Church History

Designed and Built by God: The History of Right Direction Christian Center

By an act of faith, Abraham said yes to God’s call to travel to an unknown place that would become his home,” Hebrews 11:8, Message

When Pastor Herbert Bailey traveled from Tulsa, OK to Columbia, SC in July of 1995 to interview for a management position with Cigna Property and Casualty Insurance Company, he considered the possible job relocation a good career move and temporary placement for corporate advancement. He never considered a redirection of purpose, but that is exactly what the Lord spoke to him about at (what is now) the Marriott Hotel in downtown Columbia. Pastor Bailey was to accept the job offer and relocate to Columbia for the purpose of founding Right Direction Christian Center (RDCC). Pastor Bailey already knew that he was to establish RDCC. He just had always planned to return to his native state of New Jersey and establish the ministry there. What a stark change of plans for him and his young family. They knew no one in Columbia. All their extended family was in or around New Jersey, over 700 miles away.

“Now the Lord had said to Abram: ‘Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you,’” Genesis 12:1, NKJ

Demonstrating faith through their obedience, Pastors Herbert and Marcia Bailey and their four children, Chandler, Tyler, Daniel, and Kindra, then ages 9, 7, 5 and 3, relocated to Columbia in Septem­ber of 1995.  The following January, Pastors Bailey began a bible study in their rented home on Woodwinds Drive. Three adults and one child faithfully at­tended, and they together with the Bailey family became the first 10 charter members of RDCC.

Chandler Bailey says his parents taught him that, “Faith without works is dead and you must be obedient even when it doesn’t look like you should. Sometimes their obedience looked crazy in the natural.” In those times, he and his siblings believed in their parents’ faith “Like Isaac had to believe in his father’s faith when he was about to be sacrificed.”

“By an act of faith he lived in the country promised him, lived as a stranger camping in tents. Isaac and Jacob did the same, living under the same promise,” Hebrews 11:9, Message

RDCC’s first worship service was held on April 28, 1996 at the Holiday Inn Express (now Econo Lodge) on St. Andrews Road. By that September, the congregation had grown to 40 people. Among them were Elders Donald and Peggy Perry, who have been faithful pillars of the ministry ever since. Elder Peggy recalls, “We were believing God for a church home. We had been without a Pastor for six months and we knew we needed a covering. Don and I knew from our very first visit that RDCC was the place God wanted us to be.”

RDCC moved its services to the Postal Workers Union Hall at 4921 Broad River Road that same month.  There, the congregation grew to about 60 people. Though growth was slow, it was steady.

Needing a dedicated facility to house the ministry, RDCC began leasing a building at 3801 River Drive in June of 1998.  Rapid growth through the Wednes­day Night Bible Study began there, and the congregation quickly outgrew the space. The original sanctuary (which later became the Fellowship Hall) barely accommodated 100 people. Averages of 90 people were in attendance for services, so an additional morning worship service was added in February 1999. The congregation grew to 140 people, and that August, renovations were completed of the facility’s additional warehouse space to create a new sanctuary. Key persons on the construction crew were none other than Pastor Bailey and Elder Perry. “We were so excited about having our own that we didn’t mind doing all the hard work involved in renovating a building that had been unoccupied for a long time,” Elder Donald Perry reflects. “Pastor Bailey was there with us. The vision for the new sanctuary was given to him and we embraced it. The blue print was in his head and we wanted to follow his instructions.”

With this additional space and the use of the Fellowship Hall for overflow seating, RDCC could ac­commodate 300 worshippers in two Sunday morning ser­vices. It was evident that God’s hand was on the ministry.

“And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly,” Genesis 17:2, NKJ

By June of 2000, the church was approaching its maximum capacity of 300, so a third Sunday morning service was added. Sunday attendance then grew to 400 in just six months. Pastor Bailey began looking and praying for a new place of worship.

RDCC purchased its first facility, a 20,000 square foot, tri-level complex located at 1230 St. Andrews Road in March of 2001. The facility seemed large and adequate at first, but by the end of that same year, attendance soared to over 600 per Sunday and over 300 for Wednesday Bible Study. Pastor Marcia Bailey commenced a Women’s Bible Study on Fridays at noon. A Wednes­day Noon Bible Study was also started. This $850,000 facility was paid for within three years.

“I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; And you shall be a blessing…And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed,” Genesis 12:2, NKJ

RDCC launched the Direction for Life television broadcast on two local stations, WACH Fox 57 and WOLO TV 25 in January 2003. Television gave the ministry more visibility in the community and stimulated even more growth that has not ceased. Since then, the television ministry has ex­panded to daily and weekly televi­sion in various state markets including, WZRB-CW47 Columbia, WOLO-ABC25 Columbia, WFXB-FOX43 Florence and Myrtle Beach, WWMB-CW21 Florence and Myrtle Beach, as well as national and international markets through the Word Network, WHT Network and LifeStream.tv.

“And the Lord said to Abram…‘Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are—northward, southward, eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendantsforever,’” Genesis13:14-15, NKJ

To better meet the demands of continuous growth, RDCC purchased 22 acres of land north of the St. Andrews location at 3506 Broad River Road in February of 2003.  The following January, the Worship Center building project began. The church moved into its new sanctuary that July and subsequently paid off the $2 million facility in December of 2005, making RDCC’s occupancy “paid in full” within 1.5 years. Since the purchase of the original 22 acres, 17 additional, surrounding acres were purchased, giving RDCC a total of approximately 40 acres for the Broad River Road campus. The 20,000 square foot busi­ness facility at 1234 St. Andrews Road where the church once leased space for the youth ministry and fellowship hall was also purchased in 2004. The business facility now houses the church administrative offices and community outreach ministries: My Sister’s Closet and The Hub Community Learning Center, which provides free tutoring services, computers and internet access to the community.  This purchase freed space at the 1230 St. Andrews Road location for the Youth Sanctuary and Right Direction Christian Academy, which opened in August 2006 and is currently educating K-3 through K-5 students.

In November of 2007, RDCC broke ground on its $4 million Family Life Center and officially opened the facility to the public in October 2008. Used to service both our congregation and the community, the center hosts fellowships, concerts, community sporting events, theatre productions, and the children’s ministry. RDCC also purchased 8.5 additional acres adjacent to the Broad River Road campus on Shivers Road in August 2008 for future expansion.

RDCC extended its reach south with a campus in Orangeburg, SC in October 2006. Just two years after expanding the ministry there, RDCC purchased the former Cornerstone Baptist Church campus in Orangeburg;15 acres equipped with 30,000 square feet of worship space including youth, children’s, and fellowship facilities.  In October of 2010, RDCC expanded east to Florence, and is already reaping a great harvest of souls for the Kingdom.

“Abraham did it by keeping his eye on an unseen city with real, eternal foundations—the City designed and built by God,” Hebrews 11:10, Message

Pastors Bailey’s faith to obey God in 1995 has produced a ministry designed and built by Him; a ministry daily designing, building and empowering people of God in the areas of spiritual self-esteem, education and economic prosperity. “Drs. Herbert and Marcia Bailey denied themselves and embraced God’s vision for their lives. Because they obeyed God like Abraham did, their children are blessed and we know that thousands of lives are being changed all over the world,” stated Elder Peggy.

Chandler believes that, “RDCC’s growth compares to Abraham’s increase because God has increased our ministry and everyone in covenant. There is a covenant blessing at RDCC!”

Elder Perry agrees, “As we look back over the past 15 years, we have seen God’s blessings on everything we put our hands to do.  Because of the faithfulness of Drs. Herbert and Marcia Bailey, we are seeing the manifestation of the promises of God in our lives.”

Only a foundation of faith could produce a ministry with a congregation of over 2,500 receiving the Word in eight weekly services and bible studies in Columbia, Orangeburg and Florence, and media outreach impacting lives across the world. As RDCC celebrates and reflects on 15 years of kingdom expansion, the ministry looks forward to God’s blueprint continuing to unfold. The best is yet to come.