About Me
Brother Terry Simmons is a Storyteller and Gardener. He is the Pastor of the Cash First Baptist Church and founder of Love Story Ministries. This is his story:
Hi.
Welcome to my blog. My name is Brother Terry Simmons. I am a slave of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am also a husband and father [of three beautiful kids], ordained Baptist minister, animal lover, gardener, outdoorsman, and St. Louis Cardinal baseball fan [in that order].
I have lived in rural Northeast Arkansas my entire life.
I was born and raised on a small [40 acre] farm. My family didn’t farm, both my parents were factory workers, but we always had a large vegetable garden. I grew up hunting, fishing, and exploring. I attended Westside High School [which later became famous for a terrible shooting] where I played football and was a champion shot-put and discus thrower.
My whole life I wanted to be a soldier, so as soon as I turned 18 I joined the Army Reserve with the aspiration of becoming a Regular Army officer. After I graduated from high school, I went to basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri and advanced training at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama.
After I completed my training I returned to Arkansas and my life fell apart. In less than a year my parents divorced, my dad lost his job and withdrew into a deep depression and my mother became an alcoholic. Times had always been hard for us financially, but the mid-80s were a killer, and we lost what little we had. I bounced from one minimum wage job to another, started partying all the time, and ended up missing so many Army Reserve Drills that I was placed in the Inactive Reserve.
Just when I was about to give up, I met a beautiful girl, and she saved my life. That girl became my wife 2 ½ years later and she has been my strength every since.
I never went to college. I worked in a factory for about 6 years, quit and went to nursing school, worked as a nurse for 4 years and finally ended up working for an automotive dealership group.
I accepted God’s gift of Salvation when I was 9 or 10 years old and began to feel the call to preach when I was about 13. I think one of the reasons I turned to drinking and partying was because I was running away from my call. I finally surrendered to the ministry in 2003 and began my first pastorate at the First Baptist Church of Cash, Arkansas in June 2004.
My family has always struggled financially, but not like most of the people in Cash. God showed me their suffering and hopelessness and I gained a heart for them and their plight. In 2005 the Holy Spirit gave me a vision for planting a large vegetable garden on the church property, and with a lot of prayer and support we had a very successful garden in 2006.
In spite of my checkered past, and even though I fall [very] short every day, God has blessed me and is doing a great work in my heart, life and ministry.
Blessings and Grace to you,
bt
Cash, Arkansas
May 10, 2008
