Biography
Trust and Obey: The Call to Gardendale
In the summer of 1991, friend and fellow pastor Fred Wolfe called Steve with surprising news. “He said God had told him that I was supposed to be the pastor at First Baptist, Gardendale, Alabama,” said Steve. “I didn’t know where Gardendale was or why I should go to Alabama, but Fred proved to be correct. On Father’s Day the pastor search committee visited West Jackson Baptist Church, and we had a glorious service. It was prophetic of many such days that we would enjoy in the coming years in Alabama.”
The idea of relocating was disconcerting for the Gaines because Steve’s father had been recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. “I hated to leave my mother to bear that load alone,” Steve said. “But God spoke to me through Jesus’ words in Mark 10:29-30, ‘Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or farms, for My sake and for the gospel's sake, but that he will receive a hundred times as much now in the present age, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and farms, along with persecutions; and in the age to come, eternal life.’ I knew that if I obeyed God, He would take care of both dad and mom. He did.”
During their 14 years at Gardendale, God blessed the church with numerous conversions and baptisms each year and explosive growth that necessitated adding a third worship service. “We prayed, fasted, and sought His anointing and power,” said Bro. Steve. “He graciously answered, and even though we were not on the most populated side of Birmingham, our church began to grow both spiritually and numerically. The more we sought God in prayer and worship, the more he added to His church those who were being saved. It was definitely a ‘God thing!’”
Revival Fire: Gardendale’s First Baptist Church
In the summer of 1995, the Lord led Steve and several staff members to go on an extended fast. They asked God for an outpouring of His Spirit, and He answered. Steve recalled, “In September 1996 during a morning worship service, I felt impressed to extend an invitation for people to be saved before I preached my sermon. I remember hesitating and saying to the Lord, ‘But we don’t do it that way.’ He responded in my spirit, ‘You do now.’” In all of the services that morning people were saved before the sermon was preached, as well as after the sermon. That night an unusually large crowd attended the evening worship services.
“Everyone knew that what had occurred on Sunday morning was anything but ‘church as usual,’” said Steve. “God’s manifest presence had come to GFBC. For the next ten years we operated in a state of revival. Miracles occurred as God graciously responded to our prayers of faith. Many lost people were saved. Many Christians were set free from strongholds of sin. Many were physically healed. Marriages were put back together. A practicing Wiccan, as well as some folks who struggled with the sin of homosexuality were saved and set free. Men were set free from pornography addiction. The worship services were electrifying. No person was exalted—only God. A church that was not on the ‘growing side of town’ began to explode in growth, all because of Him!”
Gardendale’s Easter services in 2005 were held at the Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center where more than 10,000 people attended, in spite of severe weather warnings. One hundred souls were converted to Christ that morning. Bro. Steve said, “There were tornadoes all around Birmingham, but they literally bypassed the city as we gathered in that arena to worship the risen Savior!”
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