FBC Milledgeville welcomes pastor

Published 4:25 pm Friday, October 31, 2014

On Mother’s Day 2014, Terry Quick was still on a three-month break from multiple Baptist Church senior pastor roles and interim work in Midville.

His 25-year-old daughter suggested stopping on the way back to Atlanta to worship wherever they were at 11 a.m. 

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They found Milledgeville and eventually the First Baptist Church (FBC) of Milledgeville on Liberty Street.

“People were really friendly. I wrote a note of encouragement on the visitor’s card,” Quick said. “(Rev. Jerry Bradley) called and invited me to stop by.”

Quick joined the ministerial staff at FBC Milledgeville in September.

“This is a phenomenal opportunity to grow here,” he said. “I’m part of a team.”

The new FBC addition serves as an educational, administrative and outreach ministry facilitator.

The Midville native forwent college initially, choosing instead to be a cowboy out in Colorado. He traveled around the country and internationally showing Arabian horses.

This lifestyle eventually sent Quick down a drug and alcohol filled path. 

Having grown up in a pastor’s family, he turned to his father.

“The bottom line was that I got called to ministry in that horrible event,” Quick said. 

Quick married and started a family in Houston, Texas. He returned to complete a degree at Houston Baptist University and then seminary master’s work in Fort Worth. The pastor earned a clinical psychology degree as well.

“Then, we took off for our first church in Hampton, Ga.,” he said. “I spent 15 years there. The church just exploded in a good way.”

Next, Quick transitioned to First Baptist Church Sandy Springs. Eight years into that ministry, the former senior pastor experienced a divorce after 30 years of marriage.

“For a southern Baptist minister, it’s probably like being thrown in a wood chipper,” he said. “A dentist can go back to work on Monday, and a southern Baptist pastor can’t. We believe that God hates divorce and loves the divorcee, but in reality, we want models that are not divorced.”

Quick left Sandy Springs — fearing that the broken marriage would harm the church. 

Even the psychology background and many counseling sessions with others weren’t preparation for the separation. He couldn’t comprehend the pain.

“I knew nothing about divorce. The collateral damage is everywhere,” Quick said.

The pastor then entered a 13-week DivorceCare group therapy program. Sessions are Bible-based but involve top-notch clinical psychology.

This goes beyond religious teaching, though that combined with DivorceCare and one-on-one visits to a licensed counselor are recommended for maximum personal benefit.

The divorce coping sessions include topics like Facing My Anger, What’s Happening to Me?, New Relationships, Reconciliation and KidCare.

Quick joined the staff at Rehoboth Baptist Church in Tucker, where he facilitated his inaugural DivorceCare group.

“It’s for people whose marriages are in trouble, separated, in the process of divorce, recent divorcees and for people that have been divorced for a while,” Quick said. 

The program will start soon in Milledgeville.

DivorceCare addresses every negative emotion associated with separation.

Using a metaphor of a crooked tree standing on a family ranch, divorced people tend to carry on with life but are never all right, Quick said.

“It helps us heal correctly, so that we are not defined by a tragedy,” the pastor said. “Divorced people don’t fit in anymore because it’s a couples world. It’s not about getting remarried. Healing is moving to the next phase of life whatever that is.”

Group class participants can plug in at any time during the 13-week cycle.

The Milledgeville church starts DivorceCare in January 2015. Monday classes from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. are scheduled from Jan. 19 until April 20.

Registration is $20. 

FBC Milledgeville will also offer DivorceCare for Kids (DC4K) that doubles as childcare during adult classes. Youngsters have the opportunity to heal in a fun environment to learn how to work through the hurt of divorce. The DC4K program features videos, music, games, crafts and activities for children ages 5-12.

Visit DivorceCare.org and click ‘locate a group’ to fill in the sign up form. Those interested can also call the church at 478-452-0205.

“You become a family and realize for the first time you are not the only fish in the sea,” Quick said. “It’s not Bible school or any of that. This isn’t just for church people. It’s good, group counseling for anybody.”

On Friday, Nov. 21, FBC Milledgeville will host a “Surviving the Holidays” gathering for single adults that will deliver practical help, information and light food and refreshments. Quick will introduce the DivorceCare series then.

Contact FBC Milledgeville for more details.