God Prepares a Pastor for Calvert Outreach Calvert Outreach did not start by accident . Long before any of us arrived here in southern Maryland, God was already at work. He had chosen the ones He would use, and slowly we were brought together. It is important that I begin here. There is no greater joy than to be in God's will. Whether the task is great or small, if it is God's desire for your life, then its accomplishment brings joy. It was not always so for my life. I grew up in the Appalachian Mountains of southwest Virginia--an isolated area dotted with small towns and small churches. Graduation from high school brought little joy. I found myself in a small community college for a brief period and then followed in my father's footsteps back into a very dangerous job--coal mining. Working alone under the mountains, I began a questioning process. It was a small beginning, but it eventually led me far from home and also out of the spiritual darkness that completely surrounded me. This small spark of hope eventually burst into flame, but not for ten more years. For the next ten years, I ran from everything. A life with unanswered questions was not acceptable, but a life with questions answered by God also terrified me. My childhood and background did not allow the church to have any positive impact in my life. But I learned from personal experience that an infinite God of infinite love will find an infinite number of ways to reveal Himself to us. By the time I arrived in southern Maryland in 1991, the smallest of changes had begun. God was becoming more real. My wife, Donna, and I had been married for five years then. When she spoke of God, in any context, I would leave the room. Not surprisingly, when I left the room, God went with me. Slowly, that terrible stone that was my heart began to crumble, and it began to be alive for the first time. I learned that God's turning stone into flesh is painful, personally and for those around you. Most of the core that eventually became Calvert Outreach was already here in southern Maryland before we arrived. In many ways, meeting this group became a personal spiritual crisis for me. When I met these families, I was slowly building some hazy picture of who God was and had some vague ideas about what He would want. Suddenly, I knew exactly what God was like. These people became my friends, family by family. The O'Neals, the Wagners, the Bearjars, and the Millers were living a truth that I could not deny. The Browns--that's us--were the fifth family to arrive, and I was the only one in the group who did not know Jesus. My friends were willing to just be my friends, but they were sneaking around praying for me. God had kept that small spark alive for so many years, and now He allowed it to be gently fanned by the prayers of those He had lovingly placed around me. As I thought about the hazy picture that I had thought was God, I realized that it was incomplete. God had already revealed a human picture of himself in Jesus Christ. As I looked upon Jesus, I accepted Jesus Christ completely and without reservation. Calvert Outreach was already alive in Calvert County. The families mentioned were attending St. Charles Church of the Nazarene, about forty miles away. I joined them in full fellowship under the pastoral care of Steve Merki. We worshiped on Sundays at St. Charles. It was a wonderful time of fellowship and spiritual growth. However, our hearts were always being pulled back to our home community--Calvert. Steve's messages always demanded a decision and always called us to put our faith in action. God always provided opportunities for us in Calvert County. It was apparent that God was at work here and that we were to join that work, devoting our full time to it. We started small and naturally. Often when we were not able to make the trip back to St. Charles on Sunday evening, we would have our own fellowship time in one of our homes. This began one of our early traditions of having open homes--open to be used as God desired to use them. I believe that the home is the "church building" that God often desires to use for His work. After a year (1992-93), the pull toward Calvert County as our primary mission and outreach field again increased. God had already placed the burden of becoming a holiness presence in Calvert County on Jerry O'Neal and Charlie Wagner. They were members of the St. Charles board and shared this vision with the church board at that time. Growing up is hard on everyone. Sometimes we forget that it is hard on parents, too. The St. Charles Church was a good parent and had done much to prepare us. With full blessing, we began to devote full attention to Outreach in Calvert County. Lest we forget our purpose, we chose the name Calvert Outreach. The year 1994 was full of experiences--some wonderful, some difficult, all necessary. Our eyes were opened to the many needs of the community. A missionary's heart to be whatever we needed to be so that a few could be saved came upon us. God was calling us to step far from our comfort zones and rely upon Him. Again I say, "God has the plan for reaching Calvert County." Late in 1994, we needed a pastor. Calvert Outreach was growing, decisions needed to be made, and our areas of ministry needed to be focused. I had linked arms with Calvert outreach and was leading Bible studies at work, directing two puppet teams, and helping with the teen program. Calvert Outreach had doubled in size and everyone devoted himself completely to the work that God was doing. I had felt a call to prepare for ministry and had approached Steve about this. We started the search for a pastor, and God led several wonderful people to us. I don't know why or how God chooses, but these interviews were not immediately productive. We are a stubborn group. Steve approached me with a tough question: "Do you feel a call to pastor this church?" This was the hardest question that I have ever answered in my life, yet I knew the answer immediately. Up to now, I had not even considered that this was even possible. After all, it seemed to me that there was little in