I was raised in a small town in the North Georgia mountains - the buckle of the Bible Belt. My father had at one time been a Minister and my great uncle was the Bishop of San Antonio, so church is in my blood. But when a family member tried to indoctrinate me into a particularly rabid sect of fundementalist Baptist, it left me with a challenging relationship with Christianity. Nevertheless, I embarked on a spiritual journey that culminated in earning a degree in transpersonal psychology.
I was hired at Lord of Grace right out of college in 2015. At the time, I didn’t know what a Lutheran was, but was excited about the prospect of using my skills as a musician for a spiritual purpose. My experience here - the promise of Grace instead of the fear of Hell, the humility and the community - has healed the wounds of my prior experiences with Christianity. This church has been a loving force, centering my life through the upheavals that have occurred in the last eleven years. It is my honor and privilege to sing and play my heart out here every Sunday. The Holy Spirit is at work here in ways I have found miraculous. Lord of Grace is a true blessing.
God’s Blessings,
Stuart Oliver
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