Courtesy photo New Altoona First Southern Baptist Church Pastor Don Mast (left) accepts a certificate of license from retired Pastor Paul Johnson outside the church.

When a church loses its pastor, it sometimes struggles to get back on its feet, said retired Pastor Paul Johnson.

Thankfully, Altoona First Southern Baptist Church had a person able to step in and fill the pulpit, it just took a while.

Pastor Don Mast received his license Jan. 29 at the church where he served as treasurer while his uncle-in-law Pastor George Sanders preached.

Johnson said Sanders was his best buddy, but unfortunately, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Sanders got sick. He passed away Dec. 30, 2021, at the age of 60, after having served the Altoona church for 34 years.

“He was nothing but smiles, a true encourager,” said Mast, who got to know Sanders when the two worked together at Weis Markets, before Mast started dating and later marrying Sander’s niece, Angelina.

Mast, 47, who has always helped out in church, said Sanders seemed to know there was more in store for him, but he was reluctant.

“If you would have told me five years ago that I would become a pastor of a church, I would have said you were crazy,” Mast said.

Yet, today he can be found preaching the Word of God to the congregation seated in the pews at the small church along North Fourth Street or watching online, A few weeks ago, 229 were logged in, he said.

Mast, who works full time at software company Canary Labs in Martinsburg and owns, with his son, Ruff House Marketing, a digital marketing/branding company, said he never realized how the Lord was working in his life to prepare him for his current role.

He taught business courses for a local community college, “not knowing why in my life that I would do that,” he said, adding that he “loved it.”

He’s undergone brain surgery and a splenectomy, with Sanders by his side.

“George helped see me through all that,” he said. The brain surgery was “very, very scary,” he said, but now he sees those experiences, along with a car accident he and his wife were involved in, as preparation for him to help others.

“I didn’t realize then that the Lord was preparing me for something else,” he said. “Now I pray with people before their surgery.”

With his uncle gone and the church looking for a new pastor, Mast started stepping in to do some things.

“I managed turning the lights on and such,” he said. Then, one Wednesday night there was no one to lead the service.

“Someone needed to do Wednesday night prayer meeting,” he said. “I did it and fell in love with it.”

Since then, he’s “fallen in love with sharing the Word of God,” he said.

“I bring a lot of my life into each service,” he said.

The church, he said, is where people can feel warm, welcome.

Each Sunday and Wednesday, there is an altar call for anyone who feels moved to dedicate their life to the Lord.

“Pastor George was also big on that,” he said, adding that Johnson did an invitation at Sander’s funeral.

Mast said his job is to reach out, get people excited for the Lord, to share and to do it boldly, but admits Sanders left big shoes to fill.

Johnson, who has known Mast since the two went through the inaugural Leadership Blair County class, said Mast being at the pulpit reminds him of himself when he first started out.

Mast admits his first sermon was a bit long, but he had so much to say the time just flew by.

Johnson, speaking as a fellow preacher, laughed, and said, “We start, we don’t want to quit. … We want to make sure people get enough.”

Among the congregation is Vincent Meukel Jr. of Hollidaysburg, who said he appreciates Mast and the guidance he has given him.

“Church has become a cornerstone for me,” Meukel said, adding Mast is not only his pastor but his friend.

“We call him Mr. Enthusiasm,” Merkel said, adding that just like Sanders, Mast “is just so happy always.”

The Altoona First Southern Baptist Church might be small by some standards, Johnson said, but “It’s not the size of the church, it’s the size of God. He’s big enough for every big or small church.”