Two great people died last week, and both of them were complex.
Nelson Mandela was a terrorist, communist, adulterer who abused women, but South Africa is a better place now in due partly to his efforts, that we all can see.
Roger Magnuson was greatness on a smaller scale, but I distinctly believe that his welcome in heaven was far more lauded than Mandela's.
It was at his funeral, where 7 speakers shared the good report of his life, that his life was revealed to have had huge impact.
I didn't get to go, but I had my informants there.
Magnuson was 68, and he died of melanoma. One of the speakers said that he died early in life only because he will be able to achieve greater things for God in his death than in his life.
Perhaps linking all the many achievements together, the remarkable man that he was, in remembering him is a start.
A lawyer with a genius mind. He worked for the Mall of America, the Minnesota Twins, and countless other defendants.
A man who had memorized the Bible. Practically all of it.
A loved and successful father.
Founder of a law school.
Helper of East European nations, counseling new governments as they began their post-communist era.
Elder/pastor of a church in a rough Minneapolis neighborhood.
It was in this role that I think I have the most admiration for him. He acquired an old church (with a pipe organ) and began to minister to the impoverished surrounding neighborhood----Wednesday prayer meetings, Sunday services (with buses to bring in the kids) and Saturday morning door-to-door visits.
A man that had achieved so much, in so many other ways, humbled himself to go door to door in one of the lowest communities of this area. Remarkable.
And his legacy is only beginning. Countless lives were influenced for Christ.
I'm sure he wasn't perfect. I heard rumors of church in-fighting and typical church body issues, like any other church attacked by the Evil One.
We can truly say, without rancor, that Roger Magnuson did well.
And I didn't know him personally, but I knew of him my whole life.
Well done.
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2013/12/roger-j-magnuson-rip.php
http://www.city-journal.org/2013/eon1209gs.html
Nelson Mandela was a terrorist, communist, adulterer who abused women, but South Africa is a better place now in due partly to his efforts, that we all can see.
Roger Magnuson was greatness on a smaller scale, but I distinctly believe that his welcome in heaven was far more lauded than Mandela's.
It was at his funeral, where 7 speakers shared the good report of his life, that his life was revealed to have had huge impact.
I didn't get to go, but I had my informants there.
Magnuson was 68, and he died of melanoma. One of the speakers said that he died early in life only because he will be able to achieve greater things for God in his death than in his life.
Perhaps linking all the many achievements together, the remarkable man that he was, in remembering him is a start.
A lawyer with a genius mind. He worked for the Mall of America, the Minnesota Twins, and countless other defendants.
A man who had memorized the Bible. Practically all of it.
A loved and successful father.
Founder of a law school.
Helper of East European nations, counseling new governments as they began their post-communist era.
Elder/pastor of a church in a rough Minneapolis neighborhood.
It was in this role that I think I have the most admiration for him. He acquired an old church (with a pipe organ) and began to minister to the impoverished surrounding neighborhood----Wednesday prayer meetings, Sunday services (with buses to bring in the kids) and Saturday morning door-to-door visits.
A man that had achieved so much, in so many other ways, humbled himself to go door to door in one of the lowest communities of this area. Remarkable.
And his legacy is only beginning. Countless lives were influenced for Christ.
I'm sure he wasn't perfect. I heard rumors of church in-fighting and typical church body issues, like any other church attacked by the Evil One.
We can truly say, without rancor, that Roger Magnuson did well.
And I didn't know him personally, but I knew of him my whole life.
Well done.
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2013/12/roger-j-magnuson-rip.php
http://www.city-journal.org/2013/eon1209gs.html
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