Easter is hopping this way, and what better time to hear from Pastor Glenn Butler, born in Tacoma, Wash. His dad, who was career Army, was stationed in the area, and Glenn lived there for 10 years. After Tacoma, his Dad was reassigned to Hanau in West Germany… a small town near Frankfurt. He attended the 5th, 6th and 7th grade there. He had a tough ol’ German teacher that didn’t believe in giving A’s no matter what your score was. One of his classmates had gotten all 100s that 7th year of school, but in front of the whole class the teacher said, “No one gets an ‘A’, because an ‘A’ is for perfection, and no one, other than Jesus, is perfect.”

After 3 years in Germany, his dad was assigned to Ft. Rucker in Alabama. This was where Glenn went through high school. He did well. He played all sports but preferred basketball. With his height, basketball preferred him also. He applied to, and was accepted, at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn. His major was history and accounting.

After college, Glenn attended Seminary in Louisville. He graduated with a Master of Divinity in 1979.

In 1980, he married Shery, and they had two children: a daughter who is a graduate of Huntington College, and received her Master’s Degree at the University of Alabama. She is now with a large accounting firm in Birmingham. Their son is at the Mitchell Cancer Center involved in cancer research. He earned his PhD at Yale in Molecular Chemistry and Bio Physics. Glenn beams as he talks about both his children.

At first, Glenn wasn’t sure of the direction he wanted to go. With his Vanderbilt background he first tried working for General Electric in their accounting division. He worked there two years, but knew in his own mind that there was another calling. He saw himself as a Christian business man, and even after he recognized his calling was that of a pastor, he still had a huge hurdle to get over. Coming to grips with it, he realized that a pastor is not just to preach. Briefly summarized: first, is to lead in worship. Second, is tender, pastoral care for the sick, those suffering from losses and those in need. Third, is the management of what goes on in the church, and forth, a business role adjusting and establishing budgets, raising funds, and accounting for money coming into the folds of the church.

Pastor Glenn has been 32 years in the ministry. When ordained, he took an oath to go where he was sent. He was first sent to Monroe County to Beatrice where he experienced trial by fire. He had a three point charge of three churches. He did great and loved it. He said he truly believed that God could take a man’s strengths, and direct them where they need to be, and are most needed.

I asked the pastor, of the places served, where he liked the best. His reply was “wherever I am.” “I love people, and I can find good and gracious people everywhere. If you give of yourself, it will come back to you.”

I asked him if he’d been to Gulf Shores before being sent here. He said that he had in the 90s on vacation and loved it. He said he never imagined being sent here. When he was told to come here, he and Shery were excited. He and his wife will have been here three years as of July 1st, and he couldn’t imagine anything better. He said the people of the community are as nice as you’d ever want to know. The congregation is warm and gracious.

I asked him to give me his thoughts about Easter.

His response was, “I think Easter is the supreme event of all history. I believe that Easter enables us to put much of life into its proper perspective. Easter enables us to deal with all of the joys, as well as the sorrows, of life. Our own strength is insufficient, but the strength of Jesus enables us to deal with all of life’s battles. Jesus forgives us, cleanses us, and makes us whole.”

He went on to say, “Easter and Christmas…both are strong. Both are preparation periods: Advent leading up to Christmas, and Lent leading up to Easter which lead up to the magnitude of those events, the birth of Christ and the resurrection of Christ. Those are the two big events of the year. There is something in the self consciousness of people that draws them to church. There is something about Jesus that draws people to those big events. I think it’s a testament how Jesus came into the world to live a human life amongst us, and how he conquered death and the grave. The message of Easter is that Jesus came and lived among us as one of us in the world. We believe the son of God endured what we endured, and more, and he gets it right. He lives without sin. In life he is masterful, and in death he shows his Kingship.”

He said, “There comes a time when we know we can’t go it alone….there comes a time when we need someone, or something, bigger than ourselves. Almost all of us reach the point in life when someone gets cancer, or their health is failing, or they lose a child, or they get Alzheimer’s, or something catastrophic, and where do they go? What Christianity does for us, is that it shows us that we can deal with any situation as Jesus did. He didn’t come as a King, Jesus came humbly and He took everything thrown at him. Not everyone can identify with a King, but everyone can identify with pain and suffering...and eventually, unfortunately, it finds everyone’s address. We do live on both the mountains and the valleys of life. Jesus gives us the humility to live on the mountains with graciousness, and he gives us encouragement and hope to live in the Valley’s of life where we deal with the hardships. I believe that Easter enables us to put much of life into its proper perspective.”

He talked of THE United Methodist Church’s mission in Haiti, and their trying to bring hope, and help, to those citizens. He said last year they worked with a rebuilding a church. This year they are trying to help rebuild a library that was destroyed in the earthquake. It’s the Christian groups going into Haiti that are accomplishing things, and making it better.

Leaving Pastor Glenn Butler’s office, I left with the feeling that I had been with a truly remarkable person. He is a leader. He’s a man of faith with a wonderful strength of character, and a strong unbreakable belief that the truth is what he preaches. He believes that Christianity revolves around redemption for our sins. He told me he was so thankful to the members and the pastors that came before him who had visions about what could be done, and how to do it. He recognizes their accomplishments, but there’s always more to be done. He accepts the challenges, and is happy to carry the baton into the future. How fortunate we are to say that Reverend Glenn Butler is ON THE ISLAND.