That was just like him. I never lived ANYTHING down with him. He cut me no slack. I always felt I was his very favorite person to pick on. And chances are, you did, too. Because that's what he did.....he loved.
Known by everyone around him as Bro. Dan, he just simply loved people. He joked and played pranks and preached the gospel. He loved the Baptist buffet as much as anyone, and we had them often. He always enjoyed a good Southern gospel quartet, and we had them at our church often.
And then he loved some more.
He loved babies, too. He especially loved the first time a baby came to church as a newborn. It was his tradition to bring the baby to the front and hold it up....WAY up.....in front of the church so that everyone could see. He would announce, "We have someone here among us today who has never been to church before." He would lift the baby high in the air and make me a nervous wreck. (He loved that part of it!) Then he would bring the baby down to our atmosphere, kiss it on the forehead, and give it back blessed to it's parents.
When I got pregnant, I was over-the-moon with excitement but immediately began to dread the day he would hold my precious bundle way up in the air. I knew there was always potential for a "first-drop" episode. About four months before my due date, the Lord called him to a different church. Oh, how I hated to see him go! But a tiny part of me was secretly elated that I would miss the baby-lift. To no avail, he came to the hospital within hours of my new blessing being born. I knew what was coming. Yep, he scooped her up out of that hospital bassinet and hoisted her up above his head just like he would've in front of a congregation! She survived, praise the Lord. Then he gently lowered her down to his chest, kissed her on the forehead, and whispered, "I love you, Darby."
And I had no doubt in my mind that he did.
This past week, he went to meet the Savior that he spent his entire life preaching about. Ok, maybe he didn't spend his entire life preaching.....there was the time that he was illegally dynamiting fish and blew off half of two of his fingers. I'm pretty certain that happened before he went into the ministry. How many times did those two nub fingers poke at me because he knew it creeped me out? A billion!
But I knew he loved me because of it.
His funeral was presided by his two grandsons. They honored and memorialized him in a way that would've made him so proud. The grandson that he raised as his own son is now a pastor preaching and proclaiming Jesus...and loving people.
His legacy.
The funeral itself was an amazing testimony of his life. And I have no doubt that everyone in that room on Friday knew they were loved by him. Everyone probably even felt that they were loved just a little more than the others.
He had a way of making a person feel that way.
The memories of Bro Dan flood my heart this week, and nearly every one of them involve a smile. That was how he lived his life. His love was contagious. His infectious laughter and zeal for life wasn't because he didn't experience heartache. Anyone who knew him knows that's not true. He battled hard times and trials, but those didn't dictate his life, his countenance, or his love. His joy wasn't conditional upon the circumstances surrounding him. His love for others wasn't based upon his feelings for the day.
He loved because he was first loved, not because his life was perfect.
He was loved by the Savior he proclaimed. And he lived his life believing that everyone around him deserved being loved like that.
I got an email from a friend today asking me about his death. This friend of mine was never a church member of Bro. Dan's. In fact, he attended the Church of Christ that sat diagonal from the church in which Brian and I were married. He said this about my pastor,
"He was such a very fine man. He treated me with so much love and respect and kindness. I'm a better person because I knew him...."
His legacy. Love. Respect. Kindness.
When I think of Bro. Dan, one verse comes to mind. His favorite verse. He quoted it so often that it's underlined in my 20-year-old bible with his name out to the side of it.
We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers.... 1 John 3:14
He was a living example of the love of Jesus. You can only live this kind of love if you know Jesus personally. Bro. Dan knew Jesus. And spent his life loving others the best he could because of knowing Jesus. He wasn't ashamed or afraid or timid with his love. There's no doubt in my mind that he passed from the death of this world to a life of eternity with Christ. How do I know?
Because he loved.
I, too, desire to love like that. Unconditionally. Regardless of my circumstances. Because of my love of Jesus. What about you?
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