Our Beginning: 1982-1983 Article by Alison Carzola
On March 8, 1982, a small group of members from Westminster Presbyterian Church of Lancaster met for the first time as a house church intent on forming a daughter church in the Ephrata area. A special Christmas offering of $6,945.60 had already been collected by the Westminster congregation and it was then decided that several elders including David Huber, Oong Choi, and Lee Perry would support us by providing leadership and act as a liaison with our mother church. Of the original group of 28 adults and 15 children, 5 families continue to be supporting members of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of Ephrata, today.
Those first meetings were held in the Carzola living room on Monday evenings with Oong Choi leading us in a study from II Timothy. We tried to structure the House Church to include worship, prayer, Bible Study, and fellowship time. We were also big on covered dish suppers! I can still see Joanne Davis, our first organist and music director, working so hard pumping out those notes for our praise songs on our antique, restored pump organ!
As we met week after week, our numbers didn’t increase as much as we had hoped, in fact some of our members dropped out. One evening late in Spring, we were feeling especially discouraged and wondering if indeed the Lord wanted us to continue. It was then that Dave Huber spoke up and pleaded with us not to give up. He reminded us that God’s timing is always perfect and that we needed to persevere, be patient, and be obedient to His guidance. That night, after further discussion and much fervent prayer, we decided to take a leap of faith to get into a facility where we could actually hold evening church services. As I look back now, I realize that it was at this point of facing our collective fears of failure head on, trusting in God’s plan for RPC, and responding obediently, that the reality of God’s church became a burning desire in all of our hearts. God honored that response and our lives were changed.
Almost immediately a space was found which would meet our needs. TJ Sport’s Den on Main Street was renting out its basement store area. It was an ideal location in the heart of downtown Ephrata. Westminster promised to help us with the rent and operating expenses, and Nelson Malkus, former director of World Presbyterian Missions (RPCES), agreed to lead this fledgling mission church. What an exciting day in August it was when we held our first evening church service in our “new” sanctuary!
God was faithful as He led us through those early months of highs and lows. Our desire was to establish a self-supporting congregation with at least 30-40 families. When Luke Hibshman presented the Financial Report for January 1983, we discovered that RPC receipts totaled $139.05, but our expenses covering pastoral charges, rent, utilities, bulletins, advertising, and supplies came to $1,357.53! We were slightly overextended! However, members from our mother church continued to come through for us with their faithful and sacrificial giving. God has gradually revealed parts of His master plan for RPC, and I am continually amazed at how the Lord has answered our prayers and has blessed this work from beginning to end.
In January 1983, a pastoral search committee was selected: Tim Davis (chairman), Fred Gaston, Luke Hibshman, Brenda Metzler, and Alison Carzola. Again, the Lord was faithful in directing us to His choice of the man who would deliver us from a basement and lead us into the garage of a fire hall! On June 12, 1983, the small congregation with mission church status voted to call Rev. Stephen P. Beck as organizing pastor.
From August 14, 1983, Pastor Steve literally “rolled up his sleeves” and enthusiastically set in motion programs and policies that attracted more and more people who were searching for a caring church home where they could hear the Word of God proclaimed faithfully and eloquently from the pulpit. Strong children’s and youth ministries were top priorities. Many efforts were made to strengthen family unity by providing Sunday School classes for adults and children, and relationship-building activities such as: a Bible character dress-up party (A Halloween alternative), Christmas caroling, excursions in the “Brucemobile,” picnics, potluck dinners, a New Year’s Eve party, and Koinonia services in individual homes