Still Remembering

Once my "rememberer" started remembering, the names and images of pastors who have had a memorable influence on my journey of faith started spilling over the cup of memory.  Some of the earlier influencers were Joe Bridges who preached a message in which I heard God's call to preach, John Kay who gave steady encouragement during my college years and three pastors, Clark Pafford, Bill Dupree, and Virgil Lee who gave direction during my youth ministry years.  

In the years that followed, there were many more.  During my seminary days, John Brokhoff taught me how to preach and Claude Thompson taught me how to think about God.  Jim Rush and Don Sparks came to steady my course during troubling pastorates.  Frank Roughton Harvey, an evangelist and actor, first came to my churches as a servant of Christ and later as a friend.  During the course of the forty years of ministry there were young pastors who came to work with me and spoke of me a mentor, but I am sure I learned more from them than they from me:  Ben Martin, Bill Daniel, and Hank Perry. Like me, they have gotten older, but not as old.  

As I walk deeper into these retirement years I am also very appreciative of a few pastors who ceased being colleagues and have become friends who stayed with me for the journey.  Lowery Brantley is one.  Wayne Mosely is also one.   Jim Jackson is another.  There are also two who were college roommates.  The Asbury College roommate is Harold Lumley who became a Nazarene pastor and my Young Harris College roommate, Tom Daugherty who is the only Baptist on my list.  There were others that my memory has overlooked, but these are surely a few of those for whom I have great appreciation in these days of remembering.