Posted by Editormum on 15 November 2005 in
News Commentary |
∞
I am deeply saddened to learn that Dr. Adrian Rogers, Pastor Emeritus of Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee, has left this world, but I rejoice to know that he is in the presence of the Lord and Saviour whom he loved so dearly.
When I was a young child, we attended Bellevue Baptist Church — that was before it moved out of midtown Memphis. When I was 8 years old, I broke my left arm, and he prayed for me — that I would have healing and strength in that arm. I have never forgotten that day. If I remember correctly, he was the pastor who prayed with me when I made my profession of faith at the age of five. In any case, he holds a very special place in my heart.
One very precious memory of a very special sermon that he preached — God definitely pulled out all the stops to prove Dr. Rogers’s point. I was less than ten years old at the time. It was a Sunday evening service. We were sitting on the floor of the main sanctuary of the old church. My folks and I were sitting on the inside aisle of the right-hand section, about halfway back, some five or six rows behind the chandelier. (The huge chandelier that is now in the main foyer of the new church hung in the center of the old sanctuary.) I remember as a child looking up at that chandelier in awe, and wondering how on earth they kept it so clean and sparkly.
I don’t remember what Dr. Rogers was preaching on that night. Probably faith. I just remember that he said something along the lines of “You don’t trust God enough. If there was an earthquake right now, most of you would get up and run for the doors in a panic.” And just then, the earth rumbled, the chandelier shook, and great dust bunnies began to fall from the top of it. I was fascinated by the dust bunnies, but terrifed by the shaking. I started to run, but Daddy, who was still seated, pulled me down into his lap and said, “Sit still; we are safe.” He put his arm around me and my mom, and we sat there and watched the people in the sanctuary as they jammed the exit doors, trying to get out.
It was only a small tremor — the only one I ever remember experiencing here, even though Memphis sits on the New Madrid Fault and you’d think we’d get the occasional rumble. But the object lesson of that sermon, coupled with God’s special “underline” of the most important sentence that Dr. Rogers spoke that night, is forever burned into my memory.
My prayers are with Joyce, his children, and grandchildren. Adrian was a wonderful, special man, and he will be deeply missed here on earth. But the angels are singing him into the presence of the God he loved and served, and I join my voice with theirs in the chorus of welcome to a good and faithful servant who has entered into the joy of his Lord.
Tags: Christianity, eulogy, Religion, True Stories
The World Has Lost a Great Man Today
I am deeply saddened to learn that Dr. Adrian Rogers, Pastor Emeritus of Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee, has left this world, but I rejoice to know that he is in the presence of the Lord and Saviour whom he loved so dearly.
When I was a young child, we attended Bellevue Baptist Church — that was before it moved out of midtown Memphis. When I was 8 years old, I broke my left arm, and he prayed for me — that I would have healing and strength in that arm. I have never forgotten that day. If I remember correctly, he was the pastor who prayed with me when I made my profession of faith at the age of five. In any case, he holds a very special place in my heart.
One very precious memory of a very special sermon that he preached — God definitely pulled out all the stops to prove Dr. Rogers’s point. I was less than ten years old at the time. It was a Sunday evening service. We were sitting on the floor of the main sanctuary of the old church. My folks and I were sitting on the inside aisle of the right-hand section, about halfway back, some five or six rows behind the chandelier. (The huge chandelier that is now in the main foyer of the new church hung in the center of the old sanctuary.) I remember as a child looking up at that chandelier in awe, and wondering how on earth they kept it so clean and sparkly.
I don’t remember what Dr. Rogers was preaching on that night. Probably faith. I just remember that he said something along the lines of “You don’t trust God enough. If there was an earthquake right now, most of you would get up and run for the doors in a panic.” And just then, the earth rumbled, the chandelier shook, and great dust bunnies began to fall from the top of it. I was fascinated by the dust bunnies, but terrifed by the shaking. I started to run, but Daddy, who was still seated, pulled me down into his lap and said, “Sit still; we are safe.” He put his arm around me and my mom, and we sat there and watched the people in the sanctuary as they jammed the exit doors, trying to get out.
It was only a small tremor — the only one I ever remember experiencing here, even though Memphis sits on the New Madrid Fault and you’d think we’d get the occasional rumble. But the object lesson of that sermon, coupled with God’s special “underline” of the most important sentence that Dr. Rogers spoke that night, is forever burned into my memory.
My prayers are with Joyce, his children, and grandchildren. Adrian was a wonderful, special man, and he will be deeply missed here on earth. But the angels are singing him into the presence of the God he loved and served, and I join my voice with theirs in the chorus of welcome to a good and faithful servant who has entered into the joy of his Lord.
Tags: Christianity, eulogy, Religion, True Stories