125 Years of Faith and Fellowship at Guthrie Methodist Church
(Hand Panted Sign Announcing the 125th Anniversary)There is something special about returning to a place that holds a piece of your life. For some, that could be a particular camping spot, a family member's home on Thanksgiving or Christmas, or a restaurant that you eat at on a specific vacation spot.
Sometimes it's the feeling of solitude in a quiet place where only you are present. Then, for some others, it includes the familiar faces waiting inside a building of gathering. The memory that comes rushing back as these places are approached and inhabited will often include the realization that, even after years have passed, a place can still feel like home.
For those who attended Guthrie Methodist Church’s 125th Anniversary Homecoming Celebration on Sunday, that feeling was in abundance. This occasion included former pastors returning to the pulpit, longtime members gathering with friends, and the congregation taking time to remember the people who helped shape the church over more than a century.
Stories about families, laughter over old memories, reflections on the work, and reminders of the faith that brought generations together were all in the atmosphere.
Pastor Mark Carrigan (current pastor) welcomed the congregation and reminded everyone why they had come together.
At the center of the celebration, he said, was Jesus.
Former pastors Rev. Doug Lyons, Rev. Mark Fentress and Pastor Karen Franklin, returned with their spouses to share in the memories of their time in Guthrie. Pastor Mark Carrington asked each to offer a sermon. As each spoke, it became obvious that it wasn't just the members of the Guthrie Methodist Church who had been touched during these leaders' time there, but Guthrie as a whole, along with the church, had made a life-changing impact on each of them as well. The different perspectives on Guthrie, the church congregation, and the people who had made an impression on them showed through during their sermons.
A church is more than a building
Mark Carrigan began the morning's teachings with the children's talk. He brought an hourglass and invited the children to imagine that every grain of sand represented a day, with the entire hourglass taking 125 years to empty.
Mark used this object lesson to help make the long history feel a little more understandable to the youngest people in the congregation.
When asked what had helped the church continue through the years, the children offered answers that included prayer, worship, faith, thankfulness, fellowship, and family.
Mark's presentation made it easy to identify the message. A church's history is not only measured by the years on a calendar, but it is also measured by the people it serves and the faith it passes along.
The congregation joined the children and Mark at his request and sang “I Am the Church,” a song that reinforces that same idea. The song explained that a church is not simply its building or steeple, but it is also the people who gather, worship, pray, give, laugh, cry, and share their faith with others.
Mark even reminded the children that Jesus cried, too. There is room for tears in a community built around caring for one another.
The church was established in 1901 as Guthrie Methodist Episcopal Church South. Its name and the wider Methodist tradition have changed over time, but the anniversary offered a chance to reflect on what has continued.
The idea of the ongoing effect of the church community was made even clearer by the words of the former pastors. It was found that those relationships often last long after a pastor moves on.
Remembering the people who built the legacy
Rev. Doug Lyons took to the stand, reflecting on his years serving the congregation and on the generosity he remembered among its members.
He recalled how, during his time as the leader, Guthrie Methodist had been recognized among the district's churches for its giving in relation to average attendance. He shared that this generosity told something about the kind of people who made up the congregation.
Doug also turned to the biblical story of the Israelites crossing the Jordan River. This retelling explained how the people were instructed to take stones from the river as a memorial, creating a reminder for future generations. When they might ask what those stones meant, they would hear the story of what God had done.
That idea of a memorial connected naturally with the anniversary.
The people who established and sustained the church had their own hopes for the community. They wanted a place where families could find faith, hope, and a good life. The generations that followed added their own stories to that foundation.
Doug spoke of a church in Indianapolis, IL, known as “The Caring Place.” Guthrie Methodist might not carry that name officially, he explained, but the idea fit the congregation as he remembered it. Its legacy was found in people who cared for others and used what they had to help families and neighbors.
A Path Modified and a Life Changed Life
Rev. Mark Fentress offered another deeply personal look back.
He talked about arriving in Guthrie as a young pastor, around 25 or 26 years old, with his wife, Becky, and their young son, John Mark. He remembered the people who welcomed his family and the sense that Guthrie was where he was supposed to be.
Mark described his ministry as something that could be fulfilling and thrilling, not a burden. Becky was part of that ministry, teaching Sunday school and helping children learn about Jesus.
