My High School Commencement
Address
By D. A. Sharpe
Suzanne and I had already moved to our
new home in Aurora, Wise County, Texas
in preparation for our retirement living.
The date for my retirement was November 1, 2004. WeÕd purchase the home on 10 rural acers
to be in vicinity of the church weÕd decided to attend, Eagle Mountain International Church, on the northern edge of Fort Worth.
Suzanne had already joined EMIC, while my
church membership remained at Highland Park Presbyterian Church in Dallas where I served as Executive Administrator for the
Senior Pastor. My retirement was concluding
22 years of service at what had been the largest membership Presbyterian
Church, reaching about 7,200 at one time.
This story took place Saturday, May 22, 2004. I was sitting on our front porch,
enjoying a warm cup of coffee, thinking to myself, what a wonderful day this
was going to be. There was
absolutely NOTHING I had to do that day!
I could do whatever I wanted to do, or to do nothing and rest.
About 9:00 AM, the phone rang. It was Miss Iva Bennett. She was a member of EMIC, and had become
friends with Suzanne through the Prayer Ministry there. However, IÕd just met her, and really
didnÕt know her. She was an
educator, and conducted her own Christian private school.
Miss Iva told me that they were having
the commencement service that day for the high school students graduating from
her school. Her speaker, Mr. Jeremy
Pearsons (young adult son of the EMIC Senior Pastors), had stepped off a porch,
and injured his ankle. Could I be
her commencement speaker?
IÕd never in my life thought about doing
a commencement address. My thought
was, this could take some time preparing for the service, which probably was
that evening. Always trying to be
positive and helpful, I told Miss Iva IÕd do it. When do I need to arrive and where?
She told me the service was at NOON! Just three hours away, and the
graduation location was 45 minutes from my house! This is when my realization focused upon
the need for Divine Provision to endow me for this task!
This is where having a somewhat active
life of Bible study comes in handy.
In my past, IÕd memorized Psalm 8, focusing on the majesty of God in the
heavens and in creation. My initial
attraction to memorize it was that a verse from Psalm 8 was quoted by one of
the Astronauts in the 1960s when the moon orbits and landings were being
accomplished. This would be the
basis of my address, embellishing the majesty of the Psalm, verse by
verse.
Upon arriving, I learned that a couple of
the EMIC associate pastors were among her Board members. I also learned they were in the process
of trying to qualify as a 501(3)c tax exempt
non-profit organization.
The graduating class was only three
students. The valedictorian was a
young lady named Dara Maclean, who some dozen years later became as associate
pastor of EMIC in the Music Ministry area.
There was another student, along with a young man named Micah.
In the opening remarks, I gave good
wishes for their quest for non-profit status. Then I asked whether there would be any
other students at the school with names of prophets from the Bible after Micah
graduated that day. Questioningly,
she said there were none others with prophetÕs names. My conclusion was that the school was
becoming a non-prophet school that day when Micah graduated!
That would have been the first time Miss Iva had realized that she might not know
what to expect from me! Good humor!
Here is the Psalm 8, the RSV that
I used. ItÕs a beautiful Psalm about the majesty of God and His creation. ItÕs one that still is close to my
heart, and is recited to myself from time to time, just for spiritual comfort
and appreciation. GodÕs Word is
always a timeless comfort and blessing!
Time has rolled on. This story is being composed in 2017,
some 13 years after its incidence.
Miss Iva subsequently came onto the EMIC Church Staff, supervising its
Prayer Ministry. This year, with
the merging of the EMIC ministry workings with those of the umbrella
organization, the Kenneth
Copeland Ministries, Miss Iva has been given leadership
responsibilities over all the Prayer Ministries of the KCM and EMIC
organizations. She has become a
dear and blessed friend of Suzanne and myself, and we treasure our
relationship.
D. A.
Dwight Albert (D. A.) Sharpe
805 Derting Road East
Aurora, TX 76078-3712
817-504-6508