A Church Alive: Camargo Christian Church

     If you're driving through the tiny town of Camargo, Oklahoma located on Highway 34 between Vici and Leedey, you might be tempted to think of it as dying. The school has long been closed, the population is somewhere shy of 200, and Main Street consists primarily of a single bank, a convenience store, and a car wash.

    However, as you walk into the sanctuary of the Camargo First Christian Church, though it boasts an age of more than 100 years, you'll discover that it, along with this community, are far from their deathbeds. In fact, this little church is very much alive.

     The girls and I (without Jason this week) arrived at the church a little early and excited to attend. My grandparents and great-grandparents were long time residents of Camargo, and I had been in this church on different occasions through the years for birthday celebrations, funeral services, and worship, so it felt good to be returning to a town and church in which so many sweet memories had been created.

      We stopped outside the historical church building to snap a few pictures before going in, and the sounds of bells drifted out to us, prompting me to hurry us inside, thinking the bells were a signal for church to begin. I was wrong, but what a sweet surprise we discovered when we entered. In the front of sanctuary stood several young children, holding bells, and practicing for an upcoming bell choir performance. They were surprisingly good and so cute, and I was so happy that we were able to get a sneak peek of what's in store for the congregation next week.

My girls posing in the beautiful arched entryway.

     As the kids returned to their Sunday school classroom to finish up before church, congregation members began to enter, and I was pleased to see so many friendly familiar faces. And then, I was simply shocked to see so many, many more as pew after pew filled up. God's children from 8 months to 80 years took their seats, and I was surprised to see so many young families entering the room to be seated next to couples and individuals representing every generation possible. In fact, by the time the service began, somewhere around 30 kids and their families (including grandparents and even great-grandparents) were settling in to worship, and as traditional hymns were beautifully led and prayers were lifted up and offering taken, I realized that this was not a quiet church body where I had to worry constantly about any sound my children made. All about were the sounds of little voices being lovingly hushed and the rustling of restless bodies and opening candy wrappers (which resulted from the handfuls distributed after the children's sermon to keep the kids occupied as they returned to their pews rather than being swept off to another room).  All about were signs of a healthy body of Christ embracing ALL those who had come to worship.
    


A stage full of children up front for the children's sermon.

 

What a sweet little face we got to enjoy!

     I was a little discombobulated by the lack of a church bulletin to follow as the service began, but I soon realized how unnecessary it really was as Pastor Richie Oakes and his wife Marylu, along with several other faithful members guided us seamlessly from one portion of the service to the next. We took part in the weekly communion service as the body and blood were passed from pew to pew, and my children felt comfortable enough that my youngest even stood up during the sharing of joys and concerns to announce excitedly that she is going to have a new cousin. (I was a little worried that my brother and sister-in-law might not have wanted her to share their surprising and joyful news, but she's over-the-moon and there was just no stopping her.)

    The morning's sermon was delivered my Pastor Richie and just the sound of his voice brought back so many memories of my childhood years traveling to stock shows with the Oakes' family: singing songs and telling jokes, working hard, fighting with one another,  freezing to death with the windows down in December to keep Richie awake, and lots and lots of laughter. I knew I was in for a blessing, and I was right! Pastor Richie's down-to-earth, conversational-style sermon was easy to follow and his lessons easy to receive. As his words created pictures of miracles in my mind, I could feel Jesus "breathing down my neck" as the Holy Spirit refreshed me from within. What a blessing that not only those present at Camargo Christian Church that morning have the opportunity to hear God's Word spoken within these walls, but people all over the world are invited to attend through the miracle of technology at http://churchesaid.com. I would definitely encourage anyone reading this to visit this site and take the opportunity to listen to Pastor Richie's messages.

      As the service came to a close, it was wonderful to see so many congregation members lingering to spend time with one another. Just outside the doors is the Camargo City Park, and the kids made great use of it as parents enjoyed the lovely weather and gathered in groups to visit. My girls made new friends while I talked with old ones. We found ourselves right at home among the members of the Camargo Christian Church, and I could see exactly how God has used this little congregation in this tiny little town to impact generations of His people over the past century.....and how He will continue to use it as a beacon to Him in the generations to come.

 

God bless America!