The Apostolic Faith Church at Lowmans Hill, St. Vincent, in the West Indies, celebrated its eightieth anniversary from Sunday, September 14, through Friday, September 19. The week started with a special anniversary celebration service on Sunday, and evangelistic services were held each evening, Monday through Friday.

The Apostolic Faith work in St. Vincent started when a missionary from the island of Trinidad in the West Indies, Theophilus Scott, and his wife, Minnie, went to St. Vincent in 1925. Theophilus learned about the Apostolic Faith Church from a church publication, nowcalled the Higher Way, and from the time he read the doctrines listed in that publication, he identified himself as a missionary from our church headquarters in Portland, Oregon.

The first Apostolic Faith Mission in St. Vincent was built at Lowmans Hill in 1928. The church was built with sticks and mud with a thatched roof. Later, a parcel of land was donated and a concrete building was erected, which still stands today. The Scotts continued to spread the Gospel throughout the island, and as a result, several more churches were established. Bertie Wilson, one of the first converts, is now ninety-two years old, and he still likes to tell about how he led the donkey on which Theophilus rode throughout the various villages. Frederick Medford, another early convert, traveled to Portland, Oregon, by boat in 1939. While in Portland, he was ordained as a minister of the Gospel. After Reverend Medford returned to St. Vincent, he was appointed island overseer when the Scotts decided to return to their homeland of Trinidad. The work at St. Vincent continues to thrive today, and there are currently eleven churches on the island. Reverend Christopher King is the present island overseer.

The theme for the eightieth anniversary celebration and week of special meetings was “Hold On to Your God,” and the theme verse was Joshua 23:8, “Cleave unto the LORD your God, as ye have done unto this day.” During the Sunday celebration service, the theme song, “Hold to God’s Unchanging Hand,” was introduced. Several other songs were also sung, which included the theme of holding on to God, and pressing on in the Gospel. Catherine Lucas, who pastored the Lowmans Hill church for several yearsand now serves as the assistant pastor, gave a welcome and encouraged the congregation to praise God for what He has done. The combined choir sang “I’d Rather Have Jesus” and “Hold On.” Martin LaBorde, the pastor at Lowmans Hill since 2003, thanked God for the privileges he has had in the Gospel, and expressed gratitude to Reverend King for being a spiritual father and encouragement to him. Reverend King admonished the congregation to “hold the fort” until Jesus comes and to remain faithful in their service to God. Several pastors from other Apostolic Faith Churches on the island congratulated Lowmans Hill on their anniversary and expressed thanksgiving for the great heritage that started in that location and now extends to the other churches in that area. Also, one of the ladies read a report of the church’s history from 1928 to 2008.

Reverend Ormond Alexander, the pastor of our church in Campden Park, St. Vincent, used Joshua 23:1-8 for his sermon text on Sunday. Joshua had faithfully served God for many years, even when the Israelites had to remain in the wilderness because of their disobedience. Now that Joshua was getting close to the time when he would die, he wanted Israel and the future leaders to understand God’s unfailing faithfulness to them, and how He had fought for them and gave them many victories. Our God is a God of victory, and when we team up with Him, we will be victorious! Just as Joshua encouraged Israel, we need to hold on to God and His Word in these changing times. We serve a God who never changes, and we need to let our hope in Him stabilize and hold us in the Gospel.

In addition to the theme song which was sung in each service, the congregational singing and special music in the evangelistic services on  Monday through Friday nights continued to carry the theme of “holding on to God.” The determination of the congregation to continue in their walk with God could be felt as they enthusiastically sang songs such as “We Have an Anchor,” “I’m Not Givin’ Up,” and “I Am Determined to Hold On to the End.” Reverend Bob Downey from Portland, Oregon, who attended the anniversary celebration with his wife, Cheryl, was the featured speaker for the weeknight services. At the start of each sermon, Reverend Downey quoted the theme verse from Joshua 23:8. His sermon topics were: “What it Means to Cleave to God,” “Salvation—the Starting Point,” “Entire Sanctification Makes Us One with God and Fellow Believers,” “Baptism of the Holy Spirit—Enduement with Power on a Clean and Holy Vessel,” and “Keep On Keeping On.” Reverend Downey brought out that these sermons were like building blocks—starting with salvation, we continue to build on our relationship with God.

All of the services during this week of special meetings were inspiring as many stood to their feet and gave victorious testimonies of what God had done in their lives. On Friday, there was a considerable amount of rain which caused mudslides in parts of the island. One lady testified that a mudslide near her home threatened to prevent her from walking to church, but she was determined to make it and God had blessed her for being there. By the end of this week of special meetings, all who attended were encouraged and motivated to “hold on to their God,” and to keep their trust and hope in the One who will never fail them.