A New Beginning for First Missionary Baptist Church

Rev. George Madison Jr. Installed as Pastor

By Rasheedah Ajibade

The First Missionary Baptist Church has embarked on a new beginning, installing Rev. George Madison Jr. as pastor on Sunday. In a packed church, where every seat was filled, faith leaders, musicians, and citizens gathered to celebrate what Rev. Dr. Adrian Brooks Sr. coined a new beginning. Among them were pastors R.T. Hill, DeMarcus Curry, Robert Whitlock, Charles Johnson, Larry Rascoe, and LeVar St. Germain—representing congregations from across the region who came to stand with First Missionary in this new season.

Pastor Madison is no stranger to ministry. A native of Evansville, he was called to preach in May 1994 at the age of 19 and ordained in September 2000 at Nazarene Missionary Baptist Church. Throughout his ministry, he has been mentored by respected leaders, including Rev. Dr. Adrian Brooks Sr., Rev. Robert Esters, and Rev. Larry Rascoe—each shaping his spiritual growth and pastoral leadership. With a heart for outreach and discipleship, he has devoted his life to uplifting others through the word of God.

Before delivering the installation sermon, Rev. Brooks offered a heartfelt reflection—describing Madison as “a true servant, a steadfast friend, and my right-hand man.” He shared how Madison walked beside him through good and difficult times, once even riding his bicycle to Brooks’ home just to drive him to church after the funeral of Brooks’ father. “Sometimes people are around when the sun is shining,” Brooks said, “but you can’t find them when the storm is raging. That brother was there.”

Brooks’ sermon came from Joshua 3, where the Israelites prepared to cross the Jordan River. “When God gives you a vision, He will also give you provision,” Brooks preached, reminding the congregation that “you have not passed this way before.” His message echoed through the sanctuary—a call for courage and faith as First Missionary steps into new waters.

That word carried deep resonance inside a church purchased and built by formerly enslaved people who scraped together $3,030 in 1866 to buy their first sanctuary on the corner of Washington and Elm, originally named the African Baptist Church. For nearly 160 years, First Missionary Baptist Church has stood as a foundation for Black Baptist life in Henderson—where many African American Baptist churches in the city traces its roots.

Brooks honored that lineage by naming the pastors who served during his lifetime: Rev. T.R. Brown, Rev. John Rouse, Rev. Sharper T. Cunningham, Rev. Lum Woodward, Rev. Junius Sneed, and Rev. Robert Esters—each adding their own bricks to the foundation. “Installations are special,” Brooks said. “It is a new beginning. You build on the foundation that was laid before. You add more bricks.”

But he also reminded the congregation that every generation must add its own. “You don’t get a pastor to repeat the past,” Brooks said. “You get a pastor to build on it, to make the changes God ordains.” That challenge, he said, extends beyond Rev. Madison to the church itself—to be open to the ways God might work through new vision, new methods, and new ministry.

Brooks also extended that call to First Lady Larissa Madison, noting that her gifts and service would play a vital part in this next chapter. He told the congregation that her ministry, too, had a place in what God is building at First Missionary, inviting them to embrace not only their pastor’s leadership but the partnership that comes with it.

As the sermon ended, Brooks shifted from reflection to charge. He told the congregation that this new beginning wasn’t only about a pastor but about a people—called to embody the power of God’s presence in all they do. He shared the story of a Methodist preacher who, when asked how he filled his church each week, replied, “I catch on fire for God, and the folks come to see me burn.” That, Brooks said, is the call for First Missionary—to be a church so alive with God’s fire that their light might draw others near.

About Rev. George Madison Jr.

Rev. Madison is a U.S. Navy veteran, firefighter for Evansville Fire Department, and entrepreneur who brings the steady discipline of service and a pastor’s heart to his new role. He holds a bachelor’s degree in religious studies and Christian education from Oakland City University and has spent more than three decades preaching, mentoring, and building bridges in ministry. He and his wife, Larissa, have been married for 30 years and are the proud parents of Khryssnee, Kennedy, George III, and Millai, and grandparents to Jru and Mikkel. Called to serve as pastor of First Missionary Baptist Church on September 22, 2025, Madison embraces this season with humility and vision—to strengthen the ministry, empower believers through sound biblical teaching, and continue the legacy of faith that has carried this church across generations.