On the first Sunday of next month Rev. Gilbert will begin his twenty-ninth year as our pastor, the longest term of continuous service in our 175-year history. We were not always so blessed with such long-serving pastors. As a matter of fact the period right before he came was one of the most difficult in our history. Many of us here today will remember, but others have no idea what we went through from 1957 to 1982. I was on the deacon board during some of these years, which were characterized by rapid change and controversy. As a nation we saw President Kennedy get assassinated, the Vietnam War rage, civil rights protesters march, the birth control pill debut, men walk on the moon, and a President resign. Our church seemed to mirror the turmoil of the nation. We ordained two young ministers, had two seasoned ministers leave under painful circumstances, discovered that some of our conference missions funds were not getting to the mission field, and built the Fellowship Hall. 

In 1979, Rev. Gilbert joined our church family and has served for twenty-eight years; in contrast, during the twenty-two years from 1957 to 1979 our leadership changed five times. We began the period led by a young college student from Elon. We took him under our wing, and he was ordained in this building in 1958. In 1959, he left for Duke University to continue his theological education. Our second pastor during this period served from 1960 to 1964 before leaving to accept a call from a church in Virginia. Even so, his family maintained strong ties to the area, and he would return. 

From 1964 to 1970, another youthful pastor led our congregation, and in 1967 he also was ordained at Bethlehem. Incidentally, for a short time we were on the radio, and if anyone wants to listen to voices from our past, some of those 1965 services have been converted to CDs. In 1970, this third pastor also accepted the call to serve another church, and we invited back the pastor who had left six years earlier.

Serving his second term here at Bethlehem, this minister is remembered as a powerful preacher who challenged many of us. In 1973, three years into his this second term, the shock of his infidelity and departure, with another officer of the church, shook us hard. We were astonished, angry and hurt. Two families were broken and so was our church family. How could this happen? Yet God was faithful and He sustained us. God even used this to grow our dependence on Him alone. 

In the summer of 1973, our congregation called the fourth pastor during this period. His tenure would not be lengthy either. After a few years, some members became dissatisfied with what they saw as rambling sermons unrelated to the scripture text. I was chairman of the deacon board at that time, and we attempted to reach an understanding with both sides. These attempts failed as tensions grew. While the church divided over support for him or against him, we learned that a church rallies together for more than a pastor. Many struggled in prayer asking God to show us the right thing to do. God was calling us to discern His voice and allowed us to struggle together as a community. Ultimately, there was a vote in June of 1978 not to retain him.

As if these pastoral issues were not serious enough, the last decade of this period featured two other significant events. First, as some of our members began to research the United Church of Christ’s appropriation of funds, we were disillusioned with its corporate decisions. We hosted meetings with area churches to discuss where our money was going. Through this, God gave us a very real example of why we are to be wise as serpents and to know what we are supporting. Second, the last years of this period saw us reunite in support of the building of our Fellowship Hall, dedicated at our 150th anniversary. Of course, like Dave said at last month’s history service, building programs are not without sacrifice and disagreement. This one was no exception.

It was not an easy time, but we learned much that guides us today. Any one of these events could have caused the demise of Bethlehem Christian Church, and we did lose precious members in each of these episodes. But we also learned two things that make us stronger today.

First, we learned not to put others on unrealistic pedestals. Preachers are human. Even we the congregation might make mistakes, but the ultimate guide for us is the unchanging Word of God. Whether it is the minister or the congregation gone astray, it is with the Word of God that we need to continually realign our lives.

Second, we learned that we need each other. During those final nine years, Bethlehem began to rally together in preparation for the new building project. Through the 1970s and 80s we worked together for a number of fundraisers from chicken dinners at A-O to the annual October stew. Many precious memories were made, as we pulled together as a community. I know it’s great that we’ve reduced the labor involved in the cooking process, but there is something to be said for the old hard way our stews came to be. We knew young or old that if we didn’t do our part, then the final product wouldn’t come together. It’s a lesson we must pass on. Our church family needs us all to do our part. We need to encourage, to forgive, to listen, to share our talents, to guide, and to teach each other. We need to live out the Word to and for each other, even if we have the 3:00 AM stew-stirring shift.

As we reflect on these lessons from the past, let’s be encouraged for today. Let’s walk with each other and do our part to share what we’ve learned with future generations.