Spring 2000

Page A-9

Then in 1969, Dr. Homer G. Lindsay, Jr. came as pastor. God used him to lead the church to become indeed the miracle of downtown Jacksonville. I do not know of a man in America more used of God to win people to Christ and to build a New Testament church like this man. His ministry will go down in the annals of church history as one of the significant works of God in our day.

My privilege has been to serve alongside him these many years. I have seen his great desire to win lost people to Christ. I have seen him in his faithfulness to be a personal witness for the Lord. I have seen him preach with a genuine love for lost people. Thank God for the ministry of Dr. Lindsay.

As pastor of the congregation of First Baptist Church, I speak for the entire church in expressing gratitude to God for the ministry of this good and godly man. All of us are close to the Lord because of him. All of us love Jesus more because of his influence.

Thirty five years of alcohol abuse had ravished my mind and my body. Life no longer held any importance or meaning for me. Frankly, I didn’t care if I lived or died. My wife of twenty four years and the four children she bore me were merely obstacles in the road of self destruction that I had chose to travel.

I would soon reach the so called bottom of the barrel. Without hope, without love, a most wretched man at best, seemingly lost forever in the firm grasp of alcohol addiction.

But God in His wisdom and love had another plan for my life. As always, God had a man! Through an entire year, God set into motion numerous events that would cause this man to cross my path and as His instrument, would become the hero of my life.

Dr. Homer G. Lindsay, Jr., was unknowingly appointed to be God’s man. God was well aware of Dr. Lindsay’s firm stance on the teaching of the Bible, that he preached fearlessly and faithfully from the pulpit, that he was above reproach or criticism from anyone and bowed to God’s will for his life. Dr. Lindsay had a burning desire in his heart to preach the Gospel of Christ and to see lost souls saved. Dr. Lindsay was God’s man of the hour and how thankful I am that he was called.

Through no choice of my own, I met Dr. Lindsay through the Sunday morning televised service. His text for that morning was entitled "Alcohol And The Home". Needless to say, I was far from being impressed and had I not had such a terrible hangover, I would have moved to shut him off. He was loud, brash and I was glad when he finished. Ironically, for the next year I found myself tuning in to his sermons every Sunday. Eventually, I arrived at the point where I appreciated his boldness and courage in the things that were right.

I had to secretly admit that he preached the truth and I inwardly wished that I could be that kind of man. He was committed to God, the Bible and he stood unashamed Sunday after Sunday to preach God’s word. He never offered apologies to anyone for his stand and he never backed down from what he knew was the truth.

I wrote one of his many quotes in my Bible, "A person of conviction refused to compromised regardless of the consequences." That was a fitting description of Dr. Lindsay’s lifestyle.

On May 27, 1979, I found myself sitting in a pew at First Baptist Church. I had no desire to be there but to keep the peace, I had made a promise to go. Sitting with my wife, waiting for the services to start, my mind dwelled on the events to come in just three short days from then.

We would be filing for divorce and I laughed inwardly as I thought about this being the last Sunday that I would be hearing Lindsay. As much as I respected him and as much as I loved my wife, the call of my alcoholic lifestyle was greater. By next Sunday at this time I would be gone.

As Dr. Lindsay began his sermon, my mind wandered in and out as I gave thought to my miserable life. What a mess it had become and though I wanted it to be different, I couldn’t see any hope for the future. Dr. Lindsay’s voice droned on and the service was winding down. The invitation came and I felt my eyes welling up with tears.

Dr. Lindsay was saying "There may be a husband and wife her today and you are planning a divorce soon. You need to take each other by the hand and come forward and get Jesus in your life." There was my hope, the answer to my problem, and the doorway to my victory over alcohol addition.

My wife and I did just that and we were saved that morning. I recall telling Dr. Lindsay that I watched for a year on TV and he smiled at me and said, "Praise God you finally made it." Praise God indeed! That was the beginning of a wonderful journey, not only with Jesus as my Lord, but with Dr. Lindsay as my Pastor, teacher and friend.

As my Pastor, I felt his love and compassion for others. He had a pastor’s heart for his people and he preached with fervor to help us to grow in the things of the Lord. Through his leadership I became a deacon and a Sunday school teacher. Dr. Lindsay called upon me many times to share my testimony with the church. Dr. Lindsay wanted people to see what God could do in a person’s life and he used me often.

As my teacher, he led me through the Bible truths, hammering them into my head until I learned them and became committed to them. He taught me how to teach others and gave me the opportunity to do so. I learned to share his love for the lost and to become a soul winner. For over twenty years, Dr. Lindsay guided me step by step in my service to God.

As my friend, he prayed for me and my family daily. He rejoiced in our blessings and he grieved with us during our troubled times. He was always there to listen, to pray, to advise and yes, to admonish and correct. Indeed, the wholesome traits of a true and worthy friend.

Thought I will miss Dr. Lindsay with a painful heart, I will always be thankful for having known him. I praise God for putting him in my path, for using him to teach me to become the man I am today.

One day, Dr. Lindsay and I will meet again to renew an eternal friendship in Glory. Until then, I will remember his teachings and faithfulness in the hopes that I can be a fraction of the man he was.