By Don Lawson
MARION, Oregon--The Lawson family reunion July 27 was historic in many ways. It was a worship service, as well as a reunion.
Five brothers, all pastors, shared the pulpit for Sabbath services at the Church of God (Seventh Day) in Marion, Oregon.
Marion is where the Lawson family settled when they moved to Oregon from Oklahoma in 1937.
The Marion church is where my wife, Sue, and I were married 41 years ago. I pastor Worldwide Church of God congregations in Enid and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and serve as regional pastor.
My brothers are all pastors in the Church of God (Seventh Day).
Archie pastors the church in San Antonio, Texas; Dale pastors the Marion, Oregon, church; Nathan pastors the Conroe, Texas, church; and Ken pastors the Bend, Oregon, church.
The five brothers have a combined total of more than 150 years in ministry.
The entire day was a reunion in honor of our mother, Ollie, 87. Seven of the eight children were present, and in addition to the five brothers speaking, two sisters gave presentations.
Betty Williams of Elmira, Oregon, presented the family history. Mary Sue read a poem about life, written by our father, A. Don Lawson, who died in 1982.
Our other sister, Emma, who died in 1991, was represented at the reunion by her husband, Don Larson.
Our mother's comments were: "Sometimes God's blessings are so overwhelming that it makes me feel so unworthy. Then there are other times when I feel so thankful to the Lord for all his blessings, and I can't find words to express them. As far as we were concerned, my husband and I had no other desire for them than that they would just serve the Lord. Never once did we try to influence or encourage anyone of them to become a minister. Each of their callings was directly from the Lord, and that realization is so overwhelming to me."
Our mother lives in Veneta, Oregon. She has a brilliant sense of humor. When Dale was commending his brothers and sisters for coming so far to attend, Ollie rose to the occasion and said, "And yes, none of you would be here today, if it weren't for me!"
The program was a planned continuous sermon: presentation of family history, Betty Williams; poem Life's Journey, Mary Sue Edwards; Life Then--Influences From the Past, Archie Lawson; Life Now--Power in Today's World, Don Lawson; Life Tomorrow--Faithfulness in the Future, Dale Lawson; Life Eternal-- God's Greatest Promise, Nathan Lawson; and Life--Summation, Kenneth Lawson.
All the brothers and sisters agreed that this was a moving experience. The last time all the family was together was 33 years ago.
The Lawson family expresses appreciation to the Marion church for making this such a wonderful experience for the Lawson family. More than 200 attended the service.
Sept. 17, 1996, Worldwide News, page 2
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