Richland Valley Church History

The Missionary Visitor Nov. 1920 page 311

Beginning of the Richland Valley Church. Wash.

E. L. Whisler

  Early in the fall of 1917 my family and I were invited to the home of a woodsman, who had seldom given thought to the great mercy and love of his heavenly Father.  It was his desire that we eat our Thanksgiving dinner at his home with him and his family.  We accepted the invitation, with the understanding that we were to be excused after the dinner, to fill a preaching appointment at the county poor farm – an appointment we had been filling for several years.  After some percussion the good-hearted man consented to go with us to the poor farm.

  On our journey we used the opportunity to search his life, in which we found a spark that was hopeful.  Then we preached upon a subject that seemed to be troubling him.  The word of truth was readily accepted, and at Christmas time he became a new man in Christ.

  Feeling the great need of telling others, as did the disciples, that he had found the Christ, he first told his sister, who had come to him for a visit.  Through much persuasion she secured our consent to go to a place near her home, close to Richland Valley, and preached for them.  It was a distance of about forty miles. We were gladly received by a large audience of plain, good people of simple lives who were eager to hear the Word of God.

  My wife and daughter were with me at this first meeting.  We found it rather difficult to have a song service, as there were only two hymn books for an audience of nearly one hundred, and those two were of old style hymnal, with out any notes.  The people were accustomed to singing in long meter.

  These eager and open-hearted people persuaded us to come at least once a month and preach for them.  Our faith was new, but they seemed to receive the Word gladly.  We continued to administer unto them until the spring of 1918.

  The roads were long and very hard to travel, making it quite difficult to fill our monthly appointments, yet the attendance and interest kept growing. At the close of our series of meeting in the spring, we rejoiced when four souls were received into this kingdom by baptism.

  From that date our meetings were held every two weeks.  The attendance continued to grow, and our house became too small.  Through the kindness of the dear brethren in the State of Washington we were assisted in building a place worship of our own, large enough to accommodate the people.  Many were received into the church from time to time, until, up to this date, we have received by baptism about seventy members.  These, with the ones who have moved in, make our number ninety-two.  We now have a live Sunday-school and Christian Workers’ meeting, but we are greatly in need of more ministers to fill the many calls for preaching.

  As we are at present alone here in the ministry, our prayer is that the Lord may put into the hearts of the ministers who are burying their talents, to come and labor in his vineyard, where they are so much needed.  

Suggested reading: Shepherd of the Cowlitz an autobiography by Ezra Leroy Whisler, with exposition by Geraldine Crill Eller. Ezra Whisler was the founder of the Richland Valley Church of the Brethren and active as it's Pastor until his retirement.