The Mungers seek a position in Poulsbo

According to the notes of Rev. Al Munger,
After military service (‘44-‘46) I returned to the family home in Seattle. I always loved a good time, and so I quickly got involved in the youth group at Calvary Temple, Seattle, found a steady girl friend and was having a great time, skiing in the winter and water skiing, hiking and beach parties in summer. I was attending Griffin-Murphy Business College in Seattle, preparing for a business vocation. My dad was a successful businessman and I wanted to be successful. I had a very sharp ‘36 Ford, a three-window coupe and life was good, fun, exciting to the max.

But, I was getting more and more bent out of shape. I suspected that God was trying to get my attention. Finally, I broke up with the girl friend, changed schools and reluctantly began preparing for the ministry - a direction that I was not happy about because ministers had to walk the straight and narrow, and in those days most of them were poor. Besides I feared God would place me in a barren land like Wolf Point, Montana. (Of course none of those apprehensions came to pass.)

After one year at Northwest Bible Institute, Seattle, I transferred to Central Bible College, Springfield, Mo. In my third year I met Erika, and we were married in August. She was music director and professor at CBI. After getting my degree in Missouri, we were invited to return to NW Bible Institute where she headed the music program and they made me the public relations guy. Of course, they made a place for me so they could get her. After two years at NBI, I felt called to pastor. I wasn't ready, so God placed us in Turlock, Calif., with a great pastor, Bob Carrington, who was a wonderful mentor. I was youth minister and Erika directed the music department.

In August 1956, we returned to Washington for vacation with my parents in Seattle. During that time, Gordon Casteel, my cousin, was pastoring in Silverdale. He told us that that Martin and Faith Haack had resigned from the Poulsbo church and they would be looking for a new pastor. Erika and I went to Poulsbo one day before returning to California to see what the church and town were like. I remember inspecting the Poulsbo Full Gospel Tabernacle and then driving down Front Street looking for a pregnant woman. We had tried to phone Haacks but no answer. However, we had heard that Faith was pregnant, so we thought we might identify her if she was on Front Street. It didn’t happen.

We headed back to Turlock, Calif., with a vision of pastoring the Poulsbo Church. God had blessed and prospered our ministry at Bethel Temple but on our arrival back in California I wrote the FGT board asking for consideration. Later that week we received a phone call asking us to present out ministry two weekends later. We arrived in Poulsbo, preached twice on Sunday and interviewed with the board. As we were leaving for California, Marvin Nicholson explained that they had several other prospects to consider and that it would be weeks before we would know the outcome. But Friday night, after our Sunday at FGT, we received a call from Marvin saying we had been voted in as their new pastors. Two weeks later with our stuff in a U-Haul truck and a picnic table tied on the back, Erika, daughter Trudy and I arrived in Poulsbo, population 1,492. I was excited to be a “pastor,” and I imagined that we would stay a couple of years and move on to bigger things. Wow, it took a long time for me to learn how to be a shepherd.

Affiliation
Some wonder what relationship Christ Memorial Church has had with the Assemblies of God. CMC pastors have served as a Presbyter, Olympic Section, of the Northwest District, Assemblies of God. In that role they offer leadership and assistance to pastors and churches in their section. CMC pastors support the NW District and Assembly of God headquarters with their tithes and offerings. The Assemblies of God offers resources and benefits to the pastors, including retirement benefits. However, CMC is not considered a full-fledged member of the AG in the United States. The Poulsbo church was and is a “cooperative” church with the Assemblies of God.

In 2006, Pastor Al Munger expressed a number of his reflections. “After 18 years of retirement the things I remember most are the people, the way God led us and the victories He gave us,” he said. “It was and is a very special congregation because of the diversity of people, their love for God and their genuineness.”

Regarding association with the larger church movement, Munger said, “I believe the fellowship now identified as Christ Memorial Church has always been Pentecostal in doctrine. Most people think it was never an affiliated church with the Assemblies of God, but the AG Pentecostal Evangel had a short reference to such recognition about 1933. In the 70s, an effort was made to become a full-fledged member of the AG, but it was defeated by one or two votes. Thus, the Full Gospel Tabernacle, now CMC, has always been a “Cooperative Member of the AG.”