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Pastor Bill Larsen
By Nina Crowder
The Kearny Southern Baptist Church, located at 302 W. Danbury Road, has exciting news of a new pastor. Pastor Bill Larsen is fairly new to the Kearny area and is thrilled to have the opportunity to fellowship people of the Kearny and surrounding areas.
In 1976, while Larsen was living in home state of Missouri, he began his journey as a pastor. He has many years of experience as a pastor fulfilling callings in Kansas, Oklahoma, Colorado and Oregon to name a few.
Larsen has been an acting pastor to congregations in excess of 100 members but prefers the smaller congregations.
The Baptist tradition is one of the largest of the Protestant Christian denominations with over 43 million members worldwide. Southern Baptist pastors serve as leaders of local churches throughout the United States.
They have multiple duties as pastor, but their main job is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to the church. This can be a challenging and rewarding career. The Southern Baptist pastors have a lot of independence on how the church is run, but the pastor holds true the general beliefs of the Southern Baptist Convention which is “Baptist Faith and Message.”
Pastor Bill Larsen gave an example of what one might anticipate attending the Southern Baptist Church, beginning with the greeting which is a time when worshipers are invited to meet and greet one another and newcomers are warmly welcomed. A few songs are then played to uplift and inspire the congregation and attending members.
The receiving of gifts, tithes and offerings is another practice usually an offering plate or offering basket are passed around. Next is the sermon or teaching. Larsen indicated that he prays and prepares for his sermon all week, receiving messages to be passed on to the people. The purpose of sermon time is for instruction in the Word of God with making it pertinent to our daily lives.
After the sermon, there will be an altar call where public and congregation members have the opportunity to comment on the message and to make an affirmation or statement as they chose. And lastly, the church service is concluded with song and a prayer.
If you have never attended a Southern Baptist service, remember every church is different and if you don’t like the first one, do not give up. A typical length of time for a church service is anywhere from one to two hours. The Southern Baptist Church in Kearny Sunday School begins at 9:30 a.m. and worship begins at 11 a.m. every Sunday.
Whether you are a Southern Baptist looking for a place to worship or someone looking for a fresh start, please feel free to visit the Kearny Southern Baptist Church and their new Pastor Bill Larsen.
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