Pastor Emeritus
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Life Summary:
I came to the Open Bible Church at the young age of sixteen. I had no ideas or aspirations of becoming a minister, much less pastoring a church. During the next three years, however, God dealt with my heart regarding the ministry, and in 1965 I accepted the call and enrolled in Open Bible College. Sharon Sexton, who was raised in the Open Bible Church from birth, also attended OBC at the same time. How could she have known that one day she would return to the church to share in pastoring her family and lifelong friends? We began dating in our senior year and were married shortly after we graduated in 1969. We then moved to Chicago and worked at Prevention, Inc., ministering to those involved in drug and alcohol abuse. We later pastored a church in Pierre, SD before coming back to Cedar Rapids. I accepted the position of Associate Pastor under Rev. Neal Gail in 1973 and was elected Senior Pastor in January of 1988. With the exception of one year, in which I taught at Open Bible College, I have been sharing the pastoral duties of the church for over twenty years. It is amazing how God has worked His wonderful plan. One particular event stands out to me and illustrates how God answers prayer and has providentially had His hand on our church. In 1964 I would walk to work at Davis Dairy Maid on Edgewood Road NW. My route always took me past a particular church on "E" Avenue NW. In front of that property were some lilac bushes which surrounded a beautiful white cross. One summer evening on my way home, I stopped to admire the cross. A thought came to my mind as I viewed the cross, "Pray for this land for our church." I tried to dismiss the thought because another church owned the property and it just didn't seem right. But again, I felt compelled to pray. After a brief prayer, I continued home and forgot about that evening, mentioning it to no one. Several years passed and during our pastorate in Pierre, SD, we received a call from Sharon's parents telling us the church had purchased land for a new building. Being of a curious nature, I asked where the land was located. I was amazed when they told us it was on "E" Avenue NW, the same property over which I had prayed years before! God had answered the forgotten prayer of a young Christian, who was destined to Pastor a church on the same spot some 24 years later!
Pastor Stevens & Sharon resigned as senior pastors in 2008, and are enjoying their time in retirement as active members of our congregation. |
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