OUR STORY
A New Church with an Ancient Mission
During 20 years of ministry overseas, Scott and Debbie Belsley helped establish two local churches. In 2024, Çankaya Baptist Church commissioned the Belsleys for church planting in southeast Michigan. Through weekly Bible studies, Plymouth Township Baptist Church (PTBC) was born in February 2025, united by shared doctrine (Statement of Faith) and mutual commitment (Church Covenant). As an elder-led congregational church that prizes expository preaching, PTBC desires to be a useful instrument in the Redeemer’s hands for generations to come—magnifying God’s sovereign grace in partnership with other Bible-believing churches.
MISSION STATEMENT
To glorify the triune God by growing in Christlike maturity and making disciples, in glad obedience to Scripture.
Our Distinctives
Expositional Preaching
Historic Baptist Ecclesiology
Reformed Soteriology
Expositional Preaching
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Reformed Soteriology
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One, Unified Assembly
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Expositional Preaching
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Meaningful Membership & Restorative Church Discipline
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Biblically Oriented Public Worship
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Historic Baptist Ecclesiology
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Elder-led Congregationalism
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We believe God gives life through His Word, so our primary preaching each week involves reading, explaining, and applying Scripture to His people.
We affirm believer’s baptism as a public declaration of faith and hold that only baptized believers should be members of the local church.
We believe God is sovereign in salvation and humans are morally responsible. This conviction fuels bold gospel proclamation, knowing God opens hearts to believe.
Meaningful Membership & Church Discipline
Church membership is a biblical commitment to mutual accountability. Discipline begins privately and may, when necessary, lead to removal from fellowship to restore the wayward.
Elder-Led
Congregationalism
We believe final authority rests with the gathered congregation, and that churches should be led by a plurality of qualified male elders.
One, Unified Assembly
A local church is one body that gathers weekly in one place. While temporary multi-service models may exist, our goal is a unified assembly as the primary setting for discipleship.
Biblically Oriented Public Worship
We structure our worship services according to Scripture, centering on God’s Word through preaching, prayer, singing, reading, and the ordinances.
Church-Centered Missions
& Evangelism
We follow biblical instruction for organizing and sending, trusting God's methods over manmade strategies, and emphasizing local church faithfulness in mission.
Our Leadership
PTBC is a congregational church, so the gathered members are the final human authority in the church. We are also an elder-led church, meaning the congregation has recognized men (as described in Scripture passages such as 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1) who give oversight to the teaching and affairs of the church.
Our elders (also called pastors and overseers in the Bible) give their time to lead, teach, and counsel in the church. If you would like to talk with one of our church elders, please write to plymouthtownshipbc@gmail.com.
LEAD PASTOR/ELDER
Scott Belsley
Scott Belsley is a Michigan native and graduate of Wayne State University, Columbia International University, and the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (MDiv). He and his wife, Debbie (a Maryland native), have four children: Nathan, Lydia, Elise, and Jacob.
For nearly 20 years, the Belsleys served in Afghanistan and Turkey, most recently with Reaching & Teaching International Ministries (RTIM). In Turkey, Scott served as an elder in two congregations—one Persian-speaking and one English-speaking—which helped prepare him to lead a church planting effort upon returning to Michigan. He continues to support Persian speakers through RTIM.
PASTOR/ELDER
Doug Cousino
Doug and Sharon Cousino were married in 1983 and have five adult children and 12 grandchildren. After nine years of ministry in Detroit, they moved to the Arabian Peninsula in 1992, where they blended family life with academic work and outreach among indigenous and near-culture peoples. Their time overseas included travel throughout Asia Minor, the Indian subcontinent, and Africa, all driven by a passion for the Great Commission.
In 2018, they returned to the U.S. and served in various ministries at Oakhurst Baptist Church in Charlotte, NC. The Cousinos relocated back to the Detroit area in July 2024, and Doug retired later that year.
Our Partners
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