[1]
Editor’s note: Hans Wunch is association mission strategist for the Mallary Baptist Association in Albany, Ga..
No church expects this. It would be hard for me to believe that a church that truly seeks the Lord would even welcome this. But unfortunately, sometimes pastors pass away while actively serving a congregation.
Roughly 20 years ago, a pastor was called to a local church in February. This pastor and his wife had adopted several children prior to moving to town. They earnestly sought to serve the Lord. The family moved to the community where the church was located, and the ministry began. Previously, the pastor had gone to college in a nearby town and was familiar with his new field of service. Then, in May of that year, the unthinkable happened. He and his children had gone to a local park where the river that passed through town flowed. The pastor was watching his children play on the rocks in the midst of the river when two of them fell into the water and were in peril.
The pastor did what any good father would do: he sprang into action, screamed for help, and attempted to save his children from the dangerous currents just downstream. With the help of some other folks who were at the park on a break from the work that had brought them to town, he was successful in saving his children … but it cost him his life.
A ministry that the pastor and the church had hoped would last for years was over in a matter of months … or so they thought. While the pastor had been called home to glory, his ministry in that community was not over. The community rallied around this congregation. The church rallied around the family. What followed was a strong witness to the community and world around the church.
The church immediately reached out to numerous people, including the previous interim pastor and the associational leader. The previous interim loved the people but had already begun work at another church in that role. He went to his new church and asked them to allow him to go back to his former role to love this congregation and family during the aftermath of the pastor’s death. They agreed, and he provided a level of stability they needed.
When they reached out to the associational leader, he also helped them with resources for the congregation and the pastor’s family. One of those resources was that the local association of churches raised tens of thousands of dollars for the pastor’s family to have a down payment on a home. The family was living in the church’s parsonage, and they knew eventually they would need to move. The local association made sure they had the resources to do so.
But it didn’t end there. The church told the family they could continue to live in the parsonage for one year after the pastor died. Moreover, the church paid the family the pastor’s salary during that entire year. They brought food, helped kids get to school and organized activities. They loved that family just as much after the pastor died as they did when he was still living. And they mourned. They did not comprehend why these events happened. Understandably, questions persisted as to why God would take this pastor home so early in life.
When the community saw how loving the congregation was toward the pastor’s family, many began attending. During the time of transition, when many churches would have a decrease in attendance, their attendance grew. But it wasn’t all internal.
The folks on the shore that fateful day who were in town for work were carnival workers. The fair had been in town that weekend. It was these carnival workers who helped save those kids from the same fate as their father. So every year, as a ministry to those brave souls, and in gratitude for them, the church began to host a special meal for the carnival workers the night before the fair opened.
Imagine spending all day putting up rides and food vendors. Making sure all of the rides were working properly and safely. Barely taking a break for lunch or breakfast because there was so much work to do. Most of the places these workers would go would look down on them and their lifestyle. But at this church, they would get a good meal and endless sweet tea or lemonade, topped off by a homemade dessert. Then, while they were enjoying pie or pound cake, this church said thank you and made sure they had an opportunity to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Why? Because when someone like them had an opportunity to save some kids, they didn’t hesitate.
In some ways, it was not easy following a pastor who died while serving. I had some individuals in that congregation who got very nervous for my family and me each May. I had others who would comment regularly, “I just don’t understand why God let that happen.” While there may be a solid theological answer to that statement, I have found this to be more of an expression of grief than a theological discussion. It was not easy living up to the bar set by the previous pastor.
In other ways, it made my transition into that role easier. A little more than a year prior to my first Sunday, I survived thyroid cancer. Knowing the church I was going to had taken care of the previous pastor’s family the way they had meant a great deal to someone who had recently had a serious brush with mortality. I truly hoped I would serve there for an extended season and possibly retire there, but if God called me home sooner, there was a track record of care that brought me great comfort.
I wish that churches would never have to go through the turmoil of losing a pastor, whether he has been there for months or decades. But the fact of the matter is, it can happen. And what people choose to do in the aftermath can make all the difference.
[2]
