Part 4 - A Living Tribute to Pastor George D. Smith

Why hasn't the United Methodist Church not been on the verge of a split before this? I believe it is because of godly and faithful pastors such as Rev. George D. Smith. I write this blog post in appreciation and honor of a man who profoundly impacted my family and me.

I first met Pastor George when my parents left the Torrington Methodist Church back in the 1970s. A revival broke out in the United Methodist Church through the Lay Witness Mission during that time. Many people who were saved through that revival and could no longer remain in liberal churches that rejected the move of the Holy Spirit. My family was one of them.

I know it was a difficult and painful decision for my parents because the Patterson family went back generations in the Torrington Methodist Church. It deeply hurt my grandmother Patterson and my Aunt Carol, but we needed to leave. I believe people like my mom and dad were shown the door just as the "traditionalist" are being pressured to leave the UMC now.

Just down the road was a pastor who was very different than the ones I was used to. He was an athletic rugged-looking man who loved Jesus Christ with all his heart. I was used to the more liturgical worship of the Torrington Methodist Church. It was something of a culture shock when Pastor George descended out of the pulpit and preached on the level where the people were, often with guitar in hand.

When Pastor George preached, I felt like Cleopas and his friend after they talked with Jesus unawares in Luke 24:32, "Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?" Pastor George preached the gospel of Jesus Christ with passion. I remember leaning forward as he would grow red in the face as he proclaimed the good news of Jesus Christ. During that time, listening to him gave me a glimpse, perhaps, of the early Methodists such as George Whitefield and John Wesley as they open-aired preached to the masses.

And what was George's message? I still remember some of the sermons he preached back in the 70s, messages like "He must increase and I must decrease" and "The necessity of the Cross in Christianity." His message really had one theme, Christ and Him crucified.

The dynamic power of his ministry came out of a man who had a disciplined prayer life. Pastor George would get up early every morning to spend time with his Beloved Savior, Jesus Christ. He always emphasized that we Christians needed a private prayer life, and he demonstrated this continually in his own life. He indeed practiced what he preached.

Who didn't love when Pastor George pulled out his guitar and sang? I can still sing by heart many of the songs he wrote. One of our favorite moments was listening to Judy accompany Pastor George on the piano and harmonize, enhancing his song with a sweet thread that made the tapestry of his music all the more beautiful.

He was a different kind of pastor than I ever met. He was the pastor that I, and many of us needed. I know I am not alone when I talk about his pastoral care. I was blessed beyond measure when he came to watch me play football at Torrington High School. He was a former football player himself, so he knew what it was like to battle on the football field.

How many of us were blessed by the Easy Peddlers? Can you imagine a pastor who didn't cloister himself in his ivory tower? I had the blessing of going on several Easy Peddler trips. We would bike all day and sing by night. I was pretty strong back in those days, a football captain weightlifting at the YMCA three times per week, but I can tell you, even us tough guys didn't mess with Pastor George.

He would play basketball and would even get a little angry on the court. I appreciated that because he was real. Every Thursday night during the summer, tons of us would show up to play volleyball. Later on, as he got older, he led Hike Trips instead of Bike Trips. I never had the privileged of going on any of these hikes, but I’m sure those who went loved spending time hiking with Pastor George D. Smith.

I remember Pastor George's pastoral presence in times of crisis. Anyone who attended the Bakerville UMC can share my heartfelt appreciation of his pastoral care. He visited the sick and sat all night with people in crisis while their loved one lay dying in the hospital. I learned more about pastoral ministry from watching Pastor George during these times of crisis than have from any other pastor I know.

I believe Pastors like George were salt and light in the United Methodist Church. One of the reasons he remained so long at the Bakerville United Methodist Church was because, I think, they didn't know what to do with him. The uppityups couldn't fire him because he was a member of the New York Annual Conference. Besides, Bakerville paid their church tax (“apportionments” is the official name) every year, which was more than many other Methodist churches could boast.

