By MARK MAYNARD, Kentucky Today
EDDYVILLE, Ky. (KT) – Pastor Mitch Coomer’s idea for an associational revival during COVID wasn’t getting much traction. Only a few churches had shown mild interest.
His wife, Katrina, kept encouraging him to push for the revival if he truly believed that was what God was asking him to do.
So at the urging of his wife, Pastor Coomer persevered and his church and two others in the Caldwell-Lyon Association decided to hold a 12-day revival – four days at each church - that were well attended with some heavenly results and encouraging spirit.
However, Coomer’s wife, who helped to motivate her husband to not give up hope for the revival, took suddenly ill and died the night before the revival was to start. It was a stunning loss to the family, their church and the Eddyville community.
Kat Coomer was a mother, wife and well known for her kindness. “Everything with her was about helping someone else, building up others,” her husband said. “That was her in a nutshell.”
Pastor Coomer said he had all but given up on a revival that he thought could serve as an awakening within the community after six months of COVID had stifled some church activity.
He said his wife suffered from asthma and had a severe attack on the day she died. The pastor was still trying to come to terms with her passing as he choked up talking about her being full of giving and kindness to others. He missed most of the revival except for the services at Charity Baptist where he pastors.
“We wanted to see something done on the associational level. But I told her, ‘I’ll just drop it. I don’t think anybody will get on board.’ She very much said, ‘If that’s what’s on your heart, you need to follow through,’" Coomer said. “We had a meeting with some of the pastors, and Jason Scott jumped on it immediately and then Mike Davis jumped in.”
Davis, the pastor of Donaldson Baptist Church, said Coomer told them his wife was the main motivator behind it. “He said she was excited about it, on fire for us. We had six baptized as a direct result of that revival.”
Each church had a visiting speaker for the revival. Donaldson had parking lot services with Kenny Rager, a consultant with the Kentucky Baptist Convention. “Kenny did a wonderful job. He preached the gospel and the Holy Spirit was moving. It was a good revival.”
Ron Nolfsinger held services at Highland and Rick Hillard at Charity. Both of those churches held inside services throughout the four days.
Attendance averaged about 60 per night throughout the 12 days. While each church held its own standalone revival, many attended multiple churches throughout the nearly two weeks, Davis said.
Coomer was able to attend two services at Donaldson and all of them at Charity. “Some of the people at Charity made all 12 services,” he said “I’m not sure about the others. I wasn’t thinking clearly at the time.”
Every church reported having successful revivals with decisions for God being made.
“There was a spiritual awakening, trying to get people literally revived and to have some urgency that we have to be more obedient to the Lord’s leadership,” Davis said.
Coomer mentioned an “awakening spirit” as well at Charity.
“I think the numbers looked pretty good but it was a lot more than what numbers showed,” he said. “We didn’t have any salvations officially at Charity but the Spirit and the prayer were so strong. I think there was an awakening and I think they benefited from it. Our hope would be that some churches would be encouraged by it to step up rather than to shut down.”
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Encouraged by wife to follow heart, pastor pushes for revival in west Ky. - Kentucky Today
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