the real Bethlehem at the time of Christ’s birth come alive, with over 300 participants in costume, hundreds more behind the scenes or greeting and serving the public, live animals, and an evangelistic script. Souls have been saved, Christians renewed, and several families have joined our church family as a direct result of this outreach.

The love and support the members show one toward another and their excitement about missions and outreach projects are strong testimonies of the spiritual growth seen in the church. We are confident that God will continue to use this ministry to save souls, conform Christians to the image of God’s Son, and bring Him glory.

In Conclusion: Christ, working through pastoral and support staffs, our volunteers, and our membership past and present, has allowed us to build on the foundation created by our predecessors. As we look to the future, we are excited to serve Him and our community here at CrossRoads.