By Michael WachtST.
PETERSBURG — When the Rev. Georgia Gaston received her first pastoral appointment a
little more than a year ago, it was to a church that was seriously considering closing its
doors. Today, Trinity United Methodist Church here has a fresh coat of paint on the
outside and a new attitude toward ministry on the inside.
With fewer than 150 people on the rolls and approximately 45 people
in worship, members of Trinity told the new pastor they received in June 2000 that they
had considered closing because the size of the membership and the church’s finances
“would not allow them to continue in ministry,” Gaston said.
Church members also were not sure how to reach out to a changing
neighborhood. Trinity’s membership was completely Anglo and predominately older
adults, but area residents are predominately African-American families.
Another problem was the church’s image in the community. When
she arrived at the church Gaston said she had citations on her desk from the city of St.
Petersburg for code violations because of peeling paint on the building’s exterior.
Neighbors told Gaston they thought the church had closed.
The church had also split several years before. A large number of
people left, taking financial resources and services with them.
“I reassured the members that we could still move ahead,”
she said. “There’s not another church around here, and I believe God wants us to
continue in ministry…this area is ripe for ministry. The task is how to attract
people and get their attention.”
That task is being accomplished by a combination of new and
traditional ministries, according to Gaston. Last year’s fall festival was the first
event of its kind at the church and included a food give-away and health screenings for
neighbors. The church’s Street Lights ministry is an ongoing program that invites
children to spend an hour or more at the church each Tuesday for Bible study and fun
activities.
The traditional fifth-Sunday pancake dinners have continued and
grown into weekly cereal breakfasts for children. The church is also holding monthly
potluck suppers called “Share Trinity.” It’s a time for Trinity’s
members to share with each other over a common meal, and every member is asked to bring a
guest to share Trinity’s ministries with them.
The church is now receiving help from outside groups, which Gaston
says is nothing short of divine intervention. The Rev. Dr. Larry Rankin, director of the
Conference Council on Ministries’ Missions office, put Gaston in touch with a group
called Team Effort, which coordinates mission projects for youth groups. For six weeks
this summer, Team Effort teenagers spent three days each week painting the church and
interacting with neighborhood kids attending a YMCA-sponsored summer day camp at the
church.
Yvonne C. Reed, a local woman who runs a private kindergarten and
first-grade school, approached Gaston last year about using space in the church. The
school and its 90 students have been in the church for two years.
“She needed us, and we needed her,” Gaston said. “The
school gives life to this church during the week. The community now sees this church is
alive. It also helps us financially.”
Despite the church’s blessings, Gaston said the task is a
difficult one. “This is a hard neighborhood as far as getting people involved in the
church,” she said. “We get a lot of response during the week and at our
meals…but they don’t necessarily stay for church.”
With as many as 45 people in the church’s one worship service,
Gaston said she is trying to design an experience that will be meaningful to the mix of
people now attending. “I’m trying to look at the worship service and include
something for everyone,” she said.
Gaston also offers an invitation to Christian discipleship at every
service, although she goes for weeks without getting a response. “There’s always
the pressure of numbers, but that’s not my focus,” she said. “My focus is
sharing God’s word and reaching the people we need to reach. I have feelings of
inadequacy, but a sense of peace as well. I worked for 32 years in social services, and I
did not always have that sense of satisfaction that I have here. I’m in the right
place.” |
