DEMOPOLIS &8212; After spending the last two years as the pastor for the First Christian Church in Demopolis, pastor Marshall Murphy has decided to take a position at the Springfield Christian Church in Springfield, Ky.

His wife, Kristy&8217;s family lives in Kentucky and the new position will allow them to live much closer to them. In addition, Murphy has been looking for a larger church to serve.

The current congregation at First Christian is about 50 members, and the congregation in Springfield will be about three times as big.

In Demopolis, his position has required him to run a &8220;one-man show&8221; of sorts. He said that he is looking forward to focusing on specific areas of ministry and on the pulpit, which he feels are his areas of strength.

After Murphy leaves on June 21, the church will form a committee to seek an interim minister. This will involve contacting all of the Christian Bible Colleges and seminary programs to see who will be available.

Since being in Demopolis, Murphy has enjoyed getting to know the other pastors in the area. &8220;I will miss tremendously the friendships I have made with all of them, &8220; he said.

In addition to his duties at the church, Murphy has been involved in numerous community activities.

He has been the chaplain for the police department, a volunteer football coach at West Alabama Prep, chair of the Marengo County Republican party and been involved in the Lyons Club and Fellowship of Christian Athletes to name a few.

Although he is a jack-of-all-trades in the community, he said he does not consider himself to be a real &8220;handy man.&8221; This did not stop him, however, in doing some renovations on the building at the First Christian Church. &8220;With more or less my supervision, we were able to make some great changes here,&8221; Murphy said.

When asked about how he will view his short time in Demopolis, he says he and his wife will view it as a positive time.

Also, their son Caleb was born in November at Bryan W. Whitfield Memorial Hospital, so they will always have a soft spot for Demopolis.