By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer
MORGAN CITY – A Morgan City pastor has begun serving as bi-vocational director of missions for Gulf Coast Baptist Association.
An association of 15 churches primarily in St. Mary Parish, Gulf Coast Baptist Association previously shared with a director of missions with Evangeline Baptist Association.
Steven Kelly assumed his role as director of missions on Aug. 1.
Bert Langley, who has retired as director of missions for Evangeline Association, but is remaining as interim, approached Kelly with the idea a few months ago and the churches in Gulf Coast Baptist Association agreed the timing was right to make the move.
“Before, we shared a director of missions with an area much larger than our own,” said Kelly, who is pastor of Bayou Vista Baptist Church, where the new associational office will be located. “Bi-vocationally I can give it the same attention a new director of missions would do. For our churches, we now have our own identity.”
Kelly will continue to serve full time as pastor and will work one day a week as director of missions.
While his role as pastor will prevent him from serving as an interim pastor at other churches on Sundays, Kelly plans to meet with pastors during meal times, in the evenings and on Saturdays for special events.
Most of the congregations are located near Bayou Vista, which allows Kelly close proximity to visit with them. Half are led by bi-vocational pastors.
Only three of the churches average more than 100 on Sunday morning worship services.
“It’s been stated at our state convention that at least half of our pastors are bi-vocational,” Kelly said. “Because I am local, that gives me the ability to meet those needs of pastors who are closeby and maybe can’t meet during the daytime because some of them are bi-vocational.”
Throughout his six years as pastor of Bayou Vista Baptist Church, Kelly has gotten to know most of the churches in the association, which has included two years as moderator.
One of his goals as director of missions is to bring increased unity among the churches.
“In the day we live in, where external attacks are greater than ever before, we need cohesion,” Kelly said. “We are entering a time in the life of our country where the churches cannot afford to go at it alone, so we will have to depend on the association and other bodies that link us together.
“My goal is to enhance the fellowship and help us become more interdependent,” he continued. “There is strength in numbers. This latest ruling by the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage should be a wake-up call that if we stand alone, we won’t hold together like we need to. So at associational level we need to hold together regionally. The devil attacks you by yourself normally. If he can isolate you, he can win.”
A native of Chalmette, Kelly has served on staff of churches in other areas of the state, as well as in Iowa and Mississippi. In addition to Bayou Vista Baptist Church, Kelly has served in Louisiana as pastor at Circle Baptist Church in Baker, First Baptist Church in Doyline and First Baptist Church in Many.
He also served as a summer missionary in San Francisco, Calif., where he sensed the call to ministry as well as met his wife, Tammilee, who was a partner on his team during the summer of 1986. The couple has three children, two who are grown.
“What excites me the most about remaining at Bayou Vista as pastor and serving bivocationally as director of missions is that I get to love my church and serve our region at the same time,” Kelly said.