Members of Covenant of the Cross, an affirming church to the GLBT community, are growing into their new Madison facility which is more than three times the size of their previous meeting place.

The church had its second largest congregation when it opened its new facility Nov. 30 with 170 people in attendance.

Since the church was founded in 2002, Covenant of the Cross, led by Pastor Greg Bullard, has been a strong lighthouse of ministry to the community it serves. 

“Our focus is and always has been on creating significant, long-term relationships to build up the body of Christ," Bullard said. "This building is nothing more than a tool to facilitate that. We had simply outgrown our old facility. So we were fortunate enough to sell it to another church and we are happy to reclaim an old building that hadn’t been used in 15 years.”

The new facility, formerly a movie theater, houses an expanded worship center capable of seating more than 300 worshipers, a choir loft capable of seating 65 and a stage area and lighting system much more suitable for drama and creative worship than the previous building offered. Topped off with a brand new multi-media system with three projectors, Covenant’s new worship center is much more conducive to hosting community-based events and concerts. 

“The acoustics and sound system are both fantastic and they will only enhance the energetic worship services Covenant has built a solid reputation of having," Bullard said.

There is also a larger children’s ministry area to accommodate the congregation's growing need for children’s space. An activities center capable of seating 250 and a greatly enlarged food pantry, kitchen, and food service area is also part of the new church. 

“We give out a lot of food each month, and since our activity center used to be an employment office, we have a fantastic opportunity to interact with people needing assistance on a variety of levels,” Bullard said. “Our biggest challenge will be fitting into the new space. We went from 3,500 square feet at the old church to over 13,000 square feet at the new one. We were so used to sitting on top of each other, that we have got to grow into this new facility."

But a church, by nature, should grow. And since Covenant of the Cross had seen a significant growth in the Madison area to begin with, they now have every opportunity to do significant outreach to not only the GLBT community but to anyone willing to experience this incredible congregation of people who simply love God.

Covenant of the Cross is now located at 752 Madison Square, in the Madison Square Shopping Center where worship services are held at 11:00 am and 6:00 pm every Sunday. For more information, visit covenantofthecross.com.