Clymer Methodist Church Pastor Kevin Costner has served the church and the Clymer area since 2018. P-J photo by Sara Holthouse

CLYMER — For Clymer Methodist Church Pastor, Kevin Costner, being a pastor was not always something he felt called to do.

“I didn’t want to be a pastor for a long time,” Costner said. “I was a Christian for many years, being saved at 25. I wanted to serve somehow, so first I went into missions.”

Costner’s first mission work was in the Appalachian region of Kentucky, as a part of the prison ministry. Costner said he first thought that the prison ministry was what he would go into, but decided that it was not for him. He then went into seminary, and was eventually called to serve a church in Ohio as a family pastor. Costner said he wrestled with the idea of being a pastor more after that, because when he would go home to North Carolina people would ask him to preach.

“I still didn’t want to, but at the time God put it on my heart to serve local churches, so in 2009 in Ohio I said yes to the Lord and the church,” Costner said.

Costner referred to becoming a pastor with the Methodist church as a “drawn out process.” He eventually ended up in New York State thanks to his wife, Heather, who is from Clarence and had a pastor there that both she and Costner had great respect for. This pastor also serves as Superintendent for the local area, and while Costner said he had no desire to serve in New York state he said that this pastor became a great resource for him.

“I remember very clearly one night in Louisville, Ohio, he called and said ‘I know it’s not your intention but I have a church for you’,” Costner said. “He asked us to consider it, and we did and we prayed about it. So, we made the move from Ohio to Jamestown and I started serving the Camp Street Methodist Church in Jamestown.”

Costner added that while he may not have completely understood God’s plan all along, he trusted God and it got to the point where he had an inward understanding that he needed to do something differently than what he was already doing with the prison ministry.

For Methodist Church pastors, pastors are appointed to different churches and Costner’s second appointment was to a church in Springville. He and his family came to the Clymer Methodist Church in 2018.

“I trusted God’s hand in it because when I got the call to come here I was interviewing with the Wesleyan Church and was one of two candidates,” Costner said. “It is a challenge but I do have peace being here.”

Costner said the main challenge for any rural church is the ability to grow, but that he and his family have also been blessed with the connections they have been able to make in the area. This includes the network of families in the area they have been able to connect to that homeschool, something the family decided was necessary after their oldest son, Caleb — who is now a young adult –, was diagnosed with epilepsy when he was five.

Costner added that coming to the Clymer area was almost like coming home for him, after growing up in Western North Carolina. For him, being a pastor is important because it is what some people are called by God to do in scripture.

“It is an office that God calls certain people to in scripture and it is part of God’s plan for his church,” Costner said. “A pastor is not more important than other people who serve in the church but it is still an important office. There are certain gifts God gives to people to not have them be above others but to serve them.”

Additionally, Costner said the office of pastor is a very serious one that he thought if someone was not called to do then they should do something else. It is also something Costner feels very humbled to be.

“I don’t know exactly why I was called but I have been confirmed in my call,” Costner said. “It is impossible without the spirit of the Lord to teach me as I go. There is a strength to be found in the body of the church who support their pastor and their family. It takes a lifetime of learning and conviction and you can’t understand the role fully until you put on the shoes of a pastor.”

Being a pastor is impossible without the Lord, Costner said, but with him it is the “greatest job in the world”. He added that it is more than just a job, but a calling and that he is honored and blessed to be able to walk with people at their lowest and highest points. He also called it a “privilege” to be able to see the light come on spiritually for someone and to walk with them in that journey.

While this is Costner’s third appointment it is his fourth church overall that he has served in the span of 14 years in which he has been a pastor.

“It would be nice to end here,” Costner said. “In terms of how Methodist pastors are appointed, appointments are often short but this has been the longest appointment for me so far. I am pleased to be here for however long I will be.”

Costner said he is grateful for the support from both the Clymer and North Clymer communities throughout the years.

“Ephesians 3:20 says ‘Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us’,” Costner said. “Don’t take for granted what God is doing and be bold in serving him. I am grateful for the support from both the Clymer and North Clymer communities.”