Doug Stoll's Faith Story

I was raised in the middle of 4 brothers and an older sister in farm country east of Independence. Every Sunday, like clock work, one could see the Stoll family enter the First United Methodist Church of Independence, file into their pew five rows from the front on the right side early Sunday morning. If you don't believe me I can dig out my 4 and 5-year pins, which use to be awarded in Sunday school for years of perfect attendance. To me, five years of never missing when you lived 15 miles away should be equivalent to the military's Purple Heart! That doesn't take into consideration all the Wednesday night choir practice and Sunday night youth meetings.

I was lucky to be raised with one set of parents in a very conservative Christian home, even though religion was never discussed much. Looking back it is clear I have to contribute my strong moral and ethical values to my parents, and I even think constantly dragging us to church might of done something for us also. But my question was always, "When is my God moment coming?" I never remember anyone ever telling me about their God moment. Then came college when I start missing church. Those years were all about me and whether I had better things to do. I got married and we went to church now and then. We had our two boys and were more consistent, for their sake more than ours.

Then it happened! I left my automotive career to follow my farming heart and was learning how to raise apples on the third largest apple orchard in Missouri. The drive was 53 miles each direction and I worked 10-hour days. At the beginning I struggled staying awake while making the one-hour drive. Perhaps you have dozed off for a moment to wake up scared to death, then rolled down the window or turned up the radio. One day I turned off I-70 onto a very winding, hilly road to the orchard, drove to my parking place next to one of the barns, and froze as I reached down to turn off the key. I sat there for awhile shaking, trying to remember any part of that last 35+ miles. I couldn't! I had no recollection!

Now skeptics would say the subconscious part of your mind takes over. Doug says God is the only one who could have taken me safely over that kind of road for that many miles. No questions about it! God has a plan for all of us and no matter how hard we try to mess it up, he will prevail. I just hope I am doing my best to help him with his plan for me! What's his plan for you?

Doug is a LSUMC Lay Leader - Read Doug's Bio

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