NEW PALESTINE — A large wooden cross and a couple of inspirational paintings line one wall. Flags of the five branches of the U.S. Armed Forces line the wall opposite it.
Christian faith and support for military personnel come together in a unique way at one of Hancock County’s newest churches, Axis Worship Center.
The church is in a business strip along U.S. 52 in New Palestine, nestled among a pizza takeout place, an Indian grocery and other businesses.
In fact, sometimes someone going from work will stop by, catching part of a service or finding a few minutes to talk with people of the church and be prayed for. And Axis people say they’re happy to be that kind of support for people.
”I think that’s what they pick up, too, when they come through the door,” said Rob King, associate director of the center. “As far as talented people, we may not be the most talented, but you’re gonna have a hard time finding people who love you more than we do, and they sense that.”
For just over a year, Axis has offered services on Sunday afternoons and Bible study on Thursdays. The church began with two couples meeting in a living room and has grown to nearly 30 attending services in the storefront at 5971 W. US 52, (Units D and E). The congregation has rented the additional unit east of its original meeting place; the expansion adds three classrooms, an office, a second restroom and a closet to the church’s footprint.
Starting Aug. 11, the church will meet at 10 a.m. for Sunday School and 11 a.m. for worship.
As is true in many churches, services at Axis include congregational singing, accompanied by piano and guitar, and a sermon. Yet there are other elements perhaps not as common, such as reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and the Pledge to the Christian Flag early in each service. Axis is also a full-gospel church, its leaders say, which means a service could include more Pentecostal elements such as speaking in tongues; that refers to a worshiper speaking in a different, divinely inspired language.
Michael Jarrell, director of the center, is the minister delivering the sermon at services. He said Axis and other worship centers like it trace their roots to military families stationed in Germany after World War II.
In a given weekend on base, families could choose from Jewish, Catholic or Protestant services. Some families, Jarrell said, were Pentecostal and longed for a service that seemed more familiar to them — a less formal, more charismatic service. They received permission to use the chapel on Sunday evenings.
“Our denomination heard about it and wanted to give support to it,” Jarrell said. And so the Church of God based in Cleveland, Tennessee, launched Freedom Outreach, a ministry to the military.
Jarrell and King are each U.S. Army veterans. Jarrell served during Operation Enduring Freedom, doing intelligence work to support the forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. King served two years as a medic in Vietnam.
So when they and their wives saw an Operation Freedom booth at the 2023 Church of God convention, they were intrigued and wanted to learn more. Jarrell is an ordained minister, and he was invited to start a center in Indiana. That’s how Michael and Robyn Jarrell, and Rob and Clara King, became the two couples meeting in the Jarrells’ living room as Axis started.
One of the Kings’ grandsons suggested the name Axis, and as the foursome pondered the definition of that word, it made sense.
“It was the ‘center hub’ in Greek,” Robyn Jarrell said. “And we thought, ‘That’s it.’ We’re bringing military, we’re bringing anyone in the community … all coming together for a common core purpose.”
Robyn is pursuing a doctorate in counseling. She and Michael each offer pastoral counseling, believing their experiences help them empathize with service members and their families — and police officers and firefighters.
“I specialize in PTSD (post-traumatic stress syndrome) for first responders,” she said. ” … My dissertation is based around that.”
“We understand the military,” King said. “We understand the needs they have — as well as the firemen and the police that are seeing things out here on the streets and having trouble getting over it. That’s where our heart’s at with those, but we also can help really anybody that’s going through the trauma stages of life and still battling it.”
Michael said sometimes when people are experiencing that, “a lot of them turn to drugs and alcohol. A lot of them turn to that vice to mask the pain, to mask the memories. We have that opportunity here to offer them another relief, another way to deal with it — and not only through counseling, and through therapy …. through the love of God.”
While Axis leaders reach out to speak to groups and otherwise minister to the military community, Axis’ Sunday services are open to anyone.
“We don’t care what they wear, what their background is, what their job is,” Robyn said.
“We don’t have any prerequisite to come here,” Michael added. “There’s no prerequisites, there’s no dress code, there’s none of those things. …
“We’re a small church, but we have the heart to do great things.”
GOLF OUTING TO AID LOVE INC
Axis Worship Center in New Palestine will sponsor a golf outing Sept. 20 to benefit Love INC.
It will take place at Arrowhead Golf Course, 3974 Clubhouse Drive, Greenfield. Check-in starts at 10 a.m., with a shotgun start at 11.
Cost is $60 per player, which includes 18 holes with cart and a Chick-fil-A meal.
Hole sponsorships are available for $100. Volunteers are needed for the event.
Information: 463-266-8028, axisworshipcenter.com/charity-golf-outing
