Morning Worship @ 11:00 am EST
Church Address:
Jacob Grove Baptist Church
4770 Hodgenville Road
Greensburg, KY 42743
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 125
Summersville, KY 42782
Email Address:
jacobgrovebaptistchurch125@gmail.com
Picture and Article from the Central Kentucky News-Journal Newspaper (Thursday, February 10, 2022)
Melvin Mills didn’t intend to be a pastor, but when God called, he answered.
Over the years, God has prepared Mills for his true vocation through a lifetime of public service.
Mills began his career in 1980 working for Campbellsville Water Systems where he dedicated 25 years to the public, retiring in 2005 as an assistant lab tech.
From there, Mills transitioned into the public school systems, working another decade as a custodian for both Campbellsville Independent and Taylor County schools.
Mills also served the community in other capacities, working for Kentucky Utilities, the Central Kentucky News-Journal as well as a public transportation driver.
“All the jobs that I’ve had from start until now have been dealing with the public,” Mills said. “I didn’t realize it until a few years ago when I took inventory of my life and saw how God has placed me around certain people. I’ve been there to be a shoulder to lean on or ears to listen.”
During various points in his life, Mills heard God’s call ringing, but let it go to voicemail.
“There have been countless times when I could feel the call, but I wasn’t ready to accept it. It’s a big responsibility,” Mills explained. “When you’re out here in the world, there are certain things that you know that you’ve got to give up in order to be true to this profession and being in your 20s and 30s is kind of hard to give up some of those things, but finally, I answered. He didn’t give up on me.”
By picking up the proverbial phone, Mills was transformed, finding graceful light within the darkest situations.
Mills was ordained as deacon on Oct. 7, 2001, under Pastor Dr. Walter Johnson at Jacob Grove Baptist Church. The Lord led Mills on a spiritual journey serving on the deacon board at his home church, First Baptist Church in Campbellsville, in 2004.
A year later, on Sept. 24, 2005, Mills accepted his call to the Gospel ministry under Pastor George P. Lee III. Since then, Mills has served under various ministries at First Baptist Church as well as several churches in the Zion District and in surrounding communities.
Answering the prayers of Jacob Grove Baptist Church, Mills assumed his place in the pulpit on March 27, 2021.
Through the acceptance of this position, Mills has embarked on a new journey with the Word as his guide.
“In a pastoral position, you’ve got to step out of your comfort zone to meet the needs of others,” Mills emphasized. “You’ve got to not think so highly of yourself when you’re dealing with other people and you’ve got to be able to see and feel other people’s issues and what they are going through.”
Follow path of others:
Reflecting on his own physical, mental, emotional and spiritual pilgrimage throughout his life, Mills credits past generations for the progress from which he benefits.
“I look back and can realize, to see that where I am at right now is not because of what I have done. It’s not because I’ve pulled myself up by my own bootstraps. It is by what others have done before me, my predecessors.”
Ruminating in the reality of the past, Mills described the faith of the enslaved, retelling the accounts of generations lost.
“Hymns were sung as messages; old spirituals had different meanings. The only day that (slaves) could release themselves was on Sunday. They would sing about how they felt and what they were going through just like the children of Israel when they were in the bondage of Egypt. And our ancestors would come out of those cotton fields and they would come to church together to fellowship and to lay all the burdens down.”
Mills described the strength of his ancestors, stressing the significance of their sacrifices.
“When we go back and look at what our ancestors went through to make a way for us,” Mills said earnestly, “They paved the way for us and we should honor that.”
Rising from the blood, sweat and tears, Mills maintains that the root of racism is fear and the only way to fight it is to acknowledge and talk about it.
“We don’t sit down and talk about (racism); we don’t discuss it. We go on the assumptions that ‘because he’s Black’ or ‘because he has a hoodie on’ or ‘because he slouches’ and ‘his pants sag,’ that it automatically means that he’s a thug. We don’t know because of that fear that is in us,” Mills reiterated. “When we can finally come to a point where we can talk about something, it is no longer a fear factor.”
To honor ancestor, Mills emphasized the importance of leading a life of integrity to showcase the fruits of previous labors deeply seeded in blood-stained soil.
“Excellence is integrity. It’s how you go about and carry yourself. How you dress, your mannerisms, how you speak and look,” Mills said. “When I go out, I represent not just me, but my whole family. I represent my church. I represent my community.”