Editor’s note: October is Pastor Appreciation Month.
AMES, Iowa (BP) — Strength in weakness isn’t a lesson you would expect to be lived out by a former collegiate linebacker. But it’s where Michael Felkins finds himself time and again.
He had an attacking style of play in the late 1980s on defense for Henderson State, a Division II school in Arkadelphia, Ark. These were the days where tackling meant putting your helmet through someone’s chest. That led to two protruding disks in his back and a doctor’s warning that continuing would put him at serious risk of paralysis.
It’s not a path anyone would choose, but Felkins’ response to various ailments has become a witness to those at Grand Avenue Baptist Church, where he has been pastor for 15 years.
Felkins was a year removed from back surgery when he accepted the call to Grand Avenue in the spring of 2009, his first lead pastorate after having served as an associate pastor in East Texas. He began dealing with migraines not long after arriving in Iowa. Felkins thinks those were connected to the high blood pressure he was also experiencing because the medication for the blood pressure seemed to alleviate both.
The list continues. Two minor knee surgeries had him limping for a year. Skin cancer removal took about a third of his nose. A COVID diagnosis led to the discovery of ulcerative colitis, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease. Then earlier this month, on Oct. 14, a limb hit the ladder he was using to do some yardwork at his daughter’s house – hip broken in three places.
If anyone has earned an Eeyore view of life, it’s Felkins. But talking with him brings the opposite impression.
“Through all of this the Lord has kept me humble,” he said. “He works through everything and remains faithful.”
Who holds the controls
While most would prefer that God speak to us through a still, small voice or perhaps a dream, pain has a way of getting our attention.
“We can get angry and move away from the Lord. Or we can press in and cry out for grace and mercy,” Felkins said. “I’ve jokingly said that preaching is where I get into God’s Word and find relief and rest.
“I think of myself as a big, strong guy. These kinds of things remind me that I don’t hold the controls in my hands.”
Jill Rosas had gone through significant life changes when she began attending Grand Avenue three years ago. A pastor’s kid, she had also seen the uglier side of church hurt.
The grace and strength shown by her pastor has inspired her.
“I’ve constantly been encouraged and challenged by him,” said Rosas, who also works with a collegiate ministry in Ames. “He has constantly shown care and love to the students we bring into the church, making sure to introduce himself and getting to know [them].”
Felkins’ perseverance has set a standard.
“Whenever he is in pain or has had a medical issue, he will continue to prioritize his congregation,” she said in a response to a Midwestern Seminary survey asking people why they appreciate their pastor.
That includes the time he was unable to fulfill a commitment to speak in person to a college ministry event, but recorded his message while sick. It includes preaching with a herniated disk and shepherding the church through multiple deaths.
“Pastor Michael loves and gives so much of himself for our congregation,” she wrote. “He and his family are truly an encouragement to me and the body of believers here in Ames.”
Another member, author Eric M. Schumacher, wrote “The Good Gift of Weakness.” The dedication page reads “For my pastor, Michael Felkins. Stay weak, my friend.”
Strength in growth
Grand Avenue’s history includes its own vulnerability. Began as a mission in December 1959, it contained “a hard history of short-term pastorates,” as Felkins put it.
Under his leadership, strength has grown in stability. The church has even bucked one national trend by increasing attendance and membership numbers from those pre-COVID. Sunday School attendance has ticked upward since Felkins arrived, moving from 120 to 175, according to reports filed in an SBC database.
Pain apart from the physical has also marked his ministry.
“One of the things that shaped my life was my parents’ divorce,” Felkins wrote on his church’s bio page. “This created much uncertainty and insecurity in my life. One of the greatest lessons it taught me is that God is the perfect, faithful Father who will never leave or forsake me. It was His drawing me to Himself and opening my heart to the gospel that has transformed my life.”
Felkins turns 61 years old today (Oct. 25). It’s a good age to be young enough that you still think climbing a ladder at your daughter’s house for yardwork is a good idea. But it’s also a good age for the wisdom of considering what a fall can bring.
“It has me thinking about the local church,” said Felkins, who expects a return to the pulpit on Nov. 10 while he heals up. “We walk through things together as a family. We’re a family in service together for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”
Editor’s note: Many churches show appreciation to their pastor in October. To share an encouraging word about your pastor, visit Midwestern Seminary’s site.
