A Saint Named Dean
June 2, 2006 02:04 PM
When I arrived in the office on Wednesday, I received a phone call asking to me go visit Dean at St. Peter's Hospital here in Albany. Dean was dying and requested a visit from a Baptist minister. I filled my pocket with tracts, grabbed my Bible, and travelled to St. Peters in a spirit of prayer - asking God to help me minister to Dean and to all who may be with him. I did not know what to expect.
When I arrived at Dean's room, I saw him laying on a bed. His family members greeted me and told me that Dean had been battling cancer. Dean also suffered a severe heart attack and the doctors said that this would be his last day on earth. Dean was heavily medicated with morphine to help make him as comfortable as possible.
I gently tapped Dean on his arm. He awoke and I introduced myself as the Baptist minister he requested. He was excited that I came. I immediately asked Dean if he knew Christ. He responded with confidence that Jesus was his Savior. He told me that he was excited to know that sometime that day, he would see the Lord for the first time face to face. He then told me that he could not wait to tell the Lord "thanks" for saving him by His grace. I asked Dean if he wanted me to read the Bible and pray with him. He did. I read Psalm 23, Psalm 91, Psalm 121, John 14, and Romans 8. He responded to Romans 8 by indicating that this was his favorite passage in the Bible. I then asked Dean what his favorite hymn was. He told me it was "The Old Rugged Cross." I told him that I was not much of a singer, but that I was going to sing his favorite hymn for him. We sang it together and several family members joined in with us. What a moment of sweet worship.
After reading scripture, singing, and praying, I told Dean that I came to minister to him, but in the end, I was the one who was ministered to. One close family member indicated that he did not know Christ and I had the perfect opportunity to explain that he had just seen with his own eyes evidence that everything the Bible says about Jesus is true through Dean's testimony on his deathbed.
I left Dean by telling him that I would see him again, either at the hospital, or in heaven some day. Well, I never did see Dean again. He died a few hours after our visit.
In this place of darkness called Albany, my visit with Dean was a refreshing and reviving experience.
I do not believe that I can sing "The Old Rugged Cross" the same as I sang it all my life. It has new meaning now - thanks to a saint named Dean!
In Christ,
Pastor Joe Roof