Assemblies of God Pastor Ernie Spears
History of Hughson, California: The People, the Places, the Traditions of a Small Town
Hughson Assemblies of God Pastor Ernie Spears was honored with multiple awards on April 23, 2024, by the Assemblies of God District Council for Northern California and Nevada. Spears describes the experience as very humbling: “I had a hard time receiving it. Everything I do is for the Lord. I don't do it for me.”
For Spears, the awards represent what God had allowed the congregation to do in 53 years. But the ceremony's primary focus was Spears himself. Now, after 55 years of ministry as pastor of Hughson Assemblies of God.
At the age of 12, Ernie Spears first sensed a calling from God to ministry. School was difficult for him because of a speech impediment, and he had to take special classes to get through.
Spears joined the military after graduation on July 2, 1962. He served in the Navy for three years, including time on the sea during the Cuban Missile Crisis, an earthquake in Kodiak, Alaska, and overseas.
Now was the time for Spears to answer the call he received so many years before. He joined as an associate pastor with his father-in-law and worked in construction. In January 1972, he took on the role of senior pastor in Hughson.
Hughson Assemblies of God built the original church in 1947 and added to it over the years. In 1962, church members built the sanctuary. Spears assisted while home after boot camp, he said, to impress the young lady living in the parsonage. That young lady, named Norma, would later become his wife and the backbone of his ministry. “None of what I've done in my life could have happened without my wife, who has been my support,” Spears said.
In 1986, the congregation built the social hall that is used today. It is used not only for pie auctions and fish fries but also as a meeting place for Bible studies, community leaders in Hughson, and an alternate location for the senior lunch program. Currently, 80 active members attend the Hughson Assemblies of God, but on average, 120 attend each Sunday.
"I've got a whole church that loves to serve, and they love to do things and help,” Spears said.
For example, their recent fish fry brought in $3,000 for the missions. From July 8 to 16, a work crew from the church will go to Pelican, Alaska, and Island, where they have been restoring a church for the last eight years. The church now has a year-round pastor, and in those frigid winters of Alaska, when only five or six people might have attended in the past, the church now regularly sees 20 people on Sundays. They've built not only a building but also a community.
His time as a minister has not been without challenges. That speech impediment from his youth has continued to be something he has had to work at. He said his congregation knows there are certain words he struggles to pronounce, so when he says the fifth book of the Bible, they know exactly where to turn. "I still wrestle every week. It keeps me struggling before God.”
“To serve is all I ever wanted to do,” Spears said. He recalled that when he was asked to lead the teaching for a room of eloquent, educated men, Spears did what he has always done: “I spoke from the heart.”
When asked what lessons he has learned over his five decades in ministry, Spears said he's learned the importance of the “ability to listen” and build relationships.
Spears believes that building relationships is vital in all areas of life, including with people who are different from us. Through those relationships, we not only learn to accept them despite our differences but also grow from our interactions with them. By doing this, we're “constantly learning.”
Like a turtle on a fence post, Spears said, “I didn't get there by myself.”
Spears considers each day like attending a school of life. “What nugget can I pick up from? What was said here? What did I go away with?”
Spears meets monthly with leaders in the Hughson community. Each month, attendees share an update on their personal lives and professional developments. This keeps different branches of the town connected and makes leaders recognizable and “more than a title.”
During the award ceremony, the district superintendent referenced this project by saying, "We wish more pastors would take an interest in their community."
What began as a need to support the Senior Luncheon Program has become a joy for those who attend. City Council members, mayors, pastors, and school administrators who participate have publicly praised the project.
But this approach does not work in every town, Spears explained. "This is a rare community.”
And Spears would know.
He said, “I probably have served on the boards or led almost every event here in the community.” One night, coming home to his house, he found a note on his door directing him to attend a meeting at the Pizza Factory for the baseball league. He was informed that he was voted president that year.
To raise money to build a senior center, he joined Marie Assali in launching the Hughson Fruit and Nut Festival.
Together, they got every facet of the community involved. "If I want to be effective, I have to be where they're at; we have to be willing to come and be part of you.”
Looking ahead, Spears said, “I'm enjoying ministry as much or more than I ever enjoyed it.” And being in relatively good health, retirement is “just a word.” He plans to continue so long as he is effective.
“It’s not I, it’s we.”
Working together, taking joy, maintaining a heart of service—these are the messages Spears emphasized as he looked back on his decades in ministry.
“There's no reason why I would be at this point in the district and hierarchy. I want you to know that God's calling is what we have. God has brought me here with my inabilities. I have risen here not because of my abilities but because of my willingness to serve him. I want to encourage you: no matter where you're at in your service, you're there not because you have all the abilities and what you have there, but because God placed you there. Whatever you have, whatever you think you need, wipe that out and realize ‘God will provide for me. I can do what I'm supposed to do.’”
Originally published in the Hughson Chronicle & Denair Dispatch on May 14, 2024. The Hughson Chronicle & Denair Dispatch is part of MidValley Publications and is committed to the power of the positive press. Reprinted with Permission.
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