But he also shared that he almost didn't get to come. He recalled looking forward to coming to Guthrie. He went to a conference where his assignment was going to be assigned. At the conference, he learned that the bishop intended to send him somewhere else. Mark was surprised by the unexpected change in plans. But as he recalled it, something came over the bishop, who received the inspiration to change his mind and send Mark to Guthrie after all.
Mark also remembered the support he and Becky received from Guthrie Methodist Church's people during difficult times. He explained that those acts of kindness stayed with him and his family.
He closed by acknowledging the sacred connection they still felt with the people in the congregation, including those who had passed away. Some of the people he remembered were no longer there to attend the homecoming, but they remained part of his story.
Seeing the light in Guthrie
Karen Franklin remembered her arrival in Guthrie through the details of a busy moving day.
There were people waiting at the parsonage, men trimming bushes, women moving through the kitchen, and others helping direct the activities.
It was the kind of welcome that says a great deal about a community without needing to explain very much.
But one of Karen's longest-lasting memories came the next morning.
She got up early and walked to the church. She shared how she felt upon entering the sanctuary. She saw the stained-glass windows and watched as the morning sunlight began to come through, moving across the wall and floor.
Sitting quietly in that light, she felt that the light of Jesus Christ was present in the place.
She also began thinking about her responsibility as the new pastor, which was to carry that light into Guthrie itself.
Karen recalled looking at the young people and wondering how she would get to know them. She went downtown, visiting storefronts, the police station, and city buildings, introducing herself to the community.
As she reflected on the church's history, Karen remembered weddings, baptisms, confirmations, children's pageants, covered-dish dinners, choir music, youth-group bonfires, hayrides, and Christmas parades. She recalled Miss Betty's sweet potato casserole and Miss Peg leading the choir. She remembered children in handmade costumes and the sometimes-unpredictable moments that came with putting on a pageant.
These memories were not grand historical milestones in a chronology, but rather, they were ordinary moments which, over time, became part of a congregation's shared history.
Her message returned to scripture and shared that people are not meant to hide their light. Their faith should be visible at work, at school, at sporting events, in stores, and wherever life takes them.
Karen told the congregation that a single candle's light is able to be seen from a distance greater than many may realize. She asked those present to imagine what happens when many people let their lights shine together.
That light may be able to spread hope, offer peace, and reach people who might otherwise feel forgotten.
Passing the light forward
The closing portion of the service turned that message into something the congregation could not only see, but participate in.
Mark Carrigan shared how the two candles on the altar represent the humanity and divinity of Jesus. From the larger Christ candle, the light was passed to the smaller candles held by members of the congregation, each person sharing the flame with a neighbor.
One candle became many.
As the room filled with candlelight, the symbolism reached beyond the end of a worship service.
Each person received the light from someone else and then passed it along. No one candle had to illuminate the entire room by itself.
Before the closing hymn, Mark reflected on the generations who had come before, describing those who had died in faith as part of the “church triumphant” and the living congregation as the “church militant.” The question was what those earlier generations might say if they could join the gathering.
One answer, Mark suggested, would be that the church needs revival.
The congregation sang “Revive Us Again” before receiving a final blessing and heading toward the anniversary meal at the Guthrie Senior Center.
As those who were present began to migrate to the senior center, the building slowly began to empty. Some lingered a little longer to look around again at a place that helped build them, and to try to hold on to that feeling for just a little longer.
At the Senior Citizen Center, the anniversary-goers were greeted by music being played by the Todd County Boys and a meal that was catered by Roy's BBQ out of Russellville.
The food line continued the conversations, which found their way to the round tables. Fellowship and reminiscing ensued.
Congregants brought desserts to share and enjoy together.
By the front door, a table lay with picture books. The pictures were of years of church events and members throughout its pages. Just adjacent to that stood some poster boards with more pictures strung across, being held to a string by tiny clothespins.
The center was full of laughter and chatter for a long time that day.
The occasion of the 125th anniversary of Guthrie Methodist Church was an event that members had anticipated for months prior.
As individuals departed that afternoon, while no one knew for sure what the future holds for Guthrie Methodist Church, and while everyone left with memories both refreshed and new, it is certain that the next 25 years will proceed with an abundance of faith and fellowship.
