Churches Overseas
It is wonderful to be members of an "overseas military church." Our time at Zweibruecken Air Base, West Germany was lonely at first. We only knew a few unsaved co-workers until God led us to Zweibruecken Baptist Church where we really felt we had a home away from home. Patsy and I worked in practically every position in the church for four years, then, I surrendered to God's call on my life for the ministry. Afterwards, I often preached on Sunday or Wednesday evenings and was given the opportunity to supply the pulpit for 3 months while our missionary pastor was in the states reporting to his supporting churches.
We had desperately wanted a child for much of the seven years we had been married when, 14 months after my surrender to the ministry, God blessed us with our precious daughter, who was born at Landstuhl 2nd Army General Hospital, West Germany. A new American military church, Rhineland Baptist Church was started in K'town (Kaiserslautern, West Germany), about 30 miles from our home. We felt God leading us to become charter members to help them get started.
Each Sunday we packed up a day's worth of diapers, outfits, bottles and food for our 5-month old and would leave early in the morning and come home after evening services. We had a wonderful time of learning from Pastor George Zane at Rhineland. The church nursery was always handy for sleeping babies and a place for the ladies to learn about being young wives and mothers or learn crafts from our pastor's wife, etc. The husbands and single GI's would play baseball, football, board games or catch a quick nap after a great dinner! The Christian fellowship was tremendous! Rhineland was "The Standard" for military churches in the 70's and still is today. This was the most wonderful "military family church" we had ever known. Pastor George Zane and his wife, Fern, did a tremendous job of "parenting" all of us. It has been our goal through the years to try to incorporate that same closeness.
Please Pray for Our Troops and Missionaries Around the World.