By Renee Hunter

 Most Christian ministers, whatever their denomination, will tell you God called them into ministry How did they perceive this call? And how did they respond?

In the case of the Rev. Ed Stephenson, pastor of Springhill Baptist Church, a “burden” was laid on his heart to exalt God. He literally felt a sense of heaviness, Stephenson says, until he surrendered to the call.
“I felt God dealing with me early in my 15th year,” he said.
He was just a boy with other things on his mind, but upon hearing the call, “I began paying attention; the word of God became more interesting to me.”
Philippians 2: 9 – “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, …” – best expresses his burden, Stephenson says, and he believes a call is rooted in the burden God puts on a person’s heart.
Some people fight God’s call. Stephenson didn’t.
He explained with a laugh that since he was so young and didn’t have any preachers in his family, he didn’t know what he was getting into. He only knew he wanted to preach.
“My great passion is preaching,” he said.
He preached his first sermon at 15 and did revival work until he graduated from Central Baptist College in Conway.
After 45 years in the ministry, Stephenson has learned that his call encompasses more than preaching, and some of it can be challenging, even frustrating.
“The greatest frustration is perhaps your personal feeling of inadequacy” when asked to help people with their problems, he said. “The biggest challenge is the people involved, including the pastor.”
“At the age of 20, what do you know about all that?” he asked.
The church also has a call – the Great Commission, found in Matthew 28: 18-20 – to evangelism and discipleship. “The church is not primarily a social center,” he said.
For that reason, Springhill Baptist follows a program called “Evangelism Explosion” that focuses on discipleship and growth to Christian maturity.
The church’s rapid growth has sometimes felt overwhelming, Stephenson says, because of the importance of helping members become mature Christians. However, his congregation is very encouraging.
Stephenson grew up in a Christian home. “My dad and mom exemplified Christ,” he said.
He was 11 when he professed his faith in Christ at First Missionary Baptist Church of Kalamazoo, Mich.
“Church was an important part of my upbringing,” he said. He and his two brothers – one older, one younger – were “typical teenage boys,” involved in church and in sports, so there was no dramatic change in his life after he received his call to ministry. He has never felt like he missed out on anything, he says.
Although he doesn’t believe someone must grow up in church to be called, Stephenson believes it helps. “Those who have spiritual guidance have a greater sensitivity to the call of God because their heart is conditioned to listen,” he explained.
Stephenson had never been to Arkansas until he enrolled at Central Baptist College in Conway 42 years ago. But, with the exception of a four-year pastorate in Sikeston, Mo., he has been here ever since. He has served as pastor of Mount Olive Baptist Church in Guy and Park Place Baptist Church in Little Rock, and as director of state missions for the Missionary Baptist Association of Arkansas. In 1999, he became pastor at Springhill Baptist, which he had attended while at CBC. He also taught at CBC for two years while serving at Guy.
Stephenson has known his wife, Sarah, since he was 7. They have been married 42 years and have two sons, Eddie, 37, and Chad, 30.
“You can’t make it in the ministry without a loyal wife,” Stephenson said. “I feel very sure that God put us together.”
Stephenson recently accepted another call from God, this one into a media ministry. The burden to do so was laid on his heart about 12 years ago, but it took time to figure out how to go about it. His sermons are played on radio KFFB, an FM radio station out of Fairfield Bay, 9:30-10 a.m. each Sunday; he does 30-second scripture spots for Suddenlink, a cable television company, and he has produced on DVD a nine-sermon series on Abraham. He expects his sermons soon to be aired on KAAY, a Christian radio station.
Stephenson’s conviction of the importance of exalting God and introducing Him to others has grown with his years in ministry, as has his realization that God, not he, is responsible for the success of his ministry.
“When I was 21, I had all the answers and nobody asked the questions,” he said with a smile. “Now I’m 60 and don’t have answers and people are asking questions.”