THREE RIVERS AREA — Anyone who knows Mark Eisold understands that when he smiles, it’s not just a parting of his lips. A contagious energy surrounds him as his smile is visible in his eyes.
Pointing to the shield printed on his coffee cup, Eisold said it was a symbol he designed to represent Our Savior Lutheran Church in Cabot, which he started seven years ago.
A West Palm Beach native, Eisold moved to Cabot to create a church that was different.
“This church is different, and the pastor is different, and the members of this church are going to be different,” Eisold said about his goal when he started the church.
The congregation began with just 24 members, and seven years later, Eisold ministers to 450 active members.
He said he fought against going into the ministry for six years.
“Dad was a very dynamic, outreaching preacher,” Eisold said. “I wanted to be a photojournalist, but went into marketing instead.”
At 26, he said, God called him out of the business world, where he said he was very happy. There was no cataclysmic event that spurred his entry into the ministry; he just finally gave into the calling.
“At 27, I said, ‘God, I’m yours,’” Eisold said.
It’s now time for him to move on - all the way to Lima, Peru, where he will introduce Lutheran beliefs to residents there.
“Christianity is a movement, and it still moves me in my heart and my spirit,” Eisold said, still smiling, “and now, it’s physically moving me and my family to Lima, Peru.”
Eisold said there is a 10-year plan to create the Lutheran church in Lima, and he has committed to at least five of those years.
“My job is to dig in with the Peruvians and show the Gospel to those who don’t have a church home,” Eisold said. “We want to leave the smallest footprint possible.”
By leaving the smallest footprint, he said, the plan is toallow the native people to make the church into what they want it to be.
Eisold; his wife, Sandi; and their two children, Annalise, 9, and Erik, 7, are preparing to leave for Peru sometime in early 2011.
“A lot of times, when a pastor leaves, a church feels like it’s in limbo,” Eisold said about the effect his leaving will have on his congregation. “I think, based on the way the Lord blessed me and led me to teach, it never revolved around me. It was built on the rock of Jesus Christ.”
Eisold believes that the ministry is a job, but it’s more of a calling, and he finds leaving more difficult than he thought it would be.
“Though we are all saddened with the upcoming departure of Mark Eisold and his precious family to Peru,” 23rd Judicial Circuit Judge Sandy Huckabee said, “we are also deeply grateful to God for the immense blessing of having the Eisolds with our community these past years.”
Huckabee is a friend of the Eisolds and a member of the congregation at Our Savior Lutheran Church.
“Going into the community is doing good for God,” Eisold said.
Not only is Eisold heavily active in the church; he is also a very involved Cabot resident. He serves on the advisory board of the Open Arms Shelter and the Cabot Chamber of Commerce Board, is a member of the Rotary Club and volunteers as chaplain for the Cabot Police Department and as backup chaplain for the Cabot Fire Department. He is also involved in CabotFest.
“CabotFest and any activity the Chamber asked him to do, he’d do,” said Billye Everett, executive director of the Cabot Chamber of Commerce. “He’s definitely a one-of-a-kind individual. He’s a positive thinker and always thinks that anything can be accomplished.”
Cabot Realtor and CabotFest organizer Bill O’Brien said CabotFest would not have been the same without Eisold’s input.
“The first thing that comes to mind is a volunteer above and beyond,” O’Brien said. “He is the type of guy I hope we all try to be like, and if we had more of him in this world, it would be a much better place to live, I promise you.”
Eisold has been known to use props during his sermons. In fact, O’Brien said once when he visited the church, Eisold used a lawn chair, bathrobe and sunglasses to get the congregation’s attention.
“His props left me wanting to know what’s going to happen next,” O’Brien said.
“He always has a smile on his face,” Everett said, “and he’s a very good family man and a very good community volunteer.”
Although the Eisold family will leave Cabot, opening a new chapter is exciting to them, Eisold said.
“It’s a developing country - it’s not a Third World country,” Eisold said of Peru. “It has a distinct European flair, but it is also every bit South American. The food is different; they eat guinea pig down there.”
He also said the government is stable and the temperature is very mild, averaging 60 to 80 degrees, and there’s no daylight saving time.
“I think that’s a great step out on faith,” O’Brien said about Eisold’s journey to Peru. “Someone will take his place, but we can’t replace him.” - jbrosius@ arkansasonline.com
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getting to know Mark Elsold
Name: Mark Theodore Eisold
Birth date: Aug. 24, 1969
Birthplace: Coral Gables, Fla.
Biggest influence: My parents, Ted and Elsie Eisold.
You don’t notice their profound impact on your life and
worldview for the first 20 years or so, but it is certainly true.
In my case, they were a very, very positive influence, and I
am forever grateful.
First job: I raked leaves, mowed lawns and trimmed
bushes like a maniac from third grade through high
school. My first “real” job was cutting steel rebar for
Rinker Concrete & Steel in West Palm Beach, Fla., in the
summer of 1987.
As a child, you said, “When I grow up, I want to be
…”: A photojournalist and go to exotic places to cover
exciting news around the world.
One thing you want to accomplish in life but
haven’t: I want to make sure that every man, woman
and child in the world knows the loving forgiveness, the
freedom from guilt, fear and shame and the new life in
Jesus Christ our risen savior.
Most people don’t know: A big fan of quality, popular
movies. I always find a lot of great examples for preaching
the Gospel or for connecting a biblical teaching to modern
life in a Bible study. O Brother, Where Art Thou? and
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Black Pearl ROCK!
Three Rivers, Pages 129 on 07/25/2010