2002 Pastor's 50th Anniversary Message

"We Have Come This Far By Faith"

The casting of our foundational vision for the Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church, which was born in a primitive church status over 50 years ago, has arrived in the 21st century well intact. The major issues those first founders were committed to in the beginning, we are still committed to today: church growth, church and community development, membership maturity, and service to God.

The fulfillment of our perpetual church vision has over the years, explode into five major functions and committments. To accomplish our mission and fulfill our vision, Shiloh boasts a focus of five areas of ministry. These five areas are: Worship, Fellowship/Membership Care, Discipleship/Education, Ministry/Spiritual Gifts, and Evangelism & Mission/Witnessing. These functions undergird our 21st century mission statement: "We exist to preach, teach and live the redeeming love of God to a lost but changing world" in retrospect of our visionary founders and builders of whom several are still prominent in the contituency of our membership count. These visionary beginners had a mandate from God to be a catalyst in the Anchorage community by becoming a Biblically functioning community for the divine purpose of community transformation.

The new millenium brings with it a challenge to the 21st century Shiloh, to grow and disciple new converts and to equip them to full maturity in Christ. As members of Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church, God has called us to grow aand continue to develop our membership, equipping adults, training our youth, and pursuing excellence in all facets of our ministry; may we be found faithful.

To each member of our fellowship, thank you for your faithful service, as we are poised in the midst of our Jubilee Year of Rest. This is a rest from a succession of faithful efforts to reach the lost for Christ in our generation.

Our journey has brought us from the Carpenter's Hall in 1952 to the Shiloh Fellowship Hall in 2002. Our leadership boasts of such forerunners as our founder, Dr. Holiday, his successor, the late Dr. Chandler, his successor, the late Dr. Presley, his successor, the late Dr. Howard, and his successor, the late Dr. Griggs, with many other faithful pulpit supply pastors. We thank God for our founding pastor who still lives in Louisiana.

Our church proudly parades for this generation, many keepers of the torch of faith. Such symbols of our faithful history are our founders: brother Lawrence Colbert, brother Henry Burton, and sister Emma Burton. Some of our builders include: brother Fred Zimmerman, sister Annie Zimmerman, sister Helen Gamble, sister Eula Cleveland, and many others who bless us by serving in our midst.

Finally let me, with the support of many staff members and leaders of Shiloh, applaud the journey of the entire Shiloh family, to a place in history where God has brought us. "We have come this far by faith." With this faith we have blanketed the state of Alaska with the ministry of Christ. With this faith we have penetrated the nation of America with our trained teachers and lay leaders. With this faith we have impacted the international community through our military anf foreign travelers who have established works across the world, hence, the footprints of Shiloh's Outreach Ministry are seen far and wide.

"It does not yet appear what we shall be" but we know that it will include developing our community, assisting students through tutorial ministry, supporting families in distress, providing technology and vocational help, evangelizing and disciple duplication, mission and outreach to the lost.

As pastor and leader of God's people for the past 32 years, I want to thank each of our lay members, our clergy, our leaders, our children, each family of our church, and last but not least, our faithful staff; each of you have made a difference! We have arrived here because you have been faithful in giving your tithes to God, your time to the community, and your love and care to one another in spite of the pressures without and within. Many of our faithful members are now pastoring churches, or working in the vineyards of God around the world. As "we press toward the mark for the prize of the higher calling" we know that the journey has been one with God, and so we continue through the next generation as we pass the torch. (May 2002)

Rev. Dr. Alonzo B. Patterson

Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and
all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33