By NewsLine Staff
mail@floridanewsline.com
Lord of Life Lutheran Church celebrated a quarter century of worship in a stable on Aug. 11. Located on six acres of land at 276 Roscoe Blvd. N, the old stable was part of what Lord of Life purchased when it moved to this site in 1999 from a nearby place on Solana Road. Congregants first worshiped in a manufactured home, and slowly realized the space and potential of the horse stable.
“We remind ourselves that Jesus was born in a stable,” said Sheila Kolesaire, the church council president. “We love this unique and unpretentious space that frees us to focus on the preaching by Pastor Karen Biggerstaff each Sunday.”
The wooden posts running down the length of the building help visitors imagine the horse stalls that were once there. Over the years improvements have been made by local businesses, congregants, and scouts working on Eagle rank projects including a walkway, prayer garden, tables, and a Little Free Lending Library for the community.
“Lord of Life is one of four Lutheran churches in St. Johns County and feels proud that it has remained stable — no pun intended — while some 4,500 churches of all denominations closed in 2019 in the US,” Kolesaire said.
Since the church purchased the site in 1999, it has had enough land to host its annual Pumpkin Patch on the front lawn, offering hundreds of pumpkins through October, so this will be its 25th year. Plans are underway for how to celebrate this milestone too.
“We have an electric mix of congregants from active 90-year-olds to families with college age children,” said Pastor Biggerstaff, who joined Lord of Life this spring. “We have a number of recent widows, and I’ve seen that this church has been a good place for active seniors to make friends,” she added.
Photo courtesy Sheila Kolesaire
Five of about 10 congregants who have been with Lord of Life for the 25 years it has worshiped in this stable: Deb Nye, Hilda Markantonatos, Floyd Wiggins, Cathy Wiggins and Cindy Tanton.
