FERRIDAY — When the Rev. Simeon Green III approaches the pulpit at Doty Road Church of God for the last time Sunday, four years of Ferriday and Miss-Lou memories will be summed up into one passage — Matthew 5:14.

“You are the light of the world. A city that is set on the hill cannot be hid,” Green said paraphrasing from a worn Bible, filled with highlighted and earmarked passages, that he received as a gift after arriving at the church in 2008. “Let your light go and shine before men, so that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Arriving four years ago from Richmond, Va., Green came to the Doty Road Church of God to begin his first pastorate with little knowledge of Ferriday or Louisiana.

“All I knew about Louisiana was what I had read in the history books, and I just remember thinking, ‘We’re going into the Deep South,’” Green said. “But we just went full speed ahead.”

Wasting no time getting involved, Green began reaching out to the schools, town officials and everyone in between in an effort to unify a community that he said wasn’t used to a church official being so active.

“Maybe they hadn’t had a leader in the past who was as outgoing, but that’s something I brought with me to relate to people in the community,” Green said. “I think they started seeing I was a go getter and wanting to be active in the community, so they started coming around.”

Green began attending Ferriday Board of Aldermen meetings, Concordia Parish School Board meetings, and chamber of commerce meetings before finding himself as the first pastor and black member of the Miss-Lou Regionalism Steering Committee.

“We just can’t make it within these four walls,” Green said. “We have to reach out and partner with the community if we want to move forward.”

Two years after arriving in Ferriday, Green’s congregation was growing rapidly and, as if a sign from above, an opportunity to expand presented itself on the church’s doorstep.

The First Church of God in Ferriday, just a mile down the road, was facing a dwindling congregation and eventually the physical plant was too much to handle.

Members from the denominational central office informed the church congregation they had three options — sell the building and divide the assets among themselves, sell the building and donate the assets to the Church of God with the intention of using the money to one day start another church or donate the building to another congregation.

Green said members of the church approached him with the proposal, but that he didn’t need much convincing.

In 2010, the congregation packed up shop and moved down the street to its current location on Third Street.

Integrating a predominantly white congregation with a predominantly black congregation together seamlessly was a milestone that Green said he will always remember.

“That was the true picture of the church because we had white and black coming together with the same goal,” Green said. “It was racial integration in the Deep South. That was a huge milestone for me.”

After his last service at Doty Road Church of God on Sunday, Green will face a quick turnaround as he prepares to deliver his first sermon to his new congregation at the Crossroads Church of God in Canton.

Taking several trips to visit during the past month, Green said he will approach Canton citizens the same way he did Ferridians four years ago.

“I’ll be going around to the chamber, the town hall and reaching out to the schools trying to do the same thing I did here,” Green said. “I will try my best to make myself known in the community as soon as possible.”

Letting go of something you’ve been around for four years isn’t easy to do, and Green said he has had some emotional moments during his services the past month.

“We’ve worked well together, and I want to leave them on a positive note,” Green said. “This has been a building block to where we’re going now and where we’ll go in the future, but whenever we reflect back, we will always remember Doty Road Church of God.”

As Green takes to the pulpit for the last time Sunday, he said he wants to remind his congregation to continue letting their light shine.

“Jesus took the disciples up to the mountain, 12 of them, and told them you are the light of the world, you are the salt of the earth, so I want to leave reminding the congregation and those who come out that they are the light of the world,” Green said. “We have no regrets here, but when the season is over it’s time to move on.”

Green’s last service will be at 11 a.m. Sunday.