Larry Starett (left) and Vernon C. Lyons.
Open Bible Church, Chesterton, Indiana, celebrated its 70th anniversary June 7.
The founder of the church, Vernon C. Lyons (age 98), attended and led in a pastoral prayer.
When Pastor Larry Starett asked Vernon what encouragement he would share with the church, Vernon urged people to build relationships with others.
“We talk about evangelism, but before evangelism, the word relationship is big,” Vernon said. “Build a relationship.”
“It is a rare person who comes to Christ who’s accosted cold on the street and preached to. . . . Work in the context of just an old-fashioned, friendly relationship. . . . God will use you, and the church will grow, grow, grow.”
Speaking during the service, Larry told the church family to not forget Open Bible Church’s mission.
“Churches often decline not because they face opposition but because they slowly forget their mission,” he said.
“The mission has not changed: We are still called to make disciples. We are still called to preach the Word. We are still called to love God. We are still called to love people. We are still called to reach the lost. We are still called to glorify Jesus Christ.”
Along with making disciples comes identifying future ministry leaders. The church’s “next pastor may be in our own youth group,” he said.
After the service, the church family held a recognition for Vernon, shared testimonies of how the church’s ministry has blessed their lives, and enjoyed a catered meal together.
Larry has pastored Open Bible Church since January 2001.
