Wes McElravy: Coming Home for the First Time

  • By Denice Rovira Hazlett
  • September 6, 2013
  • 711
                        
Summary: During Wes McElravy's Jonah-and-the-Whale experience, he navigated through the choppy waters of multiple careers--accountant, oil and gas title examiner, and funeral director--before finally coming home. Story: If there's one thing Wes McElravy said he'd never do, it was to be a minister. He didn't see himself as someone who could be comfortable working that closely with people. As a child growing up in northeastern Ohio, he had been a shy, backwards person, so he chose a profession that placed him in front of a computer instead of a crowd--a corporate accountant. And he was good at it. In fact, within six years, McElravy had moved up the corporate ladder six times until, at age 28, he was Vice President of Operations. "This is it," McElravy thought. "I'm really succeeding." The problem was, he was miserable. He hated being cooped up behind a computer, having very little human contact. Every day, as he ciphered spreadsheets and computed calculations, he felt a niggling, a nudging, a quiet nagging, a sneaking suspicion that…but surely not. He sought the advice of good friend, Mark Cleveland, a minister from Markel, Ind. Cleveland told him, "Fight it for as long as you can." So, for a year, McElravy fought until he couldn't fight anymore. When he gave in, he felt a wave of relief. He would return to school, but this time, not to study numbers. Instead, he would focus on faith. He enrolled at Johnson Bible College in Knoxville, Tenn. McElravy served as youth minister at a Christian Church in Greeneville, Tenn. for two years when he felt called to preach full-time, first as interim pastor, then for a small country church, and, finally, as pastor of Colonial Heights Christian Church in Kingsport, Tenn., which grew from 360 to 600 members in the four years he served there. But the transition to pastoring, especially a large church, took a toll on McElravy's relationships. He took what started as a three-month sabbatical then decided to resign to work through personal issues and focus on the most important relationship in his life--the one he had with God. Instead of returning to ministry, McElravy took a job as an independent contractor doing research and title work in Dover, Ohio. He immediately joined a Tuesday morning men's ministry with the First Christian Church of New Philadelphia and, while there, met associate minister, David Carrick, who was minister at Millersburg Christian Church for 21 years. Soon, the men in McElravy's group began to see his heart, hearing his story, and encouraging him to return to ministry. McElravy insisted he wasn't interested, but Someone had other plans. During his time in Ohio, McElravy worked in the Holmes County recorder's office in Millersburg, across from the large brick church on the corner of Clay and Clinton streets. McElravy's perception of it, from the outward appearance, was Millersburg Christian Church was older and dying. "Every day, I would see it," McElravy says, "and would think about going in and talking to the minister, but I never did." Then in December 2012, as McElravy prepared to leave Ohio to become a funeral director in Marion, VA., Carrick told him there would soon be a ministerial opening--at Millersburg Christian Church. "I'm not going to apply," McElravy told him. "I'm not interested in returning to ministry, and I'm not interested in the church in Millersburg." So McElravy, now newly married, moved to Virginia to become director and business manager of a funeral home, with plans to eventually take over for the soon-to-retire owner. Those plans didn't pan out. The position required McElravy to be on-call 24-7, with midnight summonses to pick up bodies, and the necessity of a perpetually mournful attitude. It was more than McElravy could take. "I thought I could minister to people through tough times," McElravy says. "Instead, I felt like a used car salesman, trying to upgrade and take advantage of them in their time of need." In March of this year, McElravy and his new wife, Heidi, discussed options during their honeymoon. "She knew I was miserable, and she was miserable because I was miserable," he says. "Maybe God really was calling me back to ministry." They decided he would take one month to find a ministry position. The first position he saw, at the top of Johnson Bible College's ministry openings, was Millersburg Christian Church. "Okay God," McElravy said. "I get the hint." After applying, and when McElravy discovered he was one of the top three candidates, he made a surprise visit, attending services on April 21. He was shocked by what he found. "It's a very lively, upbeat, contemporary church," McElravy says. "A very welcoming, friendly congregation of about 220 members." The McElravys returned for an interview in May, and it was at that point, he says, while sitting in Sunday morning service, that he felt something he hadn't felt in a long time--he felt like he was home. After preaching a trial sermon on Father's Day, Wes McElravy became Millersburg Christian Church's new minister on July 1. How does McElravy feel now? Very happy. "I love what I do each and every day. I love the people I'm with. I feel like I'm in a family. I don't wake up dreading going to work. It's just a whole new life and perspective, a new passion for ministry." His hope is to create a church that imperfect people love to attend, one where everyone feels welcome, no matter their past. "My own personal background has given me a perspective on how I have failed, how the church has failed. I want people, no matter who they are, feel part of a family, find love and acceptance." Millersburg Christian Church is nondenominational, teaching the whole Bible, but following the model of the New Testament church. McElravy invites people to attend either of their two Sunday services, which take place at 8:15 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. with Sunday school beginning at 9:30 a.m. "I want people to find grace, to find the love of Jesus," McElravy says. "We all need God's grace. Without it, we're lost." Ultimately, McElravy wants others to find what he has found--a place of worship that they can finally call home.


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