As I Remember CFMBC

Como First Baptist Church

As I Remember Her

by Sister Ida O’Neal Johnson

August 28, 2016

I moved to Fort Worth, Como on Friday, January 1, 1965, just a little before dark, as coming down Prevost Street to turn on Kilpatrick; I saw this beautiful cross on this church.

To this day, I don’t know what they were having on that new Years’ night. It may have been that they kept it on at night. But, I could not get that blue cross out of my mind.

The first two weeks I went to church with my aunt, to a church that a country girl like me had never heard of; and I just could not get with it. So the next two Sunday’s, I came to the church with the blue cross, in which I had learned that it was called Como First Baptist.

Then the Saturday night of February 6, 1965, I was on my knees praying before I went to bed and the Holy Ghost came upon me and that blue cross flashed in my dreams all night. So I could not hardly wait until the doors of the church with the blue cross was opened and I joined Como First Baptist, Sunday February 7, 1965 with a lady in the choir singing, “The Lord will Make A Way Somehow”.

I learned that the Pastor’s name was, Rev. H. D. Steptoe and the lady that was singing was Sister Bertha McElroy, and oh how they sang.

As soon as church was over that Sunday morning, Sister Bessie Randle came to me and asked me to join her in a mission circle, which was called, Esther Circle. I said, yes because I didn’t know what a mission circle was. But I was willing to do whatever I could for the Lord. Como had many circles in the mission.

Sister Augustus Howard was the Mission President until her husband died and she went to California. Sister Annie Pearl Homes became the Mission President.

Como First Baptist was very loved because we fellowshipped with many churches. It seem like we were going to other churches once or twice every month. We even chartered a bus to Huntsville, Texas.

Como First Baptist was known for it, many great revivals, such as Reverend Hagerman, Reverend C.B.T. Smith, Reverend Manuel Scott Sr., and his two sons, and Reverend Patterson from Houston, Texas.

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We burn the note on our church and began making pledges for an Educational Building. We didn’t get the Educational Building, but we did get a new sanctuary with the hope of eventually getting the Educational Building by the Grace of God.

I was in need of a new artificial leg and I went to the Vocation Rehabilitation to get help; and my counselor ask, Miss O’Neal, while I’m trying to help you with your leg, I am going to try to you nine months of business school. Now you all know that nine months of business school in the 60’s was not enough time to do anything in any office. But when one of the Deacon’s ask me if I wanted the job of making the Sunday morning bulletin for $8.00 a day, I said YES! You would have said yes if you were only making $20.00 a week and $10.00 went to rent.

But I soon found out that I didn’t know anything about a mimeograph machine. And my first bulletin was worse than terrible. They were upside down and ink all over them.

I then said to myself that I might as well go on down the stairs and face the music, and tell Reverend Steptoe that I was sorry and we wouldn’t have any bulletins for Sunday and show him why. But God fixed it because when I got down stairs he had already left. I laid the bulletins on the pew in the back and walked on home with the intention of speaking to him that Sunday morning. To my surprise someone had already passed them out when I arrived at the church.

I sat there waiting for church to be over, know that Reverend Steptoe was going to call me in his office and fire me. And he would have been more than justified for doing so. But instead the Deacon came in and place $8.00 in my hand and smiled and walked away.

And unto this day neither of them has said anything to me about those terrible bulletin. After about two years they gave me a$2.00 raise. I did the bulletins for eight years.

Sister Lena Henry who worked at the employment office told me that President Carter has passed a bill where if a company hire the handicap and train them, the government would pay their salary for six months; and for me to go to Tandy and they hired me. Tandy was behind on some of their orders, and if I could work on Saturday until they complete the order, they would hire me.

So I came home and call Reverend Steptoe and told him, I could no longer do the Sunday Bulletins. I stayed with Tandy until I retired.

Reverend Steptoe married me and my husband in 1992 in this sanctuary, and I went with my husband to Alvarado, Texas.

Then the Lord said to Rev. Steptoe your job is done and it’s time for you to retire. And the Lord passed the baton to a young man by the name of Reverend Kenneth Jones, Jr.

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When I would go to the store or the mall and would meet some of Como First Baptist members they would say, Oh you ought to hear our Pastor preach.

One Sunday the church in Alvarado, Texas was making some type of transition and would be closed for that day, an Thurbie ask me where did I want to go to church, and I said to Como First Baptist to hear the new pastor.

And Reverend Jones, if my memory serve me right your preached from II Samuel 6 on the subject, I feel like dancing, and oh how you preached and you danced a little too.

Now in II Kings 2:9, Elijah asked Elisha what shall I do for you before I am taken away? And Elisha said let a double portion of your spirit be upon me.

Reverend Jones you have the double portion of Reverend Steptoe spirit.

For when I left here there were about 300 members

I came back and there are about 700 members

When I left here there was a new sanctuary

When I came back there was a new Educational Building

When I left there might have been 25 to 35 men here

When I came back there are more than 100 men here

When I left here there were about 15 men in the Male Chorus

When I came back there are about 90 men in the Male Chorus

When I left here there was only one van

When I came back we had three vans.

There is much more that I can say, and many good people that I could call their names, but it is impossible to put 27 years of history into twenty minutes.

Thank you and God Bless

Sister Ida O’Neal Johnson