I read that father passed on. I wanted to let you know that I was thinking of you. It sounds like you are contemplating all that he brought to your life and you have been bringing hope to your loss. May your grief not be a burden, but a sign of the preciousness of your father.

Richard

Hi there, Richard,

That means a lot to hear from you! Thank you so much!

Yes, I do look upon this time-- sad tho' it is-- more as an occasion for celebrating his life than as a time of mourning his passing. I do have minutes when I cry, such as now, but most of the time I am just glad for the happy memories and glad that he is not suffering but is at peace.

My sincere thanks for your very warm thoughts. John

PS. What really helps is that I was with him when his family members, and my mother, died, and I saw how brave and strong he was, even though he was hurting inside. He always thought of other people first, and I found that admirable.

When I first read this thread last evening, I was greatly touched. John317, although I did not know your father, it is clear he was a saint.

May you and yours continue to be comforted in the hope of the soon coming resurrection!

Dear John317, please know that your family are still in our prayers. As the other's have said, you will meet again (PTL) but while here, he will be missed.

{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{John317}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

It's good to hear from you, Servant. Thank you for your encouraging message.

I was already looking forward to Christ's return, but now I have an added reason to look forward to it. I feel so fortunate and blessed to have had him all these years, so all I really can do is thank God for dad's long life which he dedicated to living for Jesus Christ.

You can find some of his books if you Google "Vaughn Allen" or the book "The War Is Real."

http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id=o4IjxRYMf0sC&dq=The+War+Is+Real&printsec=frontcover&source=web&ots=jxKO8Z4J9t&sig=eBJy9WEe-USJL5i84FXLpbxHvmw&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=4&ct=result

It is about the reality of the war between Christ and Satan. Christ has already won the war, but the battle continues, over the hearts and minds of people for whom Christ gave up His life. It is a very real battle. It especially involves many of our fellow Seventh-day Adventists. The things written in his books are real.

I'll be posting a kind of obituary about him in the next few days. I'll also post a picture of him and my oldest sister, taken almost exactly 10 years ago, as he was walking with a shovel up the hill in eastern Tennessee to where we would bury my mother. Yesterday, Sabbath afternoon, my father was buried up near where the trees are in this picture. Dr. George Akers, former General Conference secretary of education, gave a little talk at the grave site. It was a good way to say good-bye because it reminded us that it won't be too long before we'll say hello again, and this time there won't be any more goodbyes.

Hey there, puddles--

I sure want to thank you for dropping by to give me that word of encouragement. I feel that the prayers offered have made Jesus that much closer to all of us. I know it's made a big difference for me personally, because I'm constantly aware of Jesus' promises and have a strong conviction of their reality.

I'm attaching a photograph here that I described in the previous post. It's of dad and my oldest sister the morning of my mother's burial. He decided on the site and then he started the grave, after which I completed it. He told me that he knew he had to plan it so that there would be room for him next to her. That is where he sleeps in Jesus until the resurrection. I knew him well. He wasn't afraid. He was ready. He completely trusted Jesus. He would want us all to do the same.

This took place this past Sabbath, in eastern Tennessee. I'm sorry that I was unable to attend.

A group of 35 or so, mostly family, but a few close church friends gathered on the top of the hill. They sang several hymms, had prayer and Dr. George Akers, a close personal friend and the former GC secretary of education, encouraged us with some memories of Dad and Bible scriptures regarding the soon coming of Christ. He also reminded us of the many ways Dad has been a blessing to so many people.

My youngest sister and oldest brother lowered the "casket" and she explained that the red scarf wrapping it was to represent the blood of Jesus covering Dad's sins.

Elder Akers had prayer and they sang another hymn. There were family pictures taken, and it was really peaceful and quiet there under the trees shown in the photograph.

I will post some pictures as soon as they're available.

I want to thank everyone on the Forum for all your prayers and kind thoughts. Let's be sure we are ready when our time comes whether we meet Jesus in the air or whether we sleep.

Sorry for your lost but you must be proud of having such a fine father. I hope you will cherish your good memories and forget any that are not so fond.

Thank you, Shane. Yes, I was very blessed to have him as my dad and I do have a lot of good memories I'll never forget.

Sorry to hear about your father passing. I lost my father about 8 years ago. It was a sudden loss and caught us by surprise.

God's blessings -

in Christ,

Bob