David V. Wiebe

It’s so good to be here with you today. During the early 1950s, I was called to be Pastor of the Gnadenau Krimmer Mennonite Brethren Church. At the time the church building was right here, where I’m standing.

 To give you a bit of my background, starting during the early 1940s my wife Martha and I were living on a ranch 3 miles south of Reedley California with our 3 sons and toddler daughter. She’s right over there now. While I was a rancher, I was also the pastor of the Zion Krimmer Mennonite Brethren Church, 3 miles down the road from our ranch. Zion had very active members who originally were from South Dakota and Kansas. 

Now in the early 1940s, a World War loomed on the horizon. With the Declaration of War, the U.S. government enacted the military draft which seriously changed the lives of the young men of our Zion Church. The church leadership strove to depend on God’s Word as we dealt with this new challenge. The issue could have become very divisive as I noticed that some of the flock were quite verbal about their belief that a good Christian could join the military in order to protect the weak. Whereas another group believed that following Jesus meant staying out of the military. Thankfully, through the Holy Spirit and the practice of brotherly love, Zion church “weathered the storm” and enjoyed more good years. The church was blessed as we reached out to nearby farm-labor camps with welcoming chapel services.

Despite our love for the congregation and appreciation for our raisin crops, my Wiebe roots were in the Springfield area south-west of Lehigh Kansas. When during the early 1950s I was called to Gnadenau, I felt drawn for many reasons. I’ll mention only 3 of them:

1. Gnadenau’s leading Elder until 1900, Jacob A Wiebe, was my uncle. His leadership definitely influenced me before he passed on to Glory at age 84.
2. My older brother, Frank V Wiebe, truly enjoyed his pastorate at Gnadenau during the 1940s. Frank’s enthusiasm and friendliness made it easy for him to speak to souls about salvation. He passed to Glory about a year before my call to Gnadenau. 
3. I also saw Gnadenau as fertile ground for new energy due to Tabor College nearby.

Gnadenau’s services were comforting and familiar as I kept to the traditional order of service. Similar to other KMB churches, a long “prayer session” was regularly shared during the first half of the Sunday morning service. Those who chose to pray out loud often had a burden for the lost, sometimes with tears. There were active members like Harold Jost and Herman Friesen who could be counted on to lead us in singing favorites out of the hymnal. I can still see teenager Sharon Jost regularly accompanying at the upright piano which stood on the floor in front of the small stage. Of course, there was a men’s quartet that served faithfully, Harry Friesen, Herman Friesen, Harold Jost and Jake Friesen. There was also a lady’s quartet–Adina Jost, Marie Jost, Selma Friesen and Louise Friesen. Gnadenau people loved to sing! 

We couldn’t do without the women who were caring Sunday School teachers, efficient organizers of potlucks, as well as funeral lunches in the cement basement. Families opened their homes to take care of visiting evangelists and missionaries. Our church hosted special occasions such as weddings, funerals, even the KMB national conference, in our modest building.  Since Gnadenau did not have a built-in baptistry, the celebration of immersion took place in either the Schlehuber Pond west of Hillsboro, or Spring Lake Pond north-east of town.

We will never forget the packed house on Christmas eve, 1956! A few hours later, the Gnadenau church building with so many spiritual memories, burned to the ground! The next morning, Christmas Day morning, the Tabor College Administration offered their Chapel to serve as our meetinghouse for about a year. 

During the 1950s Gnadenau made efforts to expand their ministry by reaching out to two nearby churches. One was the Springfield KMB church, located 10 miles to the west. For several years there were occasional services and council meetings together till in late 1960, Gnadenau sent a formal letter of invitation. Soon Springfield had their last meeting which was a New Year’s Eve “watch night” service. Twenty-five “Springfielders” joined our church. 

The other expansion effort was when we welcomed the Lehigh MB Church to worship with us. As we leaders worked together, the Southern District of Mennonite Brethren churches invited Gnadenau to join their district. Our acceptance became a stepping stone for all KMB churches to seriously consider an invitation from the North American MB churches to join the MB denomination. For some KMBs the change felt like they were losing what had guided them all their lives. However, most KMB brothers and sisters took their desire for unity to the Lord in prayer. At the 1960 Centennial conference held at Reedley California, KMB leaders accepted the invitation and KMBs became MBs!! I was at peace to leave the future in the hands of God, working through younger generations. I felt it was time for retirement.  

My last decade’s passion was to put onto paper the story of how God worked through our ancestors. I labored over my manual typewriter two fingers at a time, drafting my pages with carbon paper and, of course, a small bottle of white-out. After being a delegate to the Mennonite World Conference at Basel Switzerland I was awakened to the broader Anabaptist-Mennonite background which resulted in my book, They Seek A Country, a Survey of Mennonite Migrations. The printer’s run sold out and I was encouraged to keep writing. Just before death, I managed to complete my final manuscript, Grace Meadow, the Story of Gnadenau and its First Elder. Fortunately, others saw to it that the book was published. My memorial service was at Parkview MB Church, August 1965. My daughter says that afterwards, several older ladies came to her and said, “We don’t know what we’ll do without Rev. Wiebe to teach our Sunday School Class!”               

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!