The mood at the Evangelical Church tomorrow morning will be a mixture of joyful memories and sad farewells as the church says farewell to Pastor Bernie Payne and his wife Sandy.

The couple have been ministering at the church and throughout the island since 1990 when they first arrived to serve a six-month interim pastoral position. A year later, they were installed as the church?s full-time pastor.

Originally from Iowa, Bernie Payne met and married his wife while a student at Baptist Bible Seminary in New York state. Dr. Wendell Kempton, who married the couple, was the one who recommended the pair to Evangelical.

Although he was not raised in a Christian home, Bernie Payne credits early conversations with his mother as the foundation stone for his eventual conversion. Later, when a teenager, a near miss when a shotgun accidentally went off helped him prioritise his life and he accepted Jesus Christ as his Saviour and committed himself to full time ministry.

Apart from two years time served in Friedburg, Germany with the US Army and his time in Bermuda, Pastor Payne has spent his entire life in the US. He was stationed at the same base as Elvis Presley and had the opportunity of ministering to the late musician. According to Pastor Payne, Elvis said he had been raised in a Christian home, but felt like he was being pulled apart by the world around him.

One of the pastor?s highlights of his time in Bermuda was his involvement in Evangelical?s daily radio broadcast, Echoes of Evangelical, which broadcasts Monday through Friday at 8:30am on Bermuda Spirit 1230AM radio.

?I meet new listeners all over the island every week,? he shared. ?I?m so blessed to come into their homes five times a week.?

While he?s enjoyed the compliments from his listening public, Bernie Payne tries to follow the example of the late Corrie Ten Boom, whom he met at Willow Bank many years ago.

?She said that she took all the compliments and put them in a bouquet at the end of the day and offered them to the Saviour,? Pastor Payne said.

?Any good in us is the Lord in us to, ?Both to will and do of his good pleasure?.?

He also found it a privilege to meet with a special group of ?dear people,? as he described them, each April at Peace Lutheran Church, many of whom were radio listeners.

?These people really pray for me and I sense their love.?

Another fond memory for the pastor will be his time with the Men?s Prayer Breakfast, which meets at Evangelical every Thursday morning at 6.30 a.m. There, he had the opportunity to fellowship and pray with a wide representation of men from churches across the island.

Of course, it will be hardest to say good-bye to his congregation at Evangelical.

?They are some of the finest people I?ve ever met,? he explained. ?They have hearts full of love, are very generous, are good prayer warriors and are very dedicated. Leaving them is the hardest part of leaving.?

He compares his thoughts and feelings with that of the Apostle Paul in Acts 20 who shed tears at the thought of not seeing the faces of the people at the church of Ephesus again.

?Christians always say, ?I?ll see you later,? and know we will, as we have that promise from Scripture,? Pastor added.

Bernie and Sandy will return to Iowa on March 3.

?Iowa means, ?Beautiful land.? It?s like the Garden of Eden with rivers on each side ? the Missouri on the west and the Mississippi River on the East.?

Although they are not completely sure where the Lord is taking them in ministry, whether to Waterloo, which is where Sandy?s family lives, or Des Moines, where the couple?s children are living, ?We believe the Lord has something for us to do. That?s why He leaves us here ? we?re invested until our work is done.?

His final message for his dear friends and listeners in Bermuda is:

?From Mrs. Payne and myself, Thank you loved ones for your kindness and friendship. The years have flown by and you have been like a family to us. May the Lord be with you until we meet again!?

Special farewell services will be held this Sunday at the Evangelical Church of Bermuda at 10:45 a.m. and 7 p.m. A farewell social will follow the evening service.