I began my working life as an English teacher. In 1982, at the age of 39, I entered Perkins School of Theology at SMU to prepare for ministry.
I was immediately eligible to serve a church as a student pastor. I was sent to Saint Matthew, a small church in East Fort Worth, with little hope of survival.
I was overjoyed to be in ministry. And against all odds, the church began to grow, mainly from members who returned and friends of those still in the pews. Before long, we exhausted that pool of potential growth, and I knew we had to find a way to reach a wider world.
In 1987, I started Pastor’s Corner in The Meadowbrook News, a local Eastside shopping paper. It did the job. Growth soon accelerated. By 1988, we had grown from about 30 in attendance to more than 150 on some Sundays.
We needed more room, so we decided to build. We hired a rising young architect, Greg Wyatt, to transform our rather dreary sanctuary into the beautiful Victorian Gothic building we worship in today.
In the early 2000s, The Meadowbrook News closed down. That is when we shifted to The Star-Telegram and Friday’s Word. But with changes in how people get their news, we can no longer reach the audience we once did. So once again, we change.
This is our next-to-last appearance here. We will be turning to social media and other online forums to reach a larger audience. Please keep up with us. Subscribe to our weekly online newsletter. The address is below. Just click the subscribe button.
In 2026, Saint Matthew will celebrate its 135th anniversary. We will celebrate.
Join us for our Christmas Eve service at 6:00 p.m.
“The most beautiful service of the year”