my life that had prepared me for this. Steve presented this "just as a suggestion" to Calvert Outreach. Perhaps the greatest statement of faith that can be made by a group of believers was made that day. They believed and accepted all that God was doing in my life and allowed me the privilege of serving as pastor of this mission. The faithful often have a much greater impact on the Kingdom than the one allowed to lead or to preach every Sunday. This is the very essence of Calvert Outreach here today. We believe God. Calvert Outreach was accepted as a church type mission. December 1994 saw the beginning of Sunday worship services at Patuxent Elementary School. God has been faithful and has used us. Many have come to be a part of Calvert Outreach--some for a few months, some a year, and some longer. Our mission is a difficult one, but for those that God has selected for it, there can be no joy except here. Today, March 9, 1996, we officially became Calvert Outreach Church of the Nazarene in the Washington District. We began with the humble beginning of twenty believers in full membership but surrounded by many more who believe in this vision. God shall choose, God will be glorified, and we will believe God. Submitted by Ken Brown What God Taught Us About Church Planting Editor's Note: This is a summary of Pastor Merki's first-person report of the joys of planting a church in a neighboring community. "Charlie's and Jerry's Church and Fried Chicken" was the way we jokingly referred to the beginning ways of the Calvert Outreach Church. Let me tell you why. In the winter of 1992-93, two members of the St. Charles Church approached the pastor and church board about their desire to plant a church in Calvert County, the fastest growing county in Maryland. Charlie Wagner and Jerry O'Neal, with their families, had been driving 40 miles across the county line to attend the St. Charles church. A few other families were also making the same trip. Charlie and Jerry had been serving on the St. Charles church board and felt that there was a definite need for a Nazarene church in their county. All they asked for at that point was permission to begin putting their tithe toward laying the groundwork for such a church plant. That's why we called it Charlie's and Jerry's church--who knows where the fried chicken idea came from. Since St. Charles had recently experienced a pastoral transition, some of the church board wondered if this was the right time to be taking such a step. But after praying about it, they believed they ought to give their blessing to this effort. And they did. Initial Efforts Directed to Teens - In the beginning, all ministry efforts were directed to teens of the community. Special events were sponsored. Groups of unchurched teens were taken on outings, to hear contemporary Christian music and on retreats. In the process, several families of these teens began to show interest. The group grew rapidly, but it was also a demanding ministry. At one point, the ministry had to be reevaluated and even temporarily cut back because of the demands on the families in the core group. Before long, the core group secured the use of a local elementary school for a weekly Wednesday evening program. There was a Bible study for adults, along with separate programs for youth and children. Throughout this time, the group continued to attend St. Charles Church for Sunday services. From time to time, I met with the group for the purpose of defining mission and direction and for prayer and worship. God's Strange Plans for a Pastor - In early 1994, we started to talk about finding a pastor for the group so they could begin Sunday services. In April, I went to Kansas City to interview prospects at Nazarene Theological Seminary. Over the next several months, several prospective pastors came to interview with the group. The core group even extended a call to one prospect who did not feel led to come. It seemed we had hit a blank wall. By this time, Ken and Donna Brown had become a vital part of the Calvert Outreach Ministry. Ken worked with Charlie and Jerry. The Browns traveled to St. Charles Church and joined the church. Ken began speaking to me about a sense of call on his life. At that point, Ken did not have a clear sense of the specific direction, but he felt he was being called to some form of Christian service. In the fall of 1994, I met Ken for lunch and asked him if he could consider serving as "lay pastor" to the group until a permanent pastor could be found. Ken responded positively after prayerful consideration and discussion with the ministry team to Calvert. The St. Charles Church granted Ken a local minister's license, and he began leading Sunday worship services in December 1994 in the O'Neal home; and in January 1995, they moved to the community center. The search for a permanent pastor has been postponed indefinitely. Ken has completed his first year in the course of study for a district license. Impact on St. Charles Church - As I have indicated, there was some initial concern at the St. Charles Church that we could not afford to give up any families to the Calvert Outreach Project. The first thing to be released was the financial support of several committed families--that happened in early 1993. In the three years since, St. Charles has added temporary space for new growth, added a pastoral staff member (one of the NTS graduates brought in initially to interview with the Calvert group), and expanded its ministry in several other ways. In late 1994, the St. Charles Church released several strong families when Calvert Outreach began Sunday worship services. There were a few months when the statistics dipped. But all statistics recovered with the past year. Despite the worst winter in southern Maryland history, the St. Charles Church had the strongest January and February in its history. In every area where the sponsoring church thought it was sacrificing, the losses have been more than replaced. And meanwhile, there is a new "center of holy fire" in Calvert County, Maryland.
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