7 minute read
Bishop Steven Arnold - Grace United Church
Bishop Steven Arnold and Grace United Church
By Terry L. Watson
Photos Provided by Bishop Steven Arnold
In 2022, two churches – Grace Church (a primarily Caucasian church) and Grace Temple (a primarily African American Church) – came together to form a new church – appropriately named “Grace United.”
Serving in a capacity that he describes as a “Visionary Pastor”, Bishop Steven Arnold joined arms with Pastor Josh Hurlburt to bring a uniting foundation to their community. “Pastor Hurlburt is a “Directional Pastor. While I provide a vision of where we are going as a church, it is Pastor Hurlburt’s role to provide direction on how to get there,” he says.
There is nothing small about the assignment that has been assigned to the life of Bishop Steve Arnold. Born and raised in North Little Rock, AR, Bishop Arnold has served in ministry for 42 years. He first began at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church, in Bald Knob, AR, before moving on to St. Mark Baptist Church in Arkansas. After serving at St. Mark, he arrived at Grace United. He shares that his service has been a journey of faith. “Ministry is not what I thought my life would be. I was an All-American Football player. I was about to sign to play football with the University of Baylor. However, God had other plans, as I got the call to go into ministry. I have no regrets, and I will forever be grateful for this journey. While there have been a few ups and downs, through it all, God’s will continues to be manifest in my life,” he says.
Bishop Arnold shares that when he was called into the ministry at the age of 17, he always had the overwhelming desire to reach people where they are and bring them into the kingdom of God. “It’s about reaching and connecting people with their kingdom assignment. God has given us a mandate to reach people. I want to reach people, literally. We come to church to get our assignment, and we leave the church to fulfill our assignment, and that is to reach people. Most people fall by the wayside due to a lack of connection.”
Bishop is a graduate of Philander Smith University in Little Rock, AR, where he received a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature and a Master’s Degree from Memphis Theological Seminary. He shares his life with his wife, Shanta, and together they have nine children and eight grandchildren.
Pastor Hurlburt has called Little Rock home since 2007 and served in multiple roles at Grace Church, including youth pastor, associate pastor, and senior pastor of Grace Church, before forming Grace United. He is a graduate of Crichton College and Dallas Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Julie have four children. Pastor Hurlburt celebrates and embraces the diversity of God’s people to serve the church.
Bishop Arnold says, “What makes Grace United Church is that we have two cultures coming together as one. That speaks volumes in this day and time, especially in Little Rock, in the Bible Belt, the south, the home of the Little Rock Nine at Central High, in light of all the racism that has happened here, to see a black church and a white church to merge has been a great impact for the growth of the church.”
Outside of Sunday morning, Grace United is very active in its community and around the globe. Its footprint can be found in six countries, and it is in the process of growing its core group of young adults. Where the church is located, it is a predominantly white and prestigious location in Little Rock. Grace United has a membership that is very diverse, with African Americans making up about 60% and Caucasians making up about 40%. This makeup is very encouraging, specifically in regard to racial cohesiveness. Their total membership consists of about 700, and young adults between the ages of 20 and 35 make up about 40% of its membership, with the remaining percentage comprising members between the ages of 50 and 65. They have programs that are designed to enhance the lives of their senior members. “I feel our seniors should always be valued, celebrated, and honored. A few years ago, we formed a Mothers Board. Recently, we took our church mothers out to dinner and honored them.” They also have programs for teens, students, and young adults. “We have a holistic approach to ministry. Because we have a young adult population, we also have a lot of children.”
Bishop Arnold emphasizes that Grace United is really targeting the young population for several reasons. “Their story is different from my generation. The black kids had white friends at school, and the white kids had black kids at school, and they hung out together after school. My experience was different. I had white friends at school, but after school, we didn’t deal with each other. The generation between the age bracket between 20 and 30, is not their story. They are more open and committed to worshipping with those they have relations with,” Bishop says. Grace United also focuses on embracing mixed marriages and white and black couples. At Grace United, mixed couples are accepted and not frowned upon.
Life isn’t perfect for anyone. Bishop Arnold shares that he has made some mistakes, and he has faced his mistakes and allowed them to make him better. His mistakes are his testimony and something that he uses as a reminder of where God has brought him from. While pastoring at St. Mark Baptist Church, Bishop saw his congregation grow from 300 members to 7500. I look at where I am now, and I know there are others who have gone through some things. I have people in leadership who have made mistakes, and I have loved them right where they are. I find joy in seeing their lives transformed. I don’t believe that we should throw people away. We throw trash away; we don’t throw people away. Everyone has redemptive possibilities,” he says.
Bishop Arnold comes from the Church of God in Christ (COGIC) lineage. He credits his spiritual father, Bishop DL Lindsay, who he refers to as his dad, with having the biggest impact on his life. Bishop Lindsay also turned 100 in April of this year. Bishop Lindsay impressed a trailblazing anointing upon Bishop Arnold. “He was always on the cutting edge. I look at my new assignment with the merging of the two churches and believe it is setting a platform for the future. I am excited about bringing different races together under one roof,” Bishop Arnolds explains.
Looking ahead, Bishop Arnold is working towards securing a legacy for the generations to enjoy. One of the ultimate visions is to plant other churches out of Grace United with the same DNA as Grace United. He adds, “I appreciate all that has happened in my life, and I believe the best is yet to come. My latter will be better than my before.”
www.graceunitedlr.com
