I have written many times on these pages that I was a God hater during my lost years. Firing people who tried to bring Jesus on to my jobsites and if I could not do that I would be sure to make their lives miserable. And unlike the Apostle Paul it was not because I had a fervent belief that drove me to do it. No, I just had a committed hatred of anything ‘God’.
I can’t say I know where that began. But I was raised to believe that God was vengeful, and wrath filled. More scary then loving. And truth be known, most Christians I dealt with did little to dispel my deepening loathing of religion and those who claimed to be religious.
Today I want to tell you of a couple who knew me during this time and because of who they were, I gained a glimpse of what I think Jesus intends all who follow Him to be. Let me share my blessing of having Pastor Vern and Patty Hyland as my friends in Christ.
Our first meeting was less than auspicious. It was in the late 1980’s when we were spending time with my wife’s family who were living in and around Grants Pass, Oregon. On a Friday night my brother in law and myself had been drinking copious amounts of alcohol, when it was announced that we would be attending church the next morning. Evidently, Dianne’s cousin Vern and his wife Patty had returned from the mission field in Sri Lanka and he was speaking at the little church in Cave Junction, Oregon. The whole family was to attend. That included me. I didn’t protest a whole bunch because the day would also include a visit to the Oregon Caves, which were in the Cave Junction area. But it also did not curtail my drinking which continued until the wee hours of Saturday morning.
So, as it happens the first time I met Vern and Patty, along with the first time I stepped a foot into a Seventh Day Adventist Church, I was still inebriated and remember very little. But one thing did stand out. When I met both these good people, both shook my hand and welcomed me with an earnestness that impressed even my booze-soaked brain.
Over the years after that I would see them at family events or meet them in town when we were visiting from Southern California. Every time, no matter what my attitude was, they would greet me as if I was the one person they had been waiting to see. I found I actually liked being in their presence even it they were speaking of God. Something about them was so real, so loving. Before I even knew about Jesus, they were showing me who He really is.
As I was coming to believe in Jesus Christ as my Savior, there they were again. Now they would be coming over to our house in Grants Pass (by this time we had moved to Oregon) and they had a way of being encouraging without being overbearing. Vern always listening as I tried to understand my fledging faith, I saw no judgement, only true amazement what God was doing in my life. Patty would be the same. My conversion seemed almost to bring them more joy than even I felt. There they were at my baptism, beaming like new parents. It made that day unforgettable.
Then came the year 2014. Dianne was in and out of hospitals. Incapacitated most of the time. Many good people came to visit and spend time with her. But the ones who I always looked forward to were Vern and Patty. They could brighten our day by just being there.
With Dianne’s passing, we became even closer. Over the past years we have experienced ministry together: Celebrating Life in Recovery at the Cave Junction Church. Yes, that very church where we met has become my spiritual home, no matter where I travel. I also led a twenty-one-day revelation seminar there, with Vern and Patty attending, again like loving parents. These two people have shown me what Jesus meant when he said, “A new commandment I give on to you, that you love one another as I have loved you, you are also to love one another.” (John 13:34) From the day they met this drunken lost soul, they have loved me. But not only me, their love has been spread over continents.
We continue to be more than friends. They have adopted RuthAnn too! Over the years their love and their example has brought me closer to Jesus. Think about that. Can someone say that about you or me. I am praying today that His love will become mine. Here is what I want for my life today, “My children, our love should not be just words and talk, it must be true love, which shows itself in action.” (1 John 3:18) Just like Vern and Patty, I want to walk the walk in the footsteps of Jesus. May we all today.
Blessings and Happy Sabbath, John
7/6/18
