This past Saturday, our church threw a surprise party for Pastor Bob Rathbun to celebrate his 47 years of service. People came from both near and far. It was a great event and I was deeply moved by the love and adoration for our Pastor.
Steve B was asked to MC. He did an amazing job. He was very witty. He kept things moving at a good pace. He seemed comfortable up there and he was definitely the right person for the task.
I was asked to lead the singing. I am not going to lie; I was nervous. I was not familiar with one of the hymns, "He Was Wounded For Our Transgressions" so I spend most of the week listening to renditions of it on YouTube. A few days prior to the event, I was informed that we would have piano accompaniment. Since our church hasn't had a pianist for years, I was worried that I would start singing at the wrong time. What if I started off-key? Steve and I were both mic'd so everyone would hear if I messed up or my voice cracked like a 13-year-old.
After an introduction from Steve, it was my turn and I took my place behind the pulpit facing the congregation. The music began to play. My stomach tightened. As I readied myself to sing the first note, God quickly took my fears away when a chorus of unified voices joined me. It was comforting with many old-timers there who loved to worship by their singing.
The service continued with a few other pastors sharing various memories and expressing their admiration for Pastor Rathbun. A common theme was how loving, caring, and Christ-honoring Pastor Rathbun is. They shared that he was a truly what a Christian should look like.
Then Pastor's two sons, Dan and Gary shared memories of growing up as children of a pastor. The most insightful and inspiring story was shared by Dan. Pastor brought Dan with him to City Hall to speak out against the construction of an adult bookstore in downtown Lowell. People voiced their outrage though their message may have been clouded by their delivery. When he felt it was time, Pastor wanted to go up to speak. Pastor is blind so when he got up to the mic, people were interested in what this blind man had to say. Pastor went on to say (and I'm paraphrasing), "This whole night, people have been referring to this as an 'adult bookstore'. I am an adult and this is not my bookstore. I am blind and even if I could see, this is not my bookstore. The Bible tells us 'for whatever one sows, that will he also reap'. And if this adult bookstore is constructed, you may not like what we reap later."
Toward the end of the service, the church presented Pastor with various Red Sox-centered gifts. Pastor spoke briefly and expressed his gratitude for this service in his honor. But even after an afternoon of everyone reminding him of how great he is, Pastor remained humble. He reminded us that his life, his lovingness, his caring nature was all to God's glory.
Knowing how much Pastor loves music, Steve B asked him to remain on stage as we concluded the singing with all four stanzas of "How Great Thou Art". How very appropriate. It was the most beautiful thing I have ever heard in our church.
Pastor Rathbun is an amazing person. He is intelligent, witty, loving, caring, and genuine. Though he is blind, he has helped lead many people to Christ as their Savior, including myself. I love him and I hope that I can continue to learn from his example. Though I was nervous about leading the singing, I am so happy that I agreed to do it. It was my honor to be a part of this special occasion.
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