A Medical-Dental Clinic was held Saturday, Feb. 21, at First Baptist Church in Hot Springs. (Submitted/FBC Hot Springs)
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. — More than 100 Arkansans received medical and dental care — and 21 people gave their lives to Christ — during the first Arkansas Baptist Medical-Dental Clinic of 2026, hosted at First Baptist Church in Hot Springs.
Volunteers cared for 116 patients throughout the day, addressing urgent dental needs, providing prescriptions, and offering prayer and gospel conversations to everyone who entered the church’s doors. The clinic performed 155 dental extractions, 144 X-rays and 35 cleanings, and dispensed 81 prescriptions. The total value of services provided was nearly $49,000.
For Senior Pastor Jonathan Kelley, hosting the clinic was a natural extension of the church’s mission to serve the community and point people to Jesus. “We want to point our entire community to Jesus,” Kelley said. “This clinic gave us an opportunity to minister to people who likely would not walk through our doors on a Sunday or Wednesday. It created a meaningful bridge to serve people where they are.”
The clinic also aligned with a ministry launched last year at First Baptist Hot Springs, a Community Health Ministry. The ministry serves church members, fitness ministry, and Rock Steady Boxing participants by promoting physical, emotional, and spiritual wellness through caregiver support, health education, and community partnerships.
“Hosting the clinic was a natural extension of that mission,” Kelley said.
The church’s ministry is guided by three key phrases: invite everyone, invest in people, and impact eternity. “This clinic gave us the opportunity to live out all three,” Kelley said. “We invited everyone by opening our doors to the community, especially to people who may not step into a church service. We invested in people by listening, showing compassion, and providing much-needed medical and dental care. And we impacted eternity by sharing the gospel with every person who walked through our doors.”
Kelley said the primary goal of hosting a medical-dental clinic is to use “the gifts God has placed in His people to serve our community and share the gospel.”
“A medical-dental clinic is a practical, compassionate way to meet real needs while opening the door for spiritual conversations,” he said. “When people experience genuine care, they are often more willing to listen, ask questions and talk about faith. Hosting the clinic helped us demonstrate the love of Christ in tangible ways while also clearly sharing the hope of Christ.”
Several moments from the day stood out to Kelley. “One of the most meaningful moments for me was when a member of our custodial staff came to the clinic and accepted Christ,” he said. “Our staff had been praying for her since her very first day on the job, so seeing God answer that prayer was incredibly special.” Another powerful encounter involved individuals walking the road of recovery. Years of addiction had caused significant dental damage, and the clinic provided both treatment and hope. “One woman, after giving credit to Jesus for her sobriety, told me, ‘I want to look as beautiful on the outside as I feel on the inside,’” Kelley said. “That moment captured so much of why we do this — meeting real needs, honoring people’s dignity and pointing them to Jesus.”
The Hot Springs clinic marked the first of several Arkansas Baptists Medical-Dental Clinics planned across the state this year. The next clinic is scheduled March 7 at Tabernacle of God in Marion.
Clint Ritchie, community missions strategist at Arkansas Baptist, said this ministry “meets a huge physical need in our communities and opens opportunities to meet spiritual needs.”
“It is exciting to see people leave the clinic when their needs have been met, and they have been treated with dignity and grace,” he said, adding it’s just as great “seeing the volunteers from the host church realize they have made a Kingdom impact.”
For more information about Medical-Dental Clinics, visit absc.org/medicaldental. These clinics are made possible thanks to the generous giving of Arkansas Baptists through the Cooperative Program and the Dixie Jackson Arkansas Missions Offering.