Stories of God ’s goodness in community

Introduction by Katelin Moquin, Copy Editor

In popular culture, Mayberry represents idyllic, small-town America. The town is sleepy yet satisfying, quick to solve community problems with common sense. Mayberry boasts the warm nostalgia of a bygone era.

Mayberry is the fictional setting of “The Andy Griffith Show” which aired from 1960 to 1968. The town is comprised of a church, a theater, a courthouse, a drug store, and the like. Its comedic cast of characters included the widowed Sheriff Andy Taylor (Andy Griffith), Deputy Barney Fife (Don Knotts), and cousins Gomer and Goober Pyle (Jim Nabors and George Lindsey). The show was a comedy, so something always had to complicate the plots. Mayberry was never perfect — but goodness prevailed.

Six decades later, Mayberry endures as a metaphor for the communities we can’t help but love. And community, it turns out, is a deeply theological idea.

God uses our communities as extensions of His providential hand. He places us in real towns and neighborhoods — the places we worship, work, eat, and play, where we do our banking and our buying. Communities can look vastly different: a Mayberry or a metropolis, a familiar street or a place we never expected to call home. But in each of them, God is at work.

Not only does God give us the gift of community, He gives us a real cast of characters and the neighbors within it. Some of us have many neighbors under one roof; others travel a distance to reach the nearest one. Throughout Scripture, God places a clear emphasis on neighbors. And we know that by neighbor, He means not only those next door but all those we encounter.

Sin, of course, erodes the idyllic landscapes of our lives. We fall short of loving our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:31). And yet, in Jesus, perfect goodness prevails. Despite our failures, God works out His perfect plans for every person, in every home, across every nation. We are each part of that story — both giving and receiving in the communities where God has planted us.

In this month’s Broadcaster, four Hope-Full Living authors reflect on the “Mayberry” communities that have been the God-given settings of their lives, both past and present. Their stories remind us that we are never just residents of a place. We are neighbors, and that is no small calling.

EUGENE, OREGON — 1960s

By the Rev. Don Schatz

Eugene, Oregon, is the home to the University of Oregon. Eugene has more than tripled in population since my story began there in the 1960s, when it had a population around 50,000. In the late 1960s, Eugene became a hub of spiritually seeking youth and played a significant role in my life. More importantly, it was, and remains, the home of Grace Lutheran Church, my spiritual home. Grace had a wonderful pastor and a long tradition of vicars.

Grace Lutheran, through our pastor, several vicars, and the spiritual renewal happening around us, became the Lord’s canvas. On that canvas, He painted our town and our congregation. He added one dynamic vicar that particularly stood out. God painted in some young adult members who had been spiritually searching, and our vicar nurtured them, steering their Lutheran spiritual formation and bringing them into a helping role with Grace’s youth ministry.

I was one of many high school students whom the Lord included in His Eugene artwork. With the breath of His Holy Spirit, the still image became active reality. In that reality, we grew together in Christ. High school and college students together became family. We studied Scripture, worshiped, and prayed. We were invited to other LCMS churches in our county to (hopefully) be a blessing to their youth. We lived together in unity and were actively involved in the life of our congregation.

From what He began in Eugene, the Lord led seven youth into lifelong ministry in the church. Four couples married. We were all blessed by God.

Throughout my life, that formative season — where roots sank deep into the soil of the Word and were watered by Sacrament and community — has inspired me to love and serve God and my neighbor.

It is remarkable how the Lord works to create a season of life and a community of believers that become a spiritual crucible in which one is formed as a follower of Jesus. For me, that spiritual crucible became foundational for my grounding in faith and living in the world — touched by grace.

BUCKLEY, ILL. — 1960s

By Harriet Monn Stennfeld

What is special about Buckley, Ill., that makes it my favorite spot on earth? I decided I am going to try to answer that question. However, I really feel you almost have to live there to really experience and absorb the magic of that place. I so thank my Lord that He gave me that experience. I sometimes make the remark “everyone should have a Buckley in their life!”

My husband received and accepted a pastoral call to Buckley in July 1961. We drove into town in our convertible with our 6-month old daughter, Kristin. We left 10 years later in the fall of 1971 with four children, ages 10, 8, 5, and 2. As we drove out of town, the carillon was playing one of my husband’s favorite hymns: “Behold a Host Arrayed in White” followed by “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.”

Buckley is a community of sincere, friendly, loving, non-judgmental Christians. When we lived there, the population was 700 and the church membership was 1,100.

Here are three snapshots of my Buckley neighbors:

A car salesman learns a lesson. One of our elderly neighbors was buying a car from the Ford dealer. She kept getting in and out of the back seat of a two-door sedan. Finally, the salesman said, “Edna, you’re the driver. You don’t have to get in and out of the back.” She replied, “But some of the ladies I take to doctor’s appointments and Ladies’ Aid have bad knees and hips, and I have to know if they can manage!” Christian love in action.

Can pastor play? My husband Fred was into sports and always enjoyed playing outdoor sports with our own kids. Before long, our son John’s friends caught on and started including Fred in their invitations to play. I always thought it was so cute when neighborhood kids would come to the door and ask if John and Pastor could play.

One day several of the kids (and Pastor Fred) got into a water gun fight. Fred ended up on the roof of our house with a bucket of water. When one of the kids ran by, Fred poured the entire bucket of water on him. The boy—thoroughly soaked and quite shocked — ran quickly home. I always wondered how the boy answered his mother as to why he was drenched. I can only imagine how odd it must have sounded to hear the explanation.

