Troas to Turners Creek

Acts 1:8 tells us that after the Holy Spirit came, Jesus’ followers would be witnesses beginning in Jerusalem and going to the ends of the earth. Then in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit came, and Jesus, through His followers, began to build His Church. But, how would the gospel move from Jerusalem to Turners Creek, Kentucky?  

Acts 9 records the conversion of Paul. After his conversion, the Lord sent Paul to take the gospel to the Gentiles. Acts 16 records the early part of Paul’s second missionary journey. They went through Phrygia and Galatia but were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach in Asia. The Holy Spirit did not permit them to go into Bithynia, so they came to Troas. While there, Paul had a vision of a man saying, “Come over to Macedonia to help us.” 

Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, they sailed west and came to Philippi. While there, they were put in prison. I’ve wondered if they questioned their decision to go west. We don’t have any indication they did. We do know that in response to their midnight prayer and praise service, God opened the prison doors. The jailer and his family were saved. Eventually, the gospel continued westward through Europe and to America. 

In 1910, a group of churches came together to form the Conservative Amish Mennonite Conference (now Rosedale Network of Churches), with a commitment to reach people with the gospel. In the 1940s, there seemed to be a restlessness in the conference; a sense that God was calling them to missions. So, in 1946, three men were sent south to find a place to do mission work. 

They stopped in Columbia, Kentucky, to spend the night. The next morning, they felt led of the Spirit to turn east. One of the three men, my grandfather, Eli, wrote the following about their trip, “Some of the experiences we had, in a definite leading of the Lord, seem almost too sacred to put on paper. And God forbid that we should take any honor to ourselves.” After visiting some surrounding counties, they came to Jackson in Breathitt County, where they were informed that Turners Creek was a needy place. They visited Turners Creek and sensed that this was where God was leading them. As a result, a church was planted on Turners Creek, and from there, the gospel has spread throughout Eastern Kentucky and beyond. 

One of the men from Turners Creek, whom Eli met on that early visit, was John C. Turner, who was not a believer. They became good friends. John C. accepted the gospel message, was saved, and became a leader in the church at Turners Creek. Plans are presently underway for David C. Turner, a great-grandson of both John C. Turner and Eli Swartzentruber, to become senior pastor of Turners Creek Mennonite Church. 

I think about that pivotal moment at Troas when Paul obeyed the Macedonian call and took the gospel west toward Europe. I also think about the moment in Columbia, Kentucky, when three men representing Rosedale Network of Churches listened to the Holy Spirit and turned east to take the gospel to Turners Creek. 

Seventy-nine years later, the church on Turners Creek is alive and well. God is at work making disciples and raising up people to continue his work. I leave you with this question: Am I listening to the Holy Spirit, and am I willing to take the gospel wherever the Lord leads me?