Perhaps it is God’s calm, peaceful spirit that rests on the Rev.Jerry W. Sullivan and his realization of his life’s purpose thathas kept him for 30 years as pastor of Pleasant Ridge UnitedPentecostal Church.

“My whole line of work is winning souls and helping people besaved,” said Sullivan of his purpose, “and at the same time servingthe public.”

Sullivan, 61, and his wife, Glenda, recently celebrated their30th anniversary with the church, and look forward to more years ofserving the Lord by serving the people there. Their ministry haseven branched outside the doors of Pleasant Ridge.

“When you stay in a place for this long, you become a communitypastor. This (the church) is just about my whole life,” Sullivansaid.

Raised in Simpson County, Sullivan, the son of the late LemSullivan and Susie Blackmon Sullivan, moved to the Gulf Coast in1957 to work for Ingalls Shipyard in Pascagoula. He worked therefor 12 years before yielding to the full-time call of ministry.

“I felt the call to ministry in late 1968. When I started in theministry, I was already active in the church as song director atFirst United Pentecostal Church in Pascagoula,” Sullivanrecalled.

In 1969, he accepted that call while a member at First UnitedPentecostal. He evangelized there for a year before being offeredthe pastor position at Pleasant Ridge.

“I had preached a revival here (Pleasant Ridge) before, and whenthe position came open, I was elected as pastor,” Sullivan said. “Iaccepted the position here in 1970, and this is the only churchI’ve ever pastored.”

Although Sullivan had never lived in Lincoln County before, heand his family were eager to move here to serve the Lord.

“We were ready for it. My family was tired of me being gone allthe time on my job,” he said, adding that the pastorate positionopened up doors for him to spend more time with his family.

Sullivan and his wife have not only labored toward spiritualimprovements in the church, but they have directed and workedtoward natural accomplishments.

When Sullivan started in the position, there was an average of50 people attending regularly in a little, red brick building.Since then, attendance, the people’s commitment and the buildingshave changed. The little red building is still in use but has beenreplaced as a sanctuary with a much more modern sanctuary.

“It’s come a long way,” said Sullivan, remembering the oldsanctuary.

Other projects include the construction of a new parsonage, anew Sunday School department and kitchen with dining facilities, anew sanctuary, two paved parking areas and various remodelingprojects.

Aside from the additions and renovations, another area that hasundergone change, Sullivan pointed out, has been in the church’scemetery, which has grown from one marker to between 30 and 40today.

As far as the congregation goes, Sullivan said, “We have about125 to 150 in the congregation now.”

Only eight members who were in the church when Sullivan startedare currently members there, he said. Others have grown up andmoved away, and some have since died, he explained.

Since coming to Lincoln County, Sullivan has preached over 4,780sermons, performed around 42 weddings, preached over 58 childdedications, preached approximately 325 funerals and prepared andserved a Christmas dinner each year for the entire church.

He also does a great deal of counseling and visits to sick andshut-ins. He admits that his family has grown very close to thecongregation over the years.

“You’ve got to get close after 30 years or we wouldn’t have beenhere this long,” he said. “This is like a family church.”

The grace of God and a supportive family have been vital allthese years, Sullivan said. The couple has four children and ninegrandchildren.

“My family has always been supportive,” he said, “and my wifehas been a big part of my ministry.”

His son now pastors a church in Washington State.

When he’s not ministering to others, Sullivan enjoys finishcarpentry work. In fact, he and several men in the church did theconstruction work on the existing facilities.

In the future, Sullivan would like to see a family life centerconstructed at the church and several small projects completed.

Meanwhile, he plans to serve as long as there is health andstrength in his body.

“I guess everybody looks forward to retiring, but I’m notthinking about anytime soon . . . at least not until I’m 65.”