I loved Pastor George because he refused to pay the full amount demanded by the Conference. He would not send the part of the apportionment that supported United Methodist Seminaries. He would not allow the hard-earned money of Bakeville to go toward the neo-gnostic, liberal, neo-orthodox United Methodist Seminaries. I admired his chutzpah. For all those years, the Bakerville UMC didn't get the certificate from the Bishop that commended churches for paying their full tax because he would not compromise on this issue.

Instead, Pastor George and the Bakerville United Methodist Church sent that money to missions and seminaries like his alma matta Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky. While Asbury was a Methodist seminary, it was not a United Methodist Seminary. It was the seminary he attended and that I was to attend later on. Other people from Bakerville also attended Asbury like Pastor John Roy, much to the Conference's chagrin. For the three years I attended Asbury, Pastor George was sure that the church financially supported me.

I have felt a call to pastoral ministry ever since I was a boy. As I grew into a man, Pastor George worked with me and prayed with me whether this calling was of God or not. He gave me a copy of Lectures to My Students by the famous baptist reformed preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon. I will never forget the time he took to pray with me and help me discern God's calling.

He was one of my most ardent supporters when I decided to enter the ministry of the United Methodist Church. I could go nowhere else but the seminary that Pastor George went to. It was thrilling to have some of the professors that he had. Granted, they were much older by then, but it was cool, nonetheless. Attending this seminary and having some of his former professors and meeting men that knew and loved Pastor George gave me an understanding and appreciation of him that I would not otherwise have had.

As I progressed through the process, I had many conversations with Pastor George about the United Methodist Church's state. I was somewhat sheltered from the reality of just how apostate and hostile the upper echelon was of Biblical Christianity because I attended Bakerville and Asbury. However, I was aware of the theological conflict that was brewing in the denomination. After all, the Good News Magazine was located and published out of Wilmore, Kentucky not far from the seminary.

My dream was to pastor a church just like Pastor George. I prayed I would be placed in a parish in Connecticut to carry out my calling, raise a family, and minister to God's people, much like my mentor had for all those years. I imagined myself working with pastors like George to bring renewal and change to the ever dying United Methodist Church and the New York Annual Conference.

God works in mysterious ways. I don't understand why He does what He does, but I trust His sovereignty and His goodness. It didn't take me long to realize that the path God was taking me was going to be vastly different than the one He gave to Pastor George.

In 1987, I was refused ordination in the New York Annual Conference on the brink of graduating from Asbury. I was devastated. My dream of having a ministry like Pastor George was shattered. This blog post is not about me, but about my appreciation of pastors like George D. Smith so I won’t linger long on this.

To make a long story short, I eventually left the United Methodist Church even though I was an elder in good standing in the denomination. Even after all this, Pastor George welcomed me as an assistant pastor at Bakerville without the New York Annual Conference's approval and blessing. There was the chutzpah yet again. I served with him for over seven years. When he had a heart attack, I had the honor of pastoring the Bakerville Church until he recovered.

I can't say I always saw eye to eye with Pastor George. In retrospect, I realize how much he blessed my family and me during that time. He not only affirmed my calling as a pastor, but he put his "money where his mouth is" by encouraging and supporting my ministry at Bakerville UMC. He blessed and supported all my pastoral endeavors, and for that, I am deeply grateful.

The United Methodist Church was a lesser Church when Pastor George retired in 2005. I believe one of the reasons God has withdrawn His hand from this denomination is because pastors like George are now few and far between. While the rest of the denomination was conjuring up yet another social program or irrelevant district meeting, Pastor George was preaching Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

Pastor George, I love you and appreciate your love, care, and faithfulness throughout your years of service. I thank God for how He used you in my life and in the lives of so many other people. I know the United Methodist Church and the Bakerville church was and is a better place because of pastors like you. I know a crown of glory is waiting for you on the other side.