Pastor Fred

I lost a friend today. He was the one man who I thought knew God the best of anyone I had crossed paths with in this life. He lived what he knew to be the Truth. He and his wife were the vessels who led me into a deeper walk with the Lord Jesus. They were the ones in which I first saw Jesus living in and through. They were examples of the light that is life in Christ. Never underestimate how powerful the light that is Christ in you and through you, and how it affects those around you. This man could direct me to the place I needed to go, whether it was in the Scriptures, or to the Presence of God in prayer. Prayer! He was a most faithful prayer warrior. He prayed daily for my husband, for my kids and for me....I learned from him. He talked with confidence to Father and his discernment was evidence of his close walk in the Spirit. The reality of Jesus in his life was truly evidenced in this man and this couple, and they stood strong throughout their very long lives of faith. They directed anyone who came into their lives with loving concern and prayer to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That life and how that looked was always up for discussion and what a sweet fellowship was offered by this couple. They loved each other and others with the love of God...and God being Love extended Himself through them to others. Pastor Fred spoke to me very clearly one day on the story of Lazurus and the rich man who found themselves on opposite sides of the great chasm....found in Luke 16 and the concern of the rich man first for himself and the unquenchable thirst he had and when this could not be abated after physical death then for the eternal welfare for his family....something he never would be able to direct them to from his grave. Fred had tears when he shared this with me one day....this man had a heart for God and he wanted others to come to first, salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ but then he desired for others to come to know, really know Jesus...as life, and to share this openly with others that they might come, just as they are, to that same place. His humour, his wisdom, his smile, his sensitivity to the Spirit and to others...just a few things, I will miss. He was a man of God. He loved and was loved deeply. I will hold on to the hope of seeing him again, embracing this child of God, no longer racked by pain, no more tears flowing, as he embraces this child of God that was so inspired by his witness to the life that is so full and complete in Christ.