More We Could Say

Dr. Dave Reid: 1937-2012

On Tuesday, a great man graduated to Glory.  Known affectionately by the Emmaus Bible College family as Dr. Dave, Dr. Dave Reid was a professor of Dan and mine during our years at Emmaus.  He died suddenly while skiing during a Bible retreat in Utah.  Over the last few days, my Facebook page and our college alumni site have been flooded with Emmaus alumni paying tribute to and sharing memories of Dr. Dave.  Almost everyone's tribute is a very LONG paragraph (or more) of what Dr. Dave personally meant to them. Most have a personal memory of an individual conversation with him that highly impacted their life.  Reading everyone's memories has confirmed a few things for me.  But I will get to that in a bit...

First, let me tell you a little bit about Dr. Dave.  His main classes were Old Testament Survey, Christian Evidences and Hermeneutics.  Every freshman has to take O.T. Survey, so pretty much every student at Emmaus had him at one point.  He opened up the Old Testament for us in ways we had never noticed before.  We were required to memorize "mini verses" from the Old Testament to help us remember some of the main points and stories.  I still remember quite a few of them such as "The heart is deceitful above all else and desperately wicked," "When the people complained, the Lord was displeased," and "Has the Lord's arm become short?"  Dr. Dave had a way of making even the book of Leviticus fun and interesting.  And the week we were in Song of Solomon?  Epic.  He ALWAYS was smiling and/or laughing and had a tremendous sense of humor.  He had a one of a kind laugh that will always be etched in my mind.  (You can even hear for yourself if you follow the link at the bottom.)  He has classic phrases that all of us students remember such as "Baaad hermeneutics," "RANDY KRAAAAI!" and "More we could say."

My sister and I with Dr. Dave when he visited our home in 2004

Dr. Dave earned the nickname Dr. Grace because he hated to see anyone fail his classes.  He would allow students to come up with 'grace points' - little projects, skits, etc. that you could earn extra points for to bump up your grade.  He ALWAYS would come up to you with a warm smile and say, "Amy (etc.), how are you doing?" and you knew he really meant it.  He offered lots of wisdom in private conversation for many a student's personal situation.  He often took students out to dinner and Dan and I went on a few of those group dinners to Olive Garden.  (What poor college student doesn't love a free dinner at the Olive Garden??)  At one of those dinners, we somehow started talking about how when halibut are young, one of their eyes migrates over to the other side so that both of their eyes are on the same side of their head.  We spent the whole dinner laughing our heads off as we all imitated what it would be like to communicate with both of your eyes on one side of your head.  It is so special to think about the individual care and fun that one could have with a college professor.  It is a rare find that Emmaus as a whole is particularly known for.  And Dr. Dave was in a class all his own in that department.

Besides teaching, Dr. Dave was very active and athletic and, among other things, was an avid windsurfer and skiier right up until this week.  Not bad for a 74-year-old!  Of course, he never looked or acted a day over fifty... He led summer tours in the Holy Land for years, and I am quite sad that I will never have the chance to fulfill a dream of going to Israel with Dr. Dave.  Here are some pictures from some of these tours, courtesy of fellow alum, Tim Foster.

Dr. Dave and his wife Margie, on the shores of the Dead Sea in Jordan

Teaching on the shores of the Sea of Galilee

Dr. Dave also had a ministry for the last 40 years called "Growing Christian Ministries" where he had devotionals in written and audio form on every book of the Bible.  Last Fall, he finally reached his lifelong goal of recording through the Bible in 1,720 talks.

So why do I share all this? Well, I have been impacted by a few things this week in light of Dr. Dave's passing.  First, it has brought back so many amazing memories of my time at Emmaus and with Dr. Dave.  Going to this small Bible college was life-changing in so many ways, and I have been reminded of the rare family-like atmosphere that Emmaus was. (Is!)  The school is small enough where 'everyone knows everyone' and the professors deeply invest in each one of the students.  Dr. Dave is one example of how caring and genuine the professors and faculty are.  They invite students over to their homes all the time and are a wealth of wisdom and care.  It's one of my most favorite things about Emmaus.

Secondly, I have been blown away at the impact Dr. Dave made in all who knew him.  He was truly so kind and gracious, genuinely personally cared about each person he knew, and had a way of making you feel like you were the only person in the room when he talked to you.  His wealth of knowledge in Scripture, peppered with his joyful and humorous teaching style have resulted in countless of changed lives for all who walked through the doors of Emmaus. As another former student wrote a few days ago,

Dr Dave's death got me thinking about character and reputation. Specifically about mine. What am I known for? What do I project above all else? Is it grace? If the people I work with and minister to were asked to give me a nick-name, what would it be?  (Jeff Mould)

Dr. Dave will be missed by all who knew him, but we do not grieve as those who have no hope.  We know he is having the time of his life in the presence of God and those who know the Lord will get to join him there someday.  I feel so blessed that I got to hear Dr. Dave speak for his last time at Emmaus back in October.  I was also able to enjoy a lingering dinner with him and his wife, which is where this picture was taken. (above)

His last message at Emmaus: Don't Drop the Baton

If you have iTunes, you have the opportunity to view his last message at Emmaus, appropriately titled, "Don't Drop The Baton."  (Click here and follow the link to "view in iTunes" under message #2.  It's FREE!  He starts with lots of memories and his actual message starts around the 18:40 mark.)  He reminded us that there is reward for those who have faithfully received and passed on the baton.  And we can be sure that Dr. Dave is getting that welcome of all welcomes in Glory - hearing the words, "Well done, good and faithful servant."  Thank you for faithfully passing on the baton, Dr. Dave.  More we could say. 

Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you;
and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith.

Hebrews 13:7