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HEFLIN, Ala. — Heflin Baptist Church paused during its Sunday morning service on March 15 to celebrate a remarkable milestone in the life and ministry of Pastor Brent Thompson: 40 years of faithful service to the call of God.

Church members gathered in gratitude and celebration, reflecting not simply on the number of years Pastor Brent has served, but on the countless lives that have been touched through his ministry.

“Today is more than celebrating years,” the congregation was reminded during the service. “We’re celebrating a life of faith, a life of obedience, and a life that God has used to impact people in powerful ways.”

Pastor Brent’s journey of faith began on March 15, 1981, when he accepted Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Savior. That decision would become the foundation for a lifetime devoted to sharing the Gospel and leading others to Christ.

Several years later, on March 30, 1986, Pastor Brent answered God’s call into ministry. In the years that followed, he continued to faithfully pursue that calling. He was licensed to preach on December 27, 1987, and later ordained into ministry on February 2, 1992.

Throughout that journey, he has never served alone.

On October 20, 1990, Brent married his wife, Angie, beginning a partnership in both life and ministry. Together they have served churches and communities with a shared heart for the Lord and His people.

Their family grew as God blessed them with two daughters and son-in-laws:
• Kaitlyn Faith and Dustin Pruitt
• Brooklyn Grace and Sam Young

In recent years, the family has grown again with the arrival of grandchildren:
• Robert Blake Pruitt
• Mazie Faye Young

While family has always been central to Pastor Brent’s life, his ministry has also touched many churches along the way.

His early ministry included serving as Youth Pastor at Old Hopewell Baptist Church from 1991 to 1993, where he invested in the lives of young believers and helped shape a new generation of Christians.

In 1998, he stepped into his first pastorate, serving at Center West Baptist Church, before later pastoring Waco Baptist Church in Georgia from 1998 to 2005.

Pastor Brent then served as Associate Pastor at Atco Baptist Church in Cartersville, Georgia (2005–2006) before becoming Pastor of Spring Creek Baptist Church in Rome, Georgia, where he faithfully served for nearly a decade from 2006 to 2016.

It was during that time that God began preparing the next chapter.

Members of Heflin Baptist Church had been searching for a pastor for several years. After reviewing more than a hundred candidates and spending countless hours in prayer, God began clearly pointing the search committee toward Pastor Brent.

Even in the midst of that process, Pastor Brent wrestled deeply with the decision, concerned about leaving the congregation he loved at Spring Creek. But through prayer, conversations, and even powerful personal experiences that confirmed God’s direction, it became clear that the Lord was calling him to Heflin.

On May 16, 2016, Pastor Brent accepted the call to become the pastor of Heflin Baptist Church, where he has faithfully served ever since.

Over the years, church members have seen firsthand the heart of their pastor — not only through sermons delivered from the pulpit, but through the way he loves and shepherds people in everyday life.

Mayor Robby Brown spoke of how Pastor Brent has stood beside families in their hardest moments, encouraged those who were discouraged, and continually pointed people back to Jesus Christ.

“Every time,” Brown shared, “he points people back to Jesus.”

During Sunday’s service, the church presented Pastor Brent with a plaque recognizing 40 years of faithful ministry, expressing gratitude for his leadership, commitment to God’s Word, and his love for the people he serves.

The plaque, presented on behalf of the church family, included a message that summed up the congregation’s heart:

“With gratitude for your leadership, loyalty, and commitment to God and His holy Word. We love you — and there’s nothing you can do about it!”

The congregation concluded the celebration with a standing ovation, thanking Pastor Brent for decades of faithfulness and praying for many more years of ministry ahead.