I was born and raised in Pauls Valley, Oklahoma where my family and I attended Trinity Baptist Church. I can remember my Aunt Dorothy teaching my kindergarten Sunday School class and sharing Bible stories on the flannelgraph board. When I was 13 years old I remember having many questions about faith and who Jesus is. On a fall afternoon in 1987, with the help of our pastor, Joe Masterson, I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. I soon followed in believer’s baptism and began my relationship with Christ.
When I was 16 years old, I attended the Summit youth camp in Talihina, Oklahoma. That week, Christ began impressing on my heart the call to serve Him in ministry. Although I shared that call with my church, I really didn’t know where to turn. It wasn’t until youth camp at Falls Creek, in 1996, that God revived that call in my heart and made it specific with a call to student ministry. I was eager to begin serving and soon after I was called to my first church.
After several years in youth ministry, in 2008, God began to redefine His call upon my life. It was during one of my morning quiet times with the Lord that I felt the Holy Spirit’s prompting on me. The Father’s call was clear to me: it was His desire to use me in pastoral ministry. Having had the Lord redefine His purpose for me in ministry, I began to pray and ask Him to prepare me for this incredible task.
During my 20+ years in ministry, God has blessed me by allowing me to be a part of seeing the lives of many children, students, and adults transformed by the power of the Gospel. The Lord has also used those experiences I’ve gained to prepare me for every challenge that I have faced. This is a very exciting time in my life, but it is also very humbling. To know that Christ would choose to use me challenges me to lean more heavily upon Him. I stand in awe of the God who loved me and chose me to be a small part of His magnificent plan!
DR PAUL BEAM- lead pastor
