The Church I lead started in 1888, according to historical records. It started on one side of the street and moved to the other several years later. Eventually, it would split and come back together in a new building on the outer edge of town. Altogether it has been serving the Lord in this community for 135 years.

Some days I sit in my office and ponder all the people who got this Church to this point. How many people sacrificed time and money to keep the Church going? How many pastors, elders, deacons, Sunday school teachers, worship leaders, trustees, treasurers, and secretaries gave countless hours to keep this Church functioning? How many lives were impacted throughout that time? How many people performed baptisms, shared communion, and ate together in the name of Jesus?

I am allowed to be the preacher at this Church by the grace of God and the hard work of an untold number of heroes of the faith. People whose names I will never know, yet they shaped the life of this Church. I am so thankful for some people I will never meet on this side of heaven.

The truth of the matter is that all of us will one day be forgotten. However, we still have the chance to impact future generations. We can be a hero in the faith to people we will never meet. Distant relatives and future generations will one day be blessed by our work in this Church.

I may not know the previous generations, just like future generations will not know me. They served the Lord, and I am blessed by it. Hopefully, further down the road, people will be thankful for the work you and I did too.