Being himself

When he retires in October, Larry Holland will have completed over 41 years as pastor of Franklin Heights Baptist Church in Rocky Mount.

He could joke that it would be impossible to tell his age simply based upon his four decades in Rocky Mount, because Franklin Heights was not his first church. But Holland is quick to tell you that the first pastorate was five years and three months at Mt. Olive in Rockingham County, N.C., and that his age is younger than you may think. He is 69 and still biting at the bit to preach more sermons.

He gets an opportunity to preach to a large statewide congregation when he delivers the annual sermon at the Baptist General Association of Virginia meeting in Roanoke on Tuesday, Nov. 11, at the 7 p.m. session.

Larry and Ginger Holland declare that they were “little more than children” when they came to Franklin Heights in June 1967. He was 27 and she was 26 and the couple had two little children — David, a boy of 17 months, and Deborah, then an infant girl of 6 weeks.

The church also was young. Constituted in 1960, Franklin Heights already had experienced two pastorates by the time of Holland's arrival. There were 120 in attendance on Holland's first Sunday as pastor. The church had two buildings, including one with a basement which was used as an auditorium. With a pastor, the church had a staff of one.

By staying for the long haul, Holland has seen many changes and tremendous successes. The county seat town has grown in population and strip commercial centers now occupy what once was countryside. The development of Smith Mountain Lake into a recreational and residential mecca has impacted the town and surrounding counties.

Today the church lists about 1,500 members and has a staff of 14, including “five full-time pastors.” There were 1,750 in attendance last Easter. The music ministry, led by the highly-capable Ken Richardson, includes a full orchestra which had been one of Holland's dreams. There have been five ambitious building programs during the Holland pastorate: a children's building, a new auditorium which in time became known as “the chapel,” an educational building for youth and adults, a Family Life Center and the large worship center completed in 2006 at a total cost of some $7.5 million.

The first person baptized in the new worship center was the pastor's grandson, Hunter Robertson, and since then there have
been over 100 more baptisms. Over the Holland pastorate, there likely have been as many as 900 baptisms and the church has given about $4 million to missions. Last year alone, the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering was $73,000.

Holland credits involved laity and creative colleagues for much of the obvious success. He remembers the Sixties when emphasis for missions offerings was through Woman's Missionary Union and was not churchwide. “I knew that it was important for the offerings to be open to all for truly sacrificial giving and I asked our WMU president for her opinion. She told me, ‘Pastor, I don't care as long as it gets to the missionaries.' ” Holland also pinpoints a cooperative attitude among church members. “I never heard anyone say, ‘Pastor, we've always done it this way!'

“I believe that one of the reasons our church has seen the blessings of the Lord is that in 41 years we have never had one ungodly, un-Christian divisive deacons meeting. We have not always agreed on everything but they have functioned and helped me and the staff to do our ministry. We have worked very well together.”

For several months, Holland has been mentoring Stan Parris, who came to Franklin Heights from the pastorate of Vansant Baptist Church. Holland has been giving his successor “a sense of the DNA of the church,” observing that “every church has its own thumbprint.”

James Larry Holland was born in Claxton, Ga.; and at less than 2 years of age, he moved with his parents into Georgia's historic seaport city, Savannah. He was converted at age 10 “through the ministry of the Royal Ambassadors,” the influence of the pastor's wife and the persistent interests of a deacon. He was baptized into the fellowship of Jasper Springs Baptist Church.

At about age 14, Holland began to feel a call to the ministry. By 16, he felt somewhat “conflicted,” pulled between the ministry and a business career. Someone gave him some sound advice, “If the Lord will allow you to do anything else, you do that; but if he will not allow you to have peace, then follow your calling with all your heart.” He confesses, “I had no peace about anything else than the ministry.”

Holland enrolled in Columbia Bible College (now Columbia International University) in South Carolina and there he met his future wife, Reginia “Ginger” Watkins, the daughter of “an old-fashioned” Baptist preacher. “The first time I ever saw her, she had just fainted in the dining hall. I took one look and said, ‘My goodness, that is a pretty girl.' The next year we started dating.”

The preacher's daughter had “almost made a conviction not to marry a pastor,” but she did; and today she considers that the two of them are “a team.” The church folks allowed the pastor's wife to be herself. They recognized her musical gifts and called upon her to play the piano and organ and she taught a class for many years. In the late 1970s, she became the first woman from her association to serve on the Virginia Baptist General (now Mission) Board.

Larry Holland continued his theological training by earning a master of divinity degree from Southeastern Seminary in 1971. He is proud of his service on the Southern Baptist Convention's International Mission Board.

“About 20 years ago, I knew that I would never be a Billy Graham; but I also realized that the Lord wanted me to be the best that I could be and to discipline myself. In my early forties, I began reading books on preaching and started spending as much as 20 hours a week preparing my Sunday morning messages. I have tried to concentrate on preaching. I believe that a preacher ought to spend time preparing to present a word from God's Word. I believe that the Lord uses your personality. I am just supposed to be who I am and that's what I have tried to do.”

Larry Holland just keeps on being himself — a sound proclaimer, a caring pastor and a trusted friend to many.

Fred Anderson is executive director of the Virginia Baptist Historical Society and the Center for Baptist Heritage and Studies. He may be contacted at [email protected] or at P.O. Box 34, University of Richmond, VA 23173.