Church bells ringing. One Good Friday afternoon, my husband asked the church janitor to toll the church bell at 3 p.m. to mark the hour of Jesus’ death. St. John’s would still toll the church bell when a member died. It would toll the number of times equal to the person’s age. So, when we heard it, we could count the rings and quietly guess who had passed. I warned my husband that the lady who reported items of interest to the local paper would probably call me and ask. My husband thought that after hearing 33 rings, she would realize it was for Jesus and not call. However, he was wrong … and I was right. At about 3:10, she called and asked me who had passed away! I was a bit reluctant to say, but had to reply, “Well, it was Jesus.”

We left Buckley in 1971, and years later, in 2003, a dear friend at my present congregation — Mt. Calvary in Waynedale, Ind. — said to me, “Do you realize how much of your speech is sprinkled with Buckley?” I didn’t, but even after all those years, I still remember so much about the love shown daily among the people there.

I have been extremely blessed throughout my 93 years with each congregation that we were privileged to serve, and I cannot thank my Lord and Savior enough for putting St. John’s, Buckley, Ill., into my life.

GREER, S.C. — 2010s

By Marilyn Nutter

When my husband and I retired to a North Carolina lake community, life was idyllic. New friends and an excellent Bible-teaching church made our residence one we wanted to last the rest of our lives. But three years later, he suffered a fatal heart attack and retirement dreams shattered like glass. After my daughter married, she invited me to relocate to South Carolina to be near family.

In Deuteronomy 31:8 (NIV), Moses told Joshua, “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” In life changes, uncertainties, and a new location, it’s a promise to hang on to. God not only plans, but He goes ahead of us.

I had left a community I loved, but with my status from married to widow, I was the only widow in my circle. Once my house sold and I arrived in South Carolina, I was welcomed at my new church by several widows who invited me to coffee, day trips, and lunches. It’s as if God had positioned these widows in my life for a fresh start in the unfamiliar.

More friendships developed and our widows’ group has expanded to a first Sunday lunch and a Friday night Bible study. During COVID, we supported each other with a parking lot picnic once a week. Yes, seated six feet apart on lawn chairs, we laughed saying we were like school kids with our lunchboxes. I also joined a writing group and found new ministry opportunities as a Bible teacher and grief support facilitator.

But aside from seeing God’s provision of new friends and ministries, my biggest perk is being a local grandmother to two boys who enjoy all things sports and Legos. Life with prime seating at their events is generously mixed with hugs and Sunday dinners. And, as one who grew up in New York, the sight of my blooming azaleas in my front yard gives me a smile each time I exit my driveway. There’s no doubt; God went before and has accompanied me every day since my arrival.

CARMEL, IND. — TODAY

By Barry and Donna Bobb

It was quite a jolt in 2008. We had lived comfortably in St. Louis, Mo., for 35-plus years and suddenly we were moving 300 miles to a new ministry in Carmel, Ind.

Happily, Carmel, which is a city of 100,000 plus just north of Indianapolis, has the wonderful feel of a small town with metro-area benefits.

There is a big focus on family in Carmel. It is a place where hopes and aspirations are nurtured, and our congregation is an important part of that with an outstanding Fine Arts Academy, a big VBS (Vacation Bible School), a wonderful preschool, and a fabulous Oktoberfest.

There is also an ease to life here. Carmel decided early on to be “off the grid.” There are few stoplights, and about 160 roundabouts. Traffic — and life — just seem to flow gently.

Carmel enjoys a very diverse population which enriches our cultural life. Our congregation has a vital “international friends” ministry offering all kinds of assistance for living in the United States.

It is also striking how freely folks speak about their Christian faith, including local TV and sports personalities. (We especially like one of our meteorologists — a Valparaiso University graduate!)

There is much intergenerational caring and sharing here. We see it in the community, in our church (especially our small group) and our preschool, where parents almost daily consult Donna with child development and faith formation questions.

In short, we had nothing to be apprehensive about — our good and gracious God provides us with all we need for a fullness of life here. We discovered a family, a community, a church and a living faith which are, through the Holy Spirit, active and dynamic.

(By the way, in May 2026, “U.S. News & World Report” ranked Carmel as the No. 1 place in America to live and raise a family. We couldn’t agree more!)

A last note: As we approach age 75, and with both sons firmly established in their own homes in St. Louis, we’re preparing to move back there. In fact, we’re on the list for a couple of retirement centers nearby to both of them. We have a few qualms about another move, but we stand firmly on Scriptural truths. Like Abraham and Sarah, we know that, in reality, God’s people are always on the move. And we have Paul’s promise that Christ is with us everywhere we go.

And it’s going to be like that until the day our heavenly Father smiles and says, “Welcome — you’re home, now.”

CONCLUSION

From Katelin Moquin

You may not live in a town of 700. You may never have a carillon play you out of a place you loved. But you have been placed — by the same gracious God — in your own version of Mayberry. Your own cast of characters. Your own canvas.

The question is not whether God is at work in your community. He is. The question is whether we have the eyes to see it — in the neighbor who shows up, the widow who invites a stranger to coffee, and the pastor on the roof with a bucket of water.

We receive the communities God gives us, love the neighbors He sends us, and hold them with open hands because the only foundation that lasts was never made of brick or memory or belonging.

It was, and is, and always will be, Christ alone.

Above Photo courtesy of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod: The Village Lutheran Church in Ladue, Mo., is shown on a quiet street.