Pastor Walter McCall delivers the children's message at Vincent Baptist Church.
In 'historic moment,' church voted to continue
History can hang in the balance at unsuspecting times. A congregation of four or five gathered 20 years ago in Vincent, Texas, to vote on whether or not to disband as a church. One woman cited Scripture: “Where two or more are gathered, God is with us.”
“That was a historic moment,” said Pastor Walter McCall, who has led Vincent Baptist Church since 2002. The church kept going. No matter their size, they were called to bless others by sharing the gospel.
What has unfolded over the years since is a beautiful picture of what it looks like to live by faith, said Rand Jenkins, Texans on Mission chief strategy officer.
“Vincent Baptist Church faced an uncertain future that in some ways mirrors what the people we serve after disasters face,” he said. “They had a choice: They could cling to their faith and press forward or close their doors. Because they chose to faithfully follow God’s call, God has blessed thousands of people through them. People have come to faith and received the help they desperately need. It’s simply amazing.”
Much has happened with Vincent Baptist since the 2004 vote to stay open. Church attendance fluctuated, climbing as high as 40 on a consistent basis, McCall said. The COVID pandemic punched a hole in that, dropping it to the 15-25 range, but the church had already taken a generous approach in giving to help people in crises.
About 10 years ago, “anytime something would happen, a crisis anywhere,” a local rancher would “speak up and say, ‘I believe we need to send some money to Texas Baptist Men,” now called Texans on Mission,’ the pastor recalled. “That’s really what led the church into that on a somewhat regular basis.
“Finances were still really not good at that time,” McCall said. “That was before the oil boom took place in the area around the church. But Mr. Autry kind of set the pace for our giving.”
Since oil royalties began coming in, “church members are much better off financially,” the pastor said. And “they are generous to a fault.”
In conversations with church members, the word “blessed” comes up often.
“We’ve been blessed around here with the oil drilling and stuff, and that’s helped a lot,” said Terry Shafer. “I’ve just always felt like giving a tithe was important. It’s not just me; others here enjoy giving. We’ve been blessed, and we want to bless others.”
Kent Holmes sees blessings all around. “We started off as an agricultural community years ago and gradually went to an oil/agricultural one,” Holmes said. “Many good blessings have happened with us. … It’s a blessed little church, and it’s been here over a hundred years. … It’s a good country to live in and a good place to go to church.”
When wildfires struck the Panhandle this winter, church members asked Pastor McCall how much he thought they should give. He suggested $15,000. But “one of the deacons raised his hand and said, ‘Preacher, I think we ought to send $30,000.’ So that’s what we ended up sending” to Texans on Mission, McCall said.
The church also sent gifts directly to three individual Panhandle ranchers whose land and operations had been destroyed by the fires.
“I can’t stress enough how much we trust y'all (Texans on Mission) to do the right thing, to benefit people and to bless them in God’s name,” McCall said.
Tanya Shafer echoed those thoughts. “We just want to serve where God has called us to serve, and we feel like [Texans on Mission] are good stewards of our money,” she said.
“The simple truth is we are predominantly an older congregation. There are only a couple of families in the church younger than me,” said McCall, who is 69. “Some of us are not physically able to do things. … God has blessed us, and we choose to bless others.”
He approved sharing information about the $30,000 gift and the church’s leading role in giving but said: “I don’t want it to be bragging about us; I want it to be bragging about what God does through people who are obedient to Him, not just our church. It’s about bringing glory to God ultimately.
“God could do it without us, but He invites us to join him,” McCall continued. “And I am convinced that we, as a small church, get a far greater blessing than what we send. That’s not the reason we do it, but it’s God’s blessing on obedience.”
Josh Thompson led the music on a recent Sunday when Texans on Mission was represented in the service. He sang a solo, “I Want to be a Worker for the Lord.”
Thompson said he chose the song because it describes what Texans on Mission does. “Y'all are very well spoken about, and … y’all are definitely workers for the Lord.”
