Hauser enjoys seeing people come to Christ
Published: Friday, September 18, 2009
Bill Hauser is the pastor at New Testament Christian Church, 1578 Hilton Road, Keokuk.
He has been pastor here for 36 years.
Hauser grew up in Tulsa, Okla. He was an excellent singer and was training on a full scholarship to be an opera performer when he realized that something was wrong.
“I felt miserable,” he said, “because I felt like I was running from God.”
He had been raised as a Christian, and was particularly inspired by a youth pastor who worked with him when his father became ill and later died.
He transferred to Ozark Christian College in Joplin, Mo., still hoping to pursue music as a career.
But then he began to feel that he ought to preach. He worked with student ministries in Muskogee and Sapulpa, Okla., while he was in college. In 1972, he graduated with bachelor’s degrees in both sacred literature and theology.
His first call was to Central Christian Church in Colorado Springs, Colo. He learned sign language so that he could interpret his own sermons to deaf members of the congregation. During the 2 1/2 years he served there, he was youth and children’s minister, deaf minister and choir director.
He and his wife of 39 years, Connie, have four children, all of whom ended up in the ministry.
Their son, Jason, is in Columbus, Ohio; his twin, Jon, is in Winston-Salem, S.C. A third son, James, is in Louisville, Ky. All three are working as youth ministers. Their daughter, Jennifer, is married to a preacher in Sellersburg, Ind.
They also have seven grandchildren.
Hauser’s favorite part of being a minister is seeing people come to Christ.
The part he grieves over most is losing people, especially to disgruntlement.
“The lack of commitment to decisions,” he said, “breaks my heart.”
When he considers Keokuk, he thinks of Luke 13:34, where Jesus looks on Jerusalem and laments, “How often would I have gathered you, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you would not.”
In spite of the number of churches in Keokuk, he notes, more than 50 percent of the people here are not converted Christians.
“We can’t force Jesus Christ on anyone,” he said, adding, “There’s a desperate need for our walk to match our talk” – a philosophy he learned from his parents.
His slogan is “Win the lost at any cost, as long as God gets the credit.”
Hauser works hard to that end, holding two services each Sunday (a traditional one at 9 a.m. and a contemporary one at 10:30 a.m.), where he interprets for any deaf members who attend.
He also travels frequently, preaching at revivals and camps.
His church also sponsors the Keokuk Christian Academy, started 25 years ago.
“We’re not trying to compete with the public schools,” he said. “But we wanted a place where home, school and church could be in harmony.”
