Pastor Honored With Shophar Award

When the Rev. Lu Cadenhead was called to Rocky Mountain Baptist Church, the church he currently pastors, he wasn’t sure how long God would have him serve there.

That was in 1965: 40 years later, Cadenhead continues to faithfully pastor the congregation in Valley, Ala.

“ I never planned on being there as long as I was; it just happened that way,” said Cadenhead. “It’s been a wonderful blessing to be there.”

Because of his faithful, consistent service, the Christian studies faculty at the University of Mobile decided to induct Reverend Cadenhead into the Order of the Shophar on Nov. 15 during its Alumni and Friends Luncheon at the Alabama Baptist State Convention. Cadenhead received the Shophar Award in absentia on Tuesday.

The award, established by the University of Mobile to honor pastors for their Christian service, is presented annually by the University of Mobile’s School of Christian Studies. Dr. Cecil Taylor, dean of the School, said that the award “is presented to an Alabama Baptist State Convention minister in honor of his faithful service which may never otherwise be recognized.”

Cadenhead said, “It’s an honor to be recognized and a great honor to be recognized for the Lord,” while mentioning that, “The greatest recognition I can have is, ‘Well done, thou good and faithful servant.’”

Cadenhead said he has appreciated the opportunity to remain in one church for 40 years. He feels leading one congregation for so long is “like being the head of a big family.” It yields a greater opportunity to bond with the people.

“I like the personal closeness. I ministered to four generations there in one family,” said Cadenhead. “The last two generations, the children were in church before they were a week old, and I baptized all of them. It’s been a tremendous, tremendous experience.”

Cadenhead said that his favorite part of the ministry is preaching, but a huge “bonus” is “to see lives changed, to see people saved and to watch them grow.”

“It’s like seeing a child grow, seeing him develop and grow more involved and grow stronger,” he continued as he addressed the advantages of serving one church for a great number of years.

While serving as pastor at Rocky Mountain Baptist, Cadenhead worked as a mechanic until 1970, then started working in construction until 2000. He said he was blessed because his job hours were flexible. His employers understood when he needed to tend to pastoral duties. And though he only started working full time as pastor after retirement from construction, pastoring has always been a priority.

“When I retired, it (pastoring) turned into full time, but for all practical purposes I was full time all the time,” said Cadenhead. He made sure there was church Sunday mornings and nights and Wednesday nights, and that there was always time for serving God’s people.

Cadenhead has been married to his wife, Helen, since 1952 and has three children: Danny, Timothy and Molly. Cadenhead accepted Christ in 1956 at the age of 24 and immediately began working in a church serving any way he could. However, he said he “still felt a hunger, a need.” He eventually spoke with a deacon who told him, “Lu, if you can be happy doing anything else in the church, then the Lord isn’t calling you to preach.”

The Lord was calling him, and he surrendered to the ministry in 1958. He worked at a church in Seale, Ala., for five years, and then one in Phenix City for 18 months.

During this time, Cadenhead was also working on his education. He had dropped out of high school, but when he entered the ministry he said he felt he needed more education. Cadenhead earned his GED and went to Howard College, now Samford University, where he earned an associate’s degree in religious education in 1963.

In ’65, Cadenhead received the call to Rocky Mountain Baptist. Cadenhead did not mind that the church was small.

“I never saw a need to climb a ladder. Somebody has to pastor these little churches,” he said.

The church is not quite as small anymore, though. The church, which had 96 members in 1966, had 211 members in 2004. According to Donald Johnson, director of missions for the Tuskegee/Lee Baptist Association, baptisms and attendance have increased at Rocky Mountain, especially in the last five years.

It was Johnson who nominated Cadenhead this year for the University of Mobile’s Shophar Award. The faculty of the Christian studies department chooses a winner every year from a pool of nominees.

Dr. Younce, associate professor of Christian studies at UM, said, “Rev. Lu Cadenhead is an excellent example of the kind of person who receives the UM Order of Shophar Award. He is a man who has faithfully served his congregation for more than 40 years. During his bivocational ministry at the Rocky Mountain Baptist Church in the Tuskegee/Lee Association, the church has doubled in size and, under his leadership, has recently built and paid for a new sanctuary. The Christian studies faculty of the University of Mobile honors Rev. Cadenhead for his quiet, faithful service to the Lord and His church.”

Phil Lanier, chairman of the deacons at Rocky Mountain, said he felt Cadenhead deserved the award. “He’s an upright, outstanding citizen, a wonderful person, an excellent preacher and an all-around deserving person,” he said.

Church growth was partially a result of Cadenhead’s focus on community outreach. Two years ago, Rocky Mountain Baptist started a youth group. Cadenhead said that the young people in the youth group often bring their parents to church. In the last two years, he has baptized at least 20 of these parents. The church also uses an annual barbecue and Wednesday night suppers to bring people to the church.

But really, said Cadenhead, it’s people loving their neighbors that draws people to the church.

“When our people are dealing with their neighbors and loving them and witnessing, they come,” he said.

The growth of the church necessitated a building project: it needed more room for more members. A new 300-seat sanctuary was finished in 2004 and is already paid for. Twenty years ago, Cadenhead and his deacons encouraged the congregation to start a building fund. By the time the sanctuary was started, there was $100,000 in the fund, and that amount increased as construction progressed.

“Our people are just wonderful stewards,” said Cadenhead.

The longtime pastor’s love and respect for his congregation is apparent. He said he appreciates their “character, their love, and their compassion for others.”

“Our church is one of the most loving churches I’ve ever seen,” said Cadenhead. “They welcome people as they are the first time they see them. They’re an open people.”

And his congregants appreciate him, too. Doris Adams, church clerk for Rocky Mountain Baptist, has attended the church for 28 years under Cadenhead’s pastoring.

“He’s such a caring person. He’s always here for his congregation,” she said. “He’s always there in time of need, troubles or sickness.” She praised his generosity and the fact that “his preaching is down-to-earth; it’s easy to understand.”

Bill Hearn, a deacon of the church, called Cadenhead “the most kind man I know.”

“He’s just a loving type of pastor,” said Hearn. “Anybody that can put up with a bunch of folks for 40 years and is still smiling…anybody that can stay that long has got to love them.

“I think he’s really dedicated. It’s a small church now, but it was smaller then (when he started), and he’s stuck with that church through thick and thin. He’s stuck with the people because he loves the people.”

Cadenhead said he’s been more than happy to stick with the people of Rocky Mountain Baptist.

“It’s been a joy,” he said. “I believe I’m in the Lord’s will. I’ve never wanted to be anywhere else: I’m happy.”