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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 20, 2021)
October 20, 2021 Page 5 Building Community and Changing Lives Highland honors new pastor by Lawrence Johnson On Sunday, Nov. 7 at 10 a.m., Highland Christian Center will honor Senior Pastor and First Lady, Dr. Shon and Madeline Ney- land for two plus years of service. The celebration will take place at 7600 N.E. Glisan St. and will fea- ture guest speakers Bishop Ernest E. Carradine, Sr. of International Harvest Christian Fellowship, and Pastor April Murchinson of Em- manuel Church. Due to the passing of the former pastor, the church was left rudder- less for over a year, until a search committee, sifting through near- ly 120 candidates, found a new shepherd: the highly decorated Air Force chaplain, Colonel Shon Neyland and his wife of 36 years, Madeline. In a giant leap of faith, Neyland accepted the job, retired from the military and moved his family from Honolulu to Portland, giving his first official sermon as the Senior Pastor in April 2019. Highland began to flourish under Dr. Neyland’s leadership. His energetic style, bible-based teachings and his winning smile attracted new members and kept veterans aboard. “What was most exciting to me were the souls coming to Christ,” remarked Dr. Neyland about his first year, “And in those 10 months, we saw 175 people re- spond. … Not only did those souls come to Christ, we baptized 70.” Additionally, the church averaged 550 people weekly in attendance prior to COVID-19. Dr. Neyland’s vision of “Building Community and Changing Lives” was born. The church was growing rapidly with over 400 visitors in the first 10 months. After such a positive start, no one could have guessed that within a year, Dr. Neyland and the High- land family would have to shut down the church. In March 2020, in response to an overwhelming surge in COVID-19 cases, Gov. Kate Brown prohibited gatherings of 25 or more. “I called an emergency plan- ning meeting,” remembers Dr. Neyland, “And said, ‘How do we respond? Let’s look at cours- es of action, and let’s choose the best one that’s going to move us forward, while protecting the peo- ple.’” Holding on-line Sunday ser- Highland Christian Center Senior Pastor Dr. Shon Neyland and his wife, First Lady Madeline Neyland. vices, answering prayer requests, moving bible study groups to Zoom for all ages, running its food bank, continuing Sunday break- fasts for the houseless, Highland’s ministry remained uninterrupted. Pastor Neyland called it the Un- stoppable Church. “It’s been a tough time,” said First Lady Madeline Neyland speaking of her husband, “But he knew the purpose. He knew the plan of God. He came up with this thing. This is the Unstoppa- ble Church, with an unstoppable pastor. … We’re here at Highland blooming where we’re planted, no matter whether we get the water, the sunshine, we’re doing what God called us to do.” And then George Floyd was murdered by a police officer in Minneapolis. Protests spread like wildfire across the world, and Dr. Neyland stood up, calling for uni- ty. Sought after by news outlets, Dr. Neyland’s voice was one of love and understanding in a divi- sive climate. Dr. Neyland spoke at rallies with a call for justice in America. Dr. Neyland stated he wanted to remind us all that, “We need to take notice of the systemic discrimination and prejudices that we bring to the table every day in America, and that it was a time for real change.” Dr. Neyland’s stance on so- cial justice and change in Amer- ica was not always received with open arms. He recalls that he re- ceived more than one letter from members saying, “Don’t focus so much on social justice. Focus on the Word.” But, according to Dr. Neyland, “The Word is social jus- tice!” As the pandemic surged on, Highland received national at- tention for being one of the first churches in the country to act as a walk-in vaccination site. Thanks to Highland’s outstanding health and wellness team, you can still get your vaccinations at High- land twice a month. Highland was recognized for its efforts in com- bating the spread of COVID-19 with features in the New York Times, NPR News, and WebMD. Highland Christian Center and the Health and Wellness Team was also recently recognized nation- ally by the Balm in Gilead orga- nization with the HC2030 Best Practice Award for its efforts in promoting community health. Growing frustrated with preaching to an invisible on-line Continued on Page 8
