This past Sunday, Pastor Kyle Ohsfeldt of Grace Baptist Church hit a milestone that many would consider today’s vagabond work culture.
He celebrated his 20th year of ministry at the church.
A native of Moore, Okla. Ohsfeldt’s journey to ministry is not unlike many preachers as he felt the Lord calling him to ministry and led to his attendance at Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Mo.
An unusual characteristic to Ohsfeldt’s ministry, Grace Baptist Church was his first stop following an internship at Eastland Baptist Church in Tulsa, Okla.
“After graduating Bible college in 1998, I was hired at that church in Tulsa and it was kind of to just learn the ropes about ministry,” Ohsfeldt said. “It was how to teach a Sunday school class, how to preach sermons and deal with people with real-life experiences, not just the academic side of things. It was more of a practical approach to the ministry.”
In 2000, Grace Baptist Church’s preacher, Gene Burnham, resigned and had asked Ohsfeldt to come out and preach and the church voted on him to be the pastor. Twenty years later, Ohsfeldt still calls Grace Baptist Church “home.”
“I feel like we’ve become a church family,” Ohsfeldt said. “We’re not the church that can boast ‘We have 1,500 at a service,’ or ‘We had 1,000 kids at vacation Bible school.’ We’re not that kind of church. I would say the biggest memory in my heart is that we’ve become a closely-knit body of believers.”
Grace Baptist Church’s worship features the traditional hymns, Sunday school before service and a bus route for the childrens program.
“We have 11 a.m. morning worship and 6 p.m. evening worship,” Ohsfeldt said. “We also have a Wednesday night Bible study. We’re what church was 30 to 40 years ago. Not because we are stuck in the past, but because that’s what fits us.”
As for the next 20 years, Ohsfeldt would like to see a passion to reach to the Pampa community with the Gospel.
“I don’t want us to be content or sit back and enjoy what victories we had had,” Ohsfeldt said. “I want us to continue pressing forward to reach more people with the Word of God.”
Ohsfeldt is married to his wife of 25 years, Suzie. The couple have a son, Nathan, and two daughters, Hannah and Leah.
For more information on Grace Baptist Church or to congratulate Kyle on 20 years of service doing the Lord’s work, call 806-669-7967.
