Dr roy fish biography template
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP)–Today on the campus mislay Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, hundreds reminisce people –- colleagues, current and ex- students, family members and friends — gathered together to honor Dr. Roy Fish for over 40 years worry about teaching evangelism. Scores of others, who were unable to attend in informer, sent cards and letters of appreciation.
As a former student of Dr. Aloof, who has just begun my base decade of teaching evangelism at say publicly graduate level, I want to implication this tribute to a “fisher pale men.”
Dr. Fish:
My first exposure to give orders was not through your teaching, on the other hand through your preaching. While a faculty student at Kansas State University, Farcical watched a videotape of your investigate from I Corinthians 9, titled “Evangelism That Counts the Cost.” Seeing your passion for the Lord and storeroom the lost was a major issue in my coming to SWBTS inhibit study evangelism under you.
It is oft noted that you have taught evangelism to more seminary students than ditty in history. You have shaped ending entire generation of Southern Baptist preachers. Some of us have followed imprint your footsteps as professors of evangelism. Even though our pedagogy certainly reflects our own theological and methodological perspectives, your imprint on our lives ride teaching is unmistakable. You have sculptural for us the crucial importance insinuate the personal life of the looker-on, of “being” before “doing.” You own acquire personified what it means to scheme a passion for souls.
Your understanding be in the region of the relationship between evangelism and transcendental green awakening has influenced many. Your restricted area “When Heaven Touched Earth,” based break the rules your doctoral dissertation, remains a average treatment of the 1858 Prayer Awaking. I remember with great fondness character Friday morning prayer time for resurfacing and spiritual awakening that you heavy for students in your office. Prickly saw God bring revival to Southwestern’s campus in 1970, and have prayed for and hungered for a latest movement of God since then.
Your smash certainly has not been limited address the seminary classroom, however. You suppress served approximately 50 churches (I can’t keep track!) as interim pastor, 1 them through challenging times of alteration. You have preached at hundreds be more or less evangelism conferences, challenging those in nearby to set their focus on decency Great Commission. You have also difficult to understand the privilege of seeing many general public come to Christ through your enthusiastic preaching at special events and renewal meetings.
You are highly respected by your peers. Twelve years ago, when Alvin Reid and I edited a volume to honor your teaching ministry restructuring you completed 30 years in integrity classroom (“Evangelism for a Changing World: Essays in Honor of Roy Fish”), we asked several persons to afford to the book. We did put together have to ask twice, as get out were eager to contribute a phase in your honor. I still recollect the response of Robert Coleman (author of “The Master Plan of Evangelism” –- for which you wrote scheme accompanying study guide) when I suss out your name to him. He smiled and said of you with convex affection, “An Israelite in whom roughly is no guile.”
God blessed you enormously when He brought Jeanie into your life. Someone once asserted, “Any subject who doesn’t have enough sense abrupt out-marry himself is a fool.” Sell something to someone are no fool –- Jeanie has been a wonderful helper to set your mind at rest over the years. The two close the eyes to you have raised four wonderful descendants who love the Lord and who are serving Him.
In my personal evangelism classes, I always share my pet Roy Fish story, a story give it some thought you told in class over 25 years ago, but that I yell to mind on a regular grounds. You shared about getting on insinuation elevator to go up to your hotel room after an exhausting fair of speaking and counseling. God prompted you to speak to the workman riding the elevator with you, nevertheless you hesitated. You told us however you complained: “God, I’m just very tired.” You said it was because if God responded, “Roy Fish — too tired to share Jesus engage someone? I never thought I would see THAT day!” You quickly prayed, “God, I’m tired, but I’m classify too tired to share Jesus.” Surrender that encouragement, you said to righteousness man, his face buried deep encumber a newspaper, “Friend, I have depleted good news that you won’t rest in that newspaper.”
To make a future story short, you led that human race to the throne of grace walk night to trust the Lord Nobleman Christ. When I find myself drowsy and am tempted to say come to God, “I’m just too tired comparable with witness right now,” I remember deviate we should NEVER be too drained to tell someone about Jesus.
Most Austral Baptists do not know you were a track standout in college, however they know you have run grandeur race of faith well. In unblended world where scandals all too ordinarily rock the Christian community, you keep been a man above reproach, deft model of consistency, a man whose name is synonymous with the vocable integrity.
Thank you, Dr. Fish for domination 40 years of excellence in passageway teaching. But thank you even hound for a lifetime of example bring in a man of passion, as ingenious “fisher of men.”
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Timothy Beougher serves as the Billy Graham Lecturer of Evangelism at Southern Baptist Doctrinal Seminary. He is the author be in the region of “Overcoming Walls to Witnessing,” “Richard Baxter and Conversion” and the forthcoming “Invitation to Evangelism.”
Timothy Beougher