Doing Double Duty in South Dakota

After his early morning stint of driving a local school bus, Rev. Scott Nichols hurried to his office so that he could send out a message informing members of his two churches in Corsica, S.D., that an elderly woman known to them all had been hospitalized after being injured in a fall.

The next day, Nichols drove the four-hour round trip to the hospital in Sioux Falls, S.D., to visit the woman, offering comfort, friendship, and prayer. She is a member of Grace Church, which for many years was a Reformed Church in America congregation and is now affiliated with the Alliance of Reformed Churches. Grace is one of two churches – the other being Corsica Christian Reformed Church – of which Nichols is the pastor in the town of about 650 residents. 

“This is a tremendous ministry to have. This town is where my ministry began. Now I’m back, and I love being with the people here,” said Nichols.

This is the story of a pastor who has a sense that he has come full circle in his ministry calling and is likely to retire in the town where it all began for him.

Fresh out of Western Theological Seminary in the early 1990s, Nichols put his hat in the ring to serve Grace Reformed Church in Corsica. Because he wasn’t married at the time, the church was reluctant to hire him. But by the grace and goodwill of God, he said, the leaders of the church gave him a try.

“I was only 26 when I came here to Corsica for the first time. This church took a chance on me,” said Nichols, who was born in Evansdale, Iowa, and was familiar with small midwestern town life.

Located in the southeastern part of the state, Corsica has a handful of churches. Many of the residents work in farming, construction, health care, and retail. There is also a concrete business, a large sandwich-making business, two food markets, and a busy dollar store.

While some things have changed over the years, the pace of the community and its overall setting – its relatively sedate, laid-back atmosphere – has remained fairly constant, said Nichols, since he first arrived in 1991.

The main focus of his work in those days was on preaching, he said – providing from the pulpit a strong focus on the Bible and combing through it, often verse by verse, to give churchgoers nourishment and wisdom to take with them into their daily lives. 

“I’ve always wanted to help people understand the Bible,” he said. “We look at the passages closely and can always find something new. It’s a matter of looking at the context in which the stories appear.”

Nonetheless, he said, it was also crucial to meet with the people. Back then, the CRC congregation was separate from the one he served. But he would often walk to the local bake shop in town where both CRC and RCA members, many of them veterans of World War II, liked to hang around and chew over the latest news. Afternoons were frequently spent shooting snooker with a mixed group of retirees.

Nichols said he would often sit and talk and get to know the men. He did the same with others in town too – both young and old – recognizing that linking the Bible and its message with everyone in the community was important.

But after five years, he said, God decided it was time for him to move out of his comfort zone. An unexpected call landed him a job as the pastor of Faith RCA in Midland Park, N.J. At one time one of the most churched communities in the United States, this town in the shadow of New York City presented him with a culture shock, he said, since the surrounding area was home to millions of people.

Nichols served there for nearly 25 years – and in the process he got married, had two sons, grew as a preacher and pastor, and, among other things, dealt with and weathered fallout from the tragedy of the 9/11 terrorist attack in New York City, which affected many in his congregation. 

He said he also got involved in the politics and doctrinal disputes in the RCA over the human sexuality issue. As a result, he was also part of the group that eventually left the RCA to form the Alliance of Reformed Churches.

Then, from weariness over that work and a longing for the intimacy of a small town, Nichols was drawn again to South Dakota four years ago, he said. When he learned that the Corsica CRC and Grace Reformed Church had joined together, largely as a result of membership dwindling in both congregations, and needed a pastor, he applied and was invited to return.

“It’s so interesting. I now have members in my congregations who were in the youth group when I was here and just pastoring Grace some 30 years ago,” said Nichols. “The youth have now become leaders in both churches.”

And today, while a crucial aspect of his ministry remains preaching, Nichols said, there is also the significance of what he calls “the ministry of presence.”

On any given day, Nichols said, he might find himself outside a grocery store talking with someone about a concern, or speaking with a person about the fine points of one of his sermons while standing in line at the local post office. Or, as often happens, he might be sitting at the local travel plaza and having coffee with people, simply sharing the time together.

In addition, there are relationships he has built by driving the school bus, and there are friends he has made while watching local games of basketball or football.

It’s a satisfying ministry, said Nichols, built on the foundation of Scripture and constantly enhanced by the many connections he has made in Corsica over the years.

Doing double duty as the pastor of two congregations, separate yet equal, is also gratifying, he said. Both congregations have realized they can do more together and can remain vital by linking arms. Currently worship services are held for one month at Corsica CRC and for the next month at Grace.

Though officially the two congregations remain apart, in essence they are together, he said. “When I’m praying for the church, it doesn’t matter what building I’m in,” he said. “I treat it as though we are one congregation.”

One ministry that the congregations share is caring for two small roadside chapels that were built years ago by CRC members near rest stops along Interstate-90 near the town of Corsica. Painted white and featuring steeples, the chapels include benches and a welcome table, offering travelers a clean, quiet place to rest, reflect, and pray.

“We mow the grass, stock them with Bibles. This is a common mission of our congregation, and the chapels get a lot of visitors not only from the states but from many foreign countries as well,” said Nichols.

Another joint ministry effort, which involves most of the local churches, is an areawide youth ministry begun by a CRC member and open to all young people.

In this rural place amid sprawling corn and bean fields and horse farms, said Nichols, preaching, teaching, and making friends are the things that he loves and that keep him busy. 

“I never resist the impulse to pray, whether it’s with someone I meet at the bank or if I’m sitting around with 20 guys having coffee at the travel plaza,” said Nichols.

These days as he strolls the town, preaches on Sundays, or meets with people in any of several places, Nichols said he is grateful to have been able to come back. He doesn’t miss the activity and challenges of his work on the East Coast.

As a farmbelt boy, born and bred, and as the preacher at two Reformed churches, said Nichols, he has found his niche. He said he is where the Lord has planted him to do the work of evangelism, discipleship, and offering his ongoing ministry of presence.

“In all of my ups and downs in my nearly 35 years of ministry, I know that this is my sweet spot,” said Nichols. “I see seeds I planted, as well as those seeds planted in me, coming to maturity.”

And, he added with a mix of humility and joy, “our churches are growing. Younger families are moving in. When you look out on Sunday mornings, you see that the whole back of the church is full of kids.”