The Final Race – Are You Prepared?

Many of you know my precious brother-in-love passed away on the 12^th. His death came suddenly and unexpectedly.

His memorial service was a beautiful and loving reminder of the man he was here on earth. Bub’s death may have been sudden and unexpected to us, but to God, it was right on time. The Good news here is that Bub was prepared for this day. He’d been preparing for it his entire life, from the moment he gave his life to Christ and claimed Him as his LORD and Savior.

By the way, Bub’s real name is Julian. But he was and will forever be my Bub.

Here are a few things said about my dear brother this past Saturday.

LOVING SON, DEVOTED HUSBAND, BEST BROTHER

He was a loving son. I can vouch for that. I had the privilege of knowing each of his parents before they left this earth. He was a respectful and dutifully loving son.

To that end, he was those things to my and my sister’s parents, too, when they became his through his marriage to my sister. The birth of Gray and Melanie sealed the deal on that relationship for all time.

It was Sis and Bub who took mother and Daddy into their home in their later years. They cared for Daddy in his last years before Daddy had to move into the nursing home.

Bub was so much more than these things. He was a good husband to my sister. He loved her with his whole heart. And he loved his family.

He was a loving brother, to me, his little sister, and to his big brothers and his little brother and his other sisters-in-love. But he was also, friend, beloved uncle, runner, musician, teacher, loyal employee, and the list goes on.

GOOD PROVIDER, GODLY FATHER

As Pastor David said, he thought his first duty was to provide for his family to the best of his abilities. At the time, to him, that meant working long, hard days. He often missed events in the lives of his son Gray and his daughter, Melanie.

But the main thing he got right was guiding their faith. He made sure they were in church. Not taken to church and dropped off, but he and Sis were right there with them. They sang in the choir, they helped however they could, everywhere they were asked or needed. They even left their beloved McGregor Baptist Church to help plant Cypress Lake Baptist in a different part of Ft. Myers where he directed the choirs and led the music for many years. He taught Sunday School and led the youth group. Whatever was needed, he was there.

Bub had a passion for young marrieds and often counseled and led them in classes. He absolutely loved sharing God’s Word with people.

BEST PAWPAW, EVER

When their grandchildren came along, Bub determined to do things differently. By then, he knew and wished he’d done things with his kids in a different manner. The grand were all into sports. He and Sis never missed a game. They were at every game and every event for each of the eight grands, six boys and two girls. He let them know they were loved by his actions, not just his words. And then there are the eight great-grands, but I don’t have enough room here to tell you about them. Trust me, they’re amazing.

 

The Final Race - Are You Prepared? @DDuPreeWilliams #faith #family Share on X

SHARING GOD’S WORD

When he was older and the family had no choice but to place Bub in a rehab/nursing facility, he became involved in leading the people there in Bible study and in worship. I learned that one of the pastors who visited with regularity often went to Bub for prayer and advice. Now, that is some kind of witness in my eyes.

See, Bub was prepared to meet Jesus face to face. He’d been preparing all his life by studying God’s Word and sharing it with all those around him. Pastor David reminded us, Bub ran his race all the way to the finish line. I’m sure he was met with Well done, my good and faithful servant.

Question—are you prepared to meet Jesus? If you left this world today, do you know where you’d be? If you have doubts, please contact me. I’ll be glad to share how you, like my Bub, can be prepared to meet Jesus face to face.

Blessings, y’all!

Here is Bub’s service if any of you would like to see it. If you don’t want to see all of it, fast forward to the end where six of his grandchildren join their voices and instruments in singing

I Know the PeaceSpeaker. You will be blessed.