By Sarah Whitman
Southern Gospel music sets the tune at Fellowship Bible Church in Zephyrhills.
The church hosts a gospel concert every month, bringing in acts from across the nation. This month, Atlanta’s own Old Paths will perform at 7 p.m. May 29, Memorial Day weekend. The group is made up of vocalists Doug Roark, Tim Rackley and Jeremy Peace, with pianist Trey Ivey.
The group’s baritone, Roark, also preaches and will speak at 11 a.m. May 30 at the church.
“It’s not just a concert,” Roark said. “It’s a worship experience.”
This is Old Path’s fourth time performing at the church. The group is a nationally recognized harmonic trio that formed in 2003. They have released six CDs, the latest being “Wonderful Life,” which released April 9.
Fellowship’s associate pastor, Paul McCoy, met the group while touring the country attending Southern Gospel shows.
“Southern Gospel is a passion of mine,” McCoy said. “It’s a style of music that emphasizes the message of the lyrics. My wife and I have traveled around attending different concerts.”
McCoy started the Saturday evening concert series seven years ago. Other acts that performed this year include Driven, The Browders and The Rick Webb Family.
“It started as a way of drawing people from the community to the church,” he said. “Over the years, we’ve seen the church grow tremendously, partly because of the concerts.”
About 200 people attend Fellowship each week, sometimes more during the winter months.
Dr. Randy Mobley is senior pastor. He came to the church four years ago, after pastoring Fair Haven Baptist in Zephyrhills for 14 years.
He said the gospel concert series is a blessing.
“It brings a lot of people to our church that wind up staying and I love the music,” he said. “I love harmonies. I’m a Southerner and I like Southern tradition.”
He’s excited to have Old Paths back in town.
“I met the guys my first year here and now we’re all good friends,” he said. “Of all the groups, they’re probably my favorite.”
Roark, 41, has been a singer his whole life. He chose Southern Gospel because he considers it the best way to express his Christian faith.
“Our music is a mix of original songs and traditional Southern Gospel,” Roark said. “The lyrics are Biblically based.”
Old Paths performs all around the country and soon the world. Next year, the group will travel to Ireland on a mission trip. Still, they love coming to perform in small town Zephyrhills.
“We always have such a huge turn out in Zephyrhills,” Roark said. “I love the support. We’ve fallen in love with the people. Whenever we come back, it’s like a homecoming.”
Concerts at Fellowship are free, though a love offering is always taken. The church is located at 6407 Fort King Road. For information, visit www.fellowship-bible-church.com.
