Mississippi Church Sees 59 Baptized as Years of Prayer and Revival Reach College Students

POPLARVILLE, Miss. — October 12, 2026

A small Mississippi church that once had about 80 members is reporting 59 baptisms in a single week after years of intentionally praying, preaching the Gospel and building what its pastor calls a “culture of revival.”

First Baptist Church Poplarville held its annual revival in August, culminating at the Brownstone Theater on the campus of Pearl River Community College. According to original reporting by The Baptist Record, 52 people were baptized that final night in two concrete troughs placed in the theater parking lot. Six had been baptized the previous night, and another young man was baptized the following Sunday—bringing the reported total to 59.

Mississippi Revival Reaches Beyond the Church Walls

Pastor Kipp Smith has served at First Baptist Poplarville for nearly a decade. When he arrived, Smith told The Baptist Record the congregation was declining, with roughly 80 members and little direction for the future.

Over time, the church began holding annual revival meetings. The early gatherings did not produce dramatic attendance or large numbers of decisions, but Smith said they remained valuable to the spiritual life of the congregation. Eventually, he began pursuing a vision of taking the revival to Brownstone Theater, an 850- to 900-seat venue on the nearby community-college campus.

Three years ago, that vision became reality. During one previous gathering at the theater, at least 100 people responded to an altar call to surrender their lives to Christ, according to the Baptist Record account. The church reports seeing roughly 250 to 300 salvations over the years connected with the revival gatherings, with many occurring after the final service moved away from the church property.

“We know the Lord is working all over, but it sure is fun to see it.” — Pastor Kipp Smith

59 Baptisms Follow Gospel Message

This year's final service took an unusual turn after guest evangelist Ronnie Hill suggested preparing baptismal troughs in the parking lot for anyone who wanted to respond immediately.

Pearl River Community College President Adam Breerwood approved the plan. Christian coaches Michael Avalon and Seth Smith helped obtain two 12-foot concrete troughs, while the Poplarville Fire Department filled them with water, The Baptist Record reported.

The results reported from the week included:

• 52 baptisms following the Wednesday night service at Brownstone Theater
• Six baptisms during Tuesday's church service
• One additional baptism the following Sunday
• 24 hours of organized prayer before the revival
• More than 150 men attending a “Men of Influence” discipleship dinner
• More than 100 women participating in a Tuesday luncheon
• Children, families, college students and athletes among those responding during the week

Smith said students could be seen calling their families on FaceTime immediately after their baptisms so parents could witness what had happened.

Prayer Came Before the Baptisms

The baptisms did not come without preparation. Three weeks before the revival, the congregation began focusing deliberately on preparing for what Smith described as a move of God.

Church members heard teaching about spiritual preparation, shared testimonies of changed lives and committed to 24 consecutive hours of prayer beginning the Friday before the meetings. Members signed up for one-hour prayer periods, either inside the church prayer room or elsewhere.

Hill also urged Smith to keep the church baptistry filled before the following Sunday. One young man subsequently responded and was baptized without having brought a change of clothes, completing the reported total of 59 for the week.

Revival Begins With Seeking God

Scripture does not define revival merely by attendance, emotional response or numbers. Genuine spiritual awakening is marked by repentance, faith in Jesus Christ, obedience to His Word and transformed lives.

The pattern reported in Poplarville offers an important reminder from Scripture: prayer and Gospel proclamation belong at the heart of seeking God.

In Acts 2:41, after Peter clearly proclaimed Christ crucified and risen, Scripture records that those who received the message were baptized. And in Acts 4:31, after believers prayed, “they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.”

Christians should therefore celebrate baptism not as an end in itself, but as a public testimony of saving faith in Jesus Christ—and pray that every profession will bear lasting fruit through discipleship and obedience to Scripture.

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