As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord

By Marcella S. Meeks

Eighty-one year old Jackie A. Meeks from Logansport, La still pastors a small church on the Bethel Road out of Logansport after all these years. “I have been preaching sixty-two years and will continue on as long as I am alive and able to do so,” Brother Meeks said. “I was called to preach when ‘I was twenty, and I promised the Lord I would serve Him and never quit as long as I lived.”

Brother Meeks has kept his word all these years. He continues his ministry at the Calvary Abundant Life Tabernacle right off US Highway 84 on the Bethel Road, where he has been the pastor for over thirty-four years.
“I have preached at three locations during my sixty-one years of pasturing,” Brother Meeks continued. “I preached at Joaquin UPC in Joaquin, Texas many years ago, and the Bethel United Pentecostal Church in the Bethel Community after that, but we relocated to this new location in the early nineties. The church is now called Calvary Abundant Life Tabernacle.”

“Through the years, we have had had a full house (congregation), and at one time we had a full children’s Sunday school department. Then, as years passed, our congregation dwindled. Our members started getting older, and start passing away while othrs moved away. Newcomers came and went as the years went by. There were times that we had five or six show up for church, and there were times it was only my wife and I. But I made a promise to the Lord many years ago that I would never leave my church. Being a pastor is my way of life. It’s what I live for,” Brother Meeks went on.

“It hasn’t always been easy being a pastor, working a full-time job and raising a family (in my younger years), but at the end of the day, I knew it was my ‘calling’. I did the best I could through the years and have never regretted it not for one minute. I would do it all over again. There are a few things I might do differently but as a whole, I would never give up preaching for anything. Serving the Lord is what I was called to do and I’ll finish out my life serving God and preaching His Word.”

Brother Meeks is affiliated with The United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI), a Oneness Pentecostal denomination headquartered in Weldon Spring, Missouri. The church is not affiliated with the organization.

“We believe there is only one God, according to the scriptures, and we believe in submission in water baptism and the infilling of the Holy Spirit. We don’t discriminate or discredit anyone for their beliefs. And we don’t impose our doctrine on anyone. We have an open door policy. Just come as you are and visit us on Sundays at 1 p.m.”

Brother Meeks and his wife Marcella have cared for and maintained the Calvary Abundant Life Tabernacle for the last thirty-two years, and counting.

“If you’re a new pastor, my advice to you is to pray without ceasing. Go out in the community every chance you get and invite individuals and families to your church. Never give up. If you have made a commitment to becoming a pastor, stick with it. There have been times I wanted to quit and give up, but because of my vow to God, quitting is not an option. I’ll be here as long as I have breath. There have been times that no one showed up for church services but my wife and I, but we had church nevertheless. “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”. Joshua 24:15.”

“There have been many times I got discouraged and wanted to move on, but I knew the Lord wanted me here for whatever purpose, so I stayed. All of the original congregation that relocated to this location with us over thirty-two years ago are dead and gone now.”

You will find Brother Meeks on site at the church at any given time, especially on Sundays. “We’ll leave the doors open for you,” Brother Meeks said. “Welcome to our little country church.”

Acts 2:38 KJV

“Then Peter said unto t

hem, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”