Alan, We Remember You!
It’s hard to believe! An era has passed!
Our good friend Pastor Alan Campbell closed his life on June 11th, 2012. He had battled health problems for the previous past few years and finally his body just gave