Devotions with Pastor Fran

Today I attended a funeral of a very good friend.  I always knew he was a deeply religious man just from some of the conversations we have had.  I am very close to his daughter and her husband as I was instrumental in them being able to adopt their little guy.  However I realized that you can be around someone, sit across the table from someone at dinner, visit every Sunday with that person and not really know them.  As I gathered information from the family and prepared their programs and other items for the funeral I came to realize I really didn’t know just how deeply Gary loved the Lord and how invested he was in making sure everyone he came into contact with had the opportunity to hear about his friend Jesus.  As I listened to the testimonies that were given I came to know a different side of Gary and just how many lives he touched.  Pastor Holmes during his message read the words to a song that really summed up Gary’s life: 

Thank You
by Ray Boltz
I dreamed I went to heaven
You were there with me
We walked along the streets of gold
Beside the crystal sea
We heard the angels singing
Then someone called your name
You turned and saw a young man
He was smiling as he came
He said friend, you may not know me now
But then he said but wait
You used to teach my Sunday school
When I was only eight
Every week you would say a prayer
Before the class would start
One morning when you said that prayer
I asked Jesus in my heart
Thank you for giving to the Lord
I am a life that was changed
Thank you for giving to the Lord
I am so glad you gave
Then another man stood before you
And said remember the time
A missionary came to your church
His pictures made you cry
You didn't have much money
But you gave it anyway
Jesus took the gift you gave
And that's why I'm here today
Thank you for giving to the Lord
I am a life that was changed
Thank you for giving to the Lord
I am so glad you gave
One by one they came,
As far as the eye could see
Each one somehow touched
By your generosity
Little things that you had done, sacrifices made
Unnoticed on the earth, heaven now proclaims
And I know up in heaven
That you're not supposed to cry
But I was almost sure
There were tears in your eyes
As Jesus took your hand
And you stood before the Lord
And He said my child look around you
For great is your reward
Thank you for giving to the Lord
I am a life that was changed
Thank you for giving to the Lord
I am so glad you gave
I am so glad you gave
I am so glad you gave
 
I think Gary would want me to share the following insert that was included in his funeral program:  

Ever since Adam and Eve disobeyed God and he evicted them from the Garden of Eden, humanity has been lost to a relationship with God. Mankind's penalty for sin is death, which means we are lost to God. Because of our sin, we are separated from God for all eternity. Thankfully, God loves us so much that he put in place a way to save us from our sinfulness. He wanted to restore our relationship with him. He sent his Son, Jesus Christ to save us from the penalty we are charged with for our sin. Jesus paid our death penalty with his blood and was raised from the dead. To receive this free gift from God we must believe God and be sorry for the way we have lived against him. We must ask Jesus to come into our heart and ask God to forgive our sins. God's promise is that he will forgive us and now live inside us. We can now have a personal relationship with God. Because of our faith in Jesus Christ, God guarantees we will live with him forever. Are you willing to confess to God you are sorry about living against Him and ask Him to forgive you?  Will you receive Jesus into your heart and enjoy God’s joy for you? Go to your Holy Bible & read God's word: Genesis 3:1-24, John 3:1-21,  Romans 5:1-21, Acts 2: 38, Romans 10: 9-13,  John 5:24, Revelation 20-22.   With Love, Gary
 
This was the opportunity that he gave so many people when he would visit with them. I don’t know about you, but it makes me really evaluate myself and am I being a Gary Dick with all those I come in contact with?  Do I share my Jesus with all those I come in contact with, either in word or in deed?  Will I leave the powerful kind of legacy that Gary left?  Will there be those in heaven because of the life I lived? I pray so.
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Pastor Fran