Good Neighbor Podcast: TN-WNC-SWVA

EP# 328: Serving with Purpose: Pastor Richard Myers' 26-Year Ministry Journey

• Skip Mauney & Pastor Richard Myers • Episode 328

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What happens when a person raised to believe their value comes solely from hard work encounters the message of unconditional love? In this heartfelt conversation, Reverend Richard Myers of Oak Grove Baptist Church shares his remarkable 26-year journey in ministry and the powerful transformation that led him there.

Pastor Myers opens up about growing up in a home where work ethic was the central value—where worth was measured by productivity, savings, and physical strength. The pivotal moment came when he first heard about Jesus loving people simply because they are His creation, not because of what they accomplish. "I had never heard that before," he recalls with genuine wonder still evident in his voice. This encounter changed everything, eventually leading him to pastor Oak Grove Baptist in Waxhaw, North Carolina, where he's served since 1999.

Beyond his personal story, Myers reveals how Oak Grove embodies servant leadership in their community. With about 100-125 regular worshippers representing diverse age groups, the congregation actively supports crisis pregnancy centers, homeless shelters, disaster relief organizations, and prison ministries. He thoughtfully addresses common misconceptions about churches—that they're money-focused or filled with bigoted people—with candor and grace. When asked what listeners should remember about Oak Grove, his answer cuts straight to the heart of his message: "Life is hard, but God is good." This simple yet profound statement encapsulates his understanding that while everyone faces challenges, God offers both present peace and eternal hope.

Whether you're curious about faith, searching for community, or simply enjoy authentic conversations with passionate people, this episode offers refreshing insights from someone who has dedicated his life to serving others. Check out Oak Grove Baptist Church at oakgrovebaptist.org to learn more about their ministry or to connect directly with Pastor Myers.

Speaker 1:

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Skip Monty.

Speaker 2:

Well, hello everyone and welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. So I am very excited today to have a very special guest in our studio for the first time. So we're super excited, and I'm sure you will be too today, because I have the pleasure of introducing your good neighbor, reverend Richard Myers, who is pastor at Oak Grove Baptist Church. Reverend Myers, welcome to the show.

Speaker 3:

Thank you so much, Skip. It's just great to be here. Thank you so much for allowing me to come and be a part of your podcast.

Speaker 2:

Absolutely Very, very happy to have you. It's our honor and appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule. Absolutely Very, very happy to have you. It's our honor and appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule to be here. Like I said, we're super excited to learn all about you and your ministry. So, if you don't mind, why don't you kick us off by telling us about your church?

Speaker 3:

Thank you. Thank you so much. Yeah, we are a local for our area, southern Baptist Church. For our area, southern Baptist Church, we average about between 100 and 125 in worship and we are, you know, a church that we're not a large church but we have a good mix of ages and you know, we just really believe that the church should be a servant in the community and that really guides who we are and what we do.

Speaker 3:

We really believe in supporting people and trying to meet needs wherever we can. And that really does filter out into a lot of different areas where we support different ministries and groups around in our area. That might be from the Help Crisis Pregnancy Center to Homeless Shelter, to different groups that do disaster relief. We believe in also supporting prison ministry, different areas like that where we really really just try to show the love of Christ in a tangible way. And that's just. You know a little bit about. You know how we really feel like we should be serving out in the community.

Speaker 2:

Awesome. Well, thank you for that Servant leadership. Love it, love it. So tell us about your journey, pastor. How did you end up at Oak Grove Baptist Church and as a pastor?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, thank you. I mean I don't have, you know, some of the you know dynamic testimonies that a lot of folks do, but that doesn't mean that every journey isn't special and unique. I grew up in what I would consider to be an average home. My parents were very good parents, very hardworking. As a matter of fact, in my home growing up the strongest I guess you know ethic, that was just you know, the major part of who my family was was work and my family believed in hard work and doing hard work and you know working hard your whole life, saving, which are all you know really good things, which are all you know really good things. And but I grew up in that and growing up in a little bit of a you know kind of a harder environment as far as you know works based works, this and you know works being a part of the center of the home.

Speaker 3:

I kind of grew up thinking that your value was based on on on how hard you work and you know how much money you saved and how strong you were physically and, as a result of that, that kind of motivated everything in my life. And I came to a place where I actually heard a pastor share about how Jesus loves us just because of who we are, share about how Jesus loves us just because of who we are, just because we're his creation. I had never heard that before, I had never experienced anything like that. And that night he explained just the simple gospel of how we can't earn salvation. Jesus came to make a way that we could receive his free gift of salvation by what he did on the cross. And I tell you that had never, I'd never heard that before and it it resonated with me, um, in a way I really can't put into words, but that night I understood that gospel plan and he in the service said you know, if anybody would like to receive that or know more about that, to come forward. And I came forward at the end of that service and he explained more about that and that. And I came forward at the end of that service and he explained more about that, and that night I put my faith and my trust in Jesus Christ and believed in that wonderful gift of salvation.

Speaker 3:

And that night I instantly knew that I was a different person. I was not the same person that I was when I went into that service and then after that I was not able to really grow in my faith. Much Didn't have really that as a big part of my home. But later on in life I got connected to some churches and ran across, you know, some, some teaching that helped in spiritual growth and that went on for a number of years. And then after that I began to feel and sense the Lord dealing with me to go into full time Christian service, and so I began that journey and that led me into a pastor, being a pastor, and I've been the pastor of Oak Grove Baptist Church, now Been here since 1999. So this is 26 years now.

Speaker 2:

Wow.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, so I've been very blessed. I have not always been, you know, the sharpest tool in the shed or been faithful as I should have been, but you know, god has always been faithful and he has blessed me infinitely more than I ever deserved, and there's a lot more to to the journey, but but that's it in a nutshell wow, what a journey.

Speaker 2:

And uh, did you grow up? Your, your church is in flat rock, right no, sir, actually.

Speaker 3:

Um, this might be a little bit bizarre, but our church actually, uh, we're in north carolina, we're in in just southeast of charlotte, north carolina, and oh you know, there's a bedroom community of charlotte called, called waxaw, w-a-x-h-a-w. It's an Indian name and we are in that Waxhaw community and now it is pretty much a suburb of Charlotte.

Speaker 2:

Absolutely. I used to work in Monroe, North Carolina, so I'm very familiar with Waxhaw.

Speaker 3:

Oh, yes, sir Monroe is right there with it. Yes, sir.

Speaker 2:

Or Munro actually.

Speaker 3:

That's right.

Speaker 2:

Munro. If you're from Union County, it's Munro, Munro that's right. Wow, where'd you grow up?

Speaker 3:

I grew up in Charlotte, not too far away, but I lived out in the northern part of the county not in the city limits originally, but not too long after we moved there my family moved there. We were in the city limits, uh, originally, but not too long after we moved there, my family moved there. Uh, we were in the city gotcha.

Speaker 2:

Well, I grew up in shelby, so I'm not too far away right.

Speaker 3:

Yes, sir, that's just down the road as well.

Speaker 2:

Yes, cleveland county.

Speaker 3:

Cleveland county yes, yeah, that's a great area absolutely.

Speaker 2:

Yep, still got family there. So tell us, can you think of any myths or misconceptions that you hear about your church or about the church in general?

Speaker 3:

Oh, yes, that's a great question. There's so many misconceptions that are really understandable but unfortunate, just in the climate we live in. You know, a lot of people think that, you know, churches are just about money, that all lot of people think that, you know, churches are just about money, that all they want to do is, you know, get a bunch of money from people and just you know, it's all about profits and finances. That's a huge one in our day and it's understandable. Because of a lot of Christian television, there is a big emphasis on that. Um, but in more cases than not, uh, the local church it is is very, very much gospel centered and not money centered. And, um, if people would, you know, if they would just have a, you know, maybe just a chance to really investigate what the local church is about, I think most people would find that it's really an organization that is really trying to do good. And money is is absolutely something that we all have to deal with, but it's not the main concern in most cases.

Speaker 3:

And and also you know, we could go on and talk about that. There's a big misconception that that churches are filled with people who are bigoted and hate mongers and they're uneducated. And you know they're, you know they're mean-spirited and and really honestly, honestly again, more times than not, that is not the case. That is not the case. So there are all those kind of stereotypes gotcha.

Speaker 2:

well, I'm quite familiar with that too. So what do you like to do for fun when you're not? I mean, obviously, as a pastor, you're really busy all the time, but when you're not, what do you like to do for fun?

Speaker 3:

things. I tell you so many things. I'm I'm, I guess, getting a little bit past the hill. Let me just say it this way I get the senior discount at Bojangles.

Speaker 3:

So that kind of unfortunately so you know what I'm talking about there. So I'm kind of at a point in my life where I probably the one of the greatest things for me is just to be around family. The Lord's blessed me with a, with a wonderful, just beautiful, amazing wife Just one of the greatest blessings of my entire life. I've been blessed with two, two daughters. They're older now, one is married, one is not. But I do have a grandson now who's nine months old, and so family time is just some of the most treasured time for me and my wife right now.

Speaker 3:

We like to do other things, you know, and you live in Shelby. You know North Carolina is a place that has a lot to offer. North Carolina is a place that has a lot to offer the beaches, the mountains, and around our area there's a lot of parks and kayaking and trails and being outside, all kinds of stuff like that. So things like that. But I would have to say probably family time is the greatest, probably the greatest you know off time treasure for me right now.

Speaker 2:

So if, Pastor, if you could think of one thing that you would like our listeners to remember about Oak Grove Baptist Church, what would that be?

Speaker 3:

Um, that I think. I think that probably the main thing is is that you know life is hard, but God really is good. We all have challenges. We all have have things in life that are not the greatest. We all have bad days. We all have bad days, but the wonderful truth is that God has entered into our world to help us and guide us, to make a way that we can have peace in the midst of problems and storms of life, and also that he made a way that we can literally experience fellowship with him, we can know him personally, and that changes how we live day by day. But it also changes our eternal destination to know that after this life that you know, we will be in a place where there is no pain at all, no suffering at all, and you know the promises that God has made, that he is faithful to keep them. So you know, really, I would just you know, I would just say that life is hard, yes, but God is good and at Oak Grove we really believe in promoting the goodness of God.

Speaker 2:

Amen, amen. Good thing to remember, awesome thing to remember. And for those of us who may be I don't know if this is a word or not unchurched I've heard that before but if we don't have a church home and we like what we hear and are interested in checking you out and checking the church out, how can we learn more?

Speaker 3:

Oh, thank you so much. Yeah, great place to just kind of check out who we are. I would recommend our website and it's just wwwoakgrovebaptistorg, and that gives you all the contact information. It'll allow you to see who we are, where we are. There are archive sermons on there, you can go and see a calendar of events and there's information on there to email us. The social media contacts are on there as well.

Speaker 1:

So I would just I definitely would encourage folks.

Speaker 3:

if you'd like some more information, check out the website, and there's a number on there as well. You can call the church anytime and we're the kind of size church where if someone calls, I can return their call and talk to them voice to voice or face to face, you know whatever. Whatever folks comfort level is.

Speaker 2:

Awesome Love that. Love that you make a call, some a human being's going to answer. That's great. Sometimes that doesn't happen, but that's true Pastor, absolutely Well, I can't tell you how much I appreciate your time today, with your busy schedule. We appreciate you spending some time with with our listeners and telling us all about your mission and your ministry and your church, and we wish you, your family, your church family and the church all the best, moving forward.

Speaker 3:

Hey, thank you, Skip, Listen. Thank you for the opportunity and I appreciate all your hard work. Thank you so much.

Speaker 2:

Well, thank you, and we'd love to have you back sometime. Thank you so much. Well, thank you, and we'd love to have you back sometime.

Speaker 3:

Thank you, I'd love it, absolutely love it.

Speaker 2:

All right, thanks so much. Hope you have a blessed rest of the day.

Speaker 3:

You too, thank you.

Speaker 1:

Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnptry-citiescom. That's gnptry-citiescom. That's GNP try-citiescom, or call 423-719-5873.