“BIG D”
March 24, 2010 (Wednesday)
Next stop: Big D. We moved from Kosse to the Vickery Baptist Church of Dallas in April, 1961. Wanda and I were both 29 years old and I now had been preaching 12 years, about 9 of those as staff member or pastor of churches. I still, however, had a lot to learn. (Indeed, that’s still true). Born and reared in the city, I still had to know what it’s like to be a pastor in the city.
The church had been in existence 50 years, and had had some well-known men as pastors. I was followed by some well-known men, too. When I left after 3 ½ years, I held the record tenure.
It took us about a year to adjust from Kosse to Dallas, but we finally became part of the Metroplex mentally as well as physically. After two years, in May, 1963, our daughter, Dianna, was born at Baylor Hospital.
My car was hit by another car at an intersection on Greenville Avenue one day, and the 1959 Chevy was then replaced by a 1963 model. My neck still hurts from that whiplash, regardless of what the doctors say.
I learned to love the people in the church, many of whom were our age. I also enjoyed working and fellowshiping with my fellow pastors of small and large churches. Our “Pastors’ Conference” every Monday was always a great experience for me, as well as the fellowship in one of the local restaurants afterward.
Today, 49 years after our arrival at Vickery, the church is a mission of one of the Dallas churches. The Vickery community has gone through several transitions over the years. It is not recognizable today as the small town north of Dallas; it is full of apartment houses, skyscrapers, and a huge shopping mall. One of the big churches has relocated nearby and things have changed.
We are hurrying through the Texas towns I lived in, but there’s no other way to cover an entire pastorate in one little blog. Each church and place merits an entire book. Maybe future blogs, eh?