How long will it take the Warden to realize that I have moved Christina’s picture from the top of my blog?

Coming out of hibernation, I realize that the world has changed. I know I’ve missed lots of insignificant events, but maybe I’ve missed some of lasting importance. I’ve watched the sun set many evenings as I sit working at my desk and I’ve also seen the sun rising as I drive off to various construction sites. I’ve come across babies newly born and I’ve heard of the passing of others.

The world lost a great spiritual leader during my time “away.” He was a guide to many and an inspiration to even more. He had a zest for life that was contagious and always looked on the positive side of things. And as I was reminded just this past Sunday night, he sported a large tattoo on his upper arm. It spelled out the name of his lifelong love, the woman to whom he was married, I believe, well over 50 years, “Helen.”

I met Pastor Doug shortly after he arrived at our church, because I was in his Confirmation class. If my memory serves me right, I actually had the privilege to sit under his instruction for my 7th and 8th grade years. My memory is much better recalling the challenges (read that, trials or torture) our class put him through those two years. He left the sunny beaches of San Diego to serve our church in the frigid upper Midwest, but he didn’t seem to mind. He always wore a smile and always had time to talk, especially to the kids of the church. He turned me on to some of the most important things in my life as I sought his counsel. I think I’ll list them bullet style to make it easier to read.

1. Christian Book Distributors—He loved to read and showed me his catalog from the brand new company (1970 or so) in Boston that has survived and thrived to this day. I still order too many books from them each year.
2. Strong’s Concordance—I wanted to know how to look up things in Scripture, so he pointed me to his Strong’s which was in the KJV, but did a great job in pointing me to many helpful passages as well as interesting items like the verse somewhere in 2 Samuel that has 17 “the” s in it.
3. The Wittenburg Door—Pastor Lewis had a great sense of humor and a real desire to speak to youth in a language they could understand. I wonder what some of the church leadership would have thought if they knew he was reading and promoting such a magazine. But I loved it and was challenged by it and grew through it and subscribed to it for most of my adult life. It’s often accused of being irreverent, and lacking in class, but I’ve found it to supply food for my soul when other written works would lull me to sleep with things I didn’t care about or fatten me up with things I already knew. The Door, even today under new ownership and leadership, manages to keep a watchful, yet loving eye on the church, in an effort to keep it true to its calling.
4. Evangelism—Pastor Doug would often call kids from his confirmation class during the summer if it was a sunny day and invite us to the beach. Being from the west coast he never lost his love of the water. But we always went with a mission. He would give us each little booklets, like “Steps to Peace with God.” And he gave us quick lessons in how to use them. But more importantly, he never tried to force anything on those with whom we struck up conversations. It was always natural. And for him “successful witnessing” didn’t require that we take out the booklet. It could be a time of merely listening to someone who needed to talk. He was extremely gifted in having uplifting and encouraging conversations with friends or strangers. And bringing God into a conversation was as natural as talking about the Vikings.
5. Cults—Another important lesson I received from him was in how to evaluate various messages I heard in high school. I sought his advice on some materials I was reading and some shows I was watching. He gave me very helpful advice in how to sort out “false gospels” that sound a lot like the truth. He taught me that groups which preach a different Jesus from the one of the historical Christian faith need to be suspect and should be held up to the light of Scripture.
6. Marriage—When I remember back to times I was in the company of Pastor Doug and his wife Helen, I’m convicted by how well he kept his wife informed on his every thought. He was great at bringing her up to speed on things. Me? I usually grunt and practice my monosyllabic mumbles. Sorry, Suzi.
7. Nursing homes—The final thing Pastor Lewis left me with was a list of about a dozen nursing home residents that were members of our church. As a high school student I was required for some class to do some community volunteer work. I asked Pastor Doug for some ideas and he suggested that I visit this group of people who could not attend church anymore. The first time through, he went with me to each home and each room and provided a great model for visitation. It was a little scary and awkward at first, but I came to enjoy it. I kept it up throughout my college years and finished when the last person on that list received her final reward.

It is quite amazing how important a godly man can be in a young person’s life. I’m humbled by the fact that I’ve been blessed with more than my fair share, but Pastor Doug is surely in my faith hall of fame.