The Rev. Heather Hensarling, Brookhaven district superintendent, and the Rev. Raphael Johnson hold the One Matters Discipleship Award presented to Mount Pleasant United Methodist Church.
BESSIE YOUNG
The congregation of Mount Pleasant United Methodist Church in Lucedale, Mississippi, proudly poses with its One Matters Discipleship Award plaque and another award from the Mississippi Conference.
RON DALEY
The congregation of Mount Pleasant United Methodist Church in Lucedale, Mississippi, proudly poses with its One Matters Discipleship Award plaque and another award from the Mississippi Conference.
RON DALEY
The congregation of Mount Pleasant United Methodist Church in Lucedale, Mississippi, proudly poses with its One Matters Discipleship Award plaque and another award from the Mississippi Conference.
RON DALEY
A $1.75 investment in 10 acres of land 135 years ago continues to reap rewards for a tiny African-American congregation in Lucedale, Mississippi.
Bessie Lawrence Young, a 58-year member of Mount Pleasant United Methodist Church, remembers hearing early stories of her congregation from her elders. The church’s history traces back to the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863.
The congregation’s founders, Young said, “had a vision of being free and starting their own church. They were people of faith, and they trusted in God. Shortly after the emancipation, several of the newly freed slaves undertook the task of establishing a campground of their own.”
Around 1880, W.H. (Hampton) Lawrence purchased the tract on which the church now stands for $1.75.
“This demonstrated their faith, belief and trust in God,” Young said. “They told us of their struggles through stories and taught us that we must always have a clear vision, keep the faith and trust in God, for God will direct our path.”
Today Mount Pleasant is a congregation of only 35 people, but members’ vision for evangelism remains big. The Rev. Raphael Johnson is pastor.
“We continue to walk by faith, knowing our God will make a way,” Young said. “God has brought us a long way and continues to give us the strength to carry on, even when we get weary. Because of our heritage, we pull together, working hard to keep our church going and being a beacon of light to our community, reaching one member at a time.
“Evangelism to us,” she continued, is “reaching out to a dying world. We use our lives and experiences as examples of what God can do through us. This is the message preached in the pulpit and shown in the things we do, sharing our stories to bring others to Christ.
During the 2015 Mississippi Annual Conference, Mount Pleasant Church received a One Matters Discipleship Award from Discipleship Ministries.
“Being a small church, where most members are related,” Young said, “we feel the care of each other [as] one big family – relatives by blood, connected by God, sharing a rich heritage and history.
“We believe that God can transform us into new creatures and give us a new outlook on life. And we know that this can only happen by accepting Jesus and allowing him to be our guide.”
Like other Mount Pleasant members, Young wears many hats. At church, she serves as United Methodist Women president and finance committee chair. In the community, she teaches children with special needs.
And even though 80 percent of her fellow congregants are older than 50, Young sees plenty of hope for the future.
Barbara Dunlap-Berg is associate editor of Interpreter and Interpreter OnLine