Jack Stanfield said in 2004 when Wade Wallace’s name came up in a pastoral search committee meeting, they already knew what kind of person he was — a strong teacher, someone who loves people and is a friend to all.
Wallace had served there at Calvary Baptist Church in Russellville as the youth pastor in the mid-1990s and had gone on to serve as pastor of First Baptist Church Hackleburg.
“In 2004, he felt like God was ready to move him again,” said Stanfield, Calvary’s current deacon chair. “We were blessed enough to get him.”
The church felt that way then, and they feel it even more so now as they celebrate Wallace’s 20th anniversary, Stanfield said. “He has all the good qualities — he’s a loving guy, and his preaching is as good as any I’ve ever heard. He’s a great pastor, preacher and teacher.”
‘Heart to reach Russellville and the world’
But Wallace said the past 20 years haven’t been about him — they’ve been about the story of what God is doing at Calvary Baptist.
“It’s a church with a heart to reach Russellville and the world with the gospel, and they allowed me to be their pastor along for this journey,” he said. “It’s really been a great honor to serve this church.”
Wallace said over the years, “God did a work in my heart and gave me a heart for missions.”
The church got on board with that vision. They’ve been deeply involved with local, national and global missions, especially in Guatemala — in July, 53 church members traveled to the Central American country. Under Wade Wallace’s leadership, Calvary Baptist Church members have taken multiple missions trips to Guatemala in recent years and built a classroom during one of the trips.
For the past 15 years, Calvary also has run Faith Mission Outreach, which feeds more than 400 local families each month.
“That just shows you the church’s heart and where they are,” Wallace said. “It’s a very generous church — when the need arises, they step up and they support. It’s a kingdom focus; that’s what we try to be.”
Church member Jason Davis said that vision starts at the top.
“He has a heart for missions and a great desire to follow the Great Commission,” Davis said.
Craig Grissom, another Calvary member, agreed that Wallace is “the leader of it all.”
“He comes up with these ideas that he believes the Lord is in, and we back him 100 percent,” Grissom said.
Faye Wright, a member of Calvary for more than 50 years, said you don’t have to be around Wallace long to know what is important to him.
She said also that he is the “most caring person.”
“Bro. Wade really feels what he preaches, and he applies it to his own life just like he expects us to apply it to ours,” Wright said. “He’s always going to preach what he believes. He’s a good student of the Bible; I enjoy his sermons and look forward to them every week, and I look forward to his Bible studies as well. He knows his Bible and studies it, but he also lives it.”
She noted that when God called Wallace to preach, “He really called him,” and He called Wallace’s wife, Courtney, too.
Wallace said it’s “hard to express” how important his wife is to his ministry. “She lights up the room, and she is a role model because of her spirit.”
The couple’s oldest son, Jacob, also serves at Calvary as the church’s minister of missions and education. He and his wife, Alissa, have two small children, Nash and Eleanor.
Wallace’s younger son, Gabe, also recently married Lauren Mae and is an active part of the Calvary family.
Davis said Wallace is a “great example especially for young men to look up to as far as prioritizing his family but also growing in his faith.”
“I watch him with his family and grandchildren, and he’s not just a good pastor, he’s a good man,” he said.
Davis said he looks to Wallace as a mentor and church leader as well as a friend.
“He develops relationships with people; it’s great to have a pastor you can be a friend with,” he said.
Nancy Harrison, who has served as church secretary/receptionist since early 2005, agreed that Wallace is “more than a pastor to everybody — he’s their friend.”
Greg Weeks, Calvary’s minister of music, said one of Wallace’s strong points is how he loves people.
“He genuinely cares about the flock,” he said. “He’s a great pastor to the people, a shepherd over the flock. He and Courtney have a good rapport with the people … his care for the congregation resonates with them. Without hesitation, I say one of his strong points is the rapport with the people, the genuine love and care of the people. We have a wonderful fellowship, sense of family here.”
Wallace said he’s grateful for the way the church has supported him.
“It takes a great church for a pastor to stay 20 years,” he said. “It speaks highly of this church, how loving and supportive they are and that they’re willing to move forward.”
Wallace said through the past two decades, he’s never felt like God has wanted him to leave.
“God has rooted us here, and we’ve been grateful for that,” he said.
He said if he could give any words of wisdom to young pastors, it would be to “be faithful, love the people and be humble — be grateful for what God is doing.”
The church honored the Wallaces for their 20 years at the end of each of the Dec. 15 morning worship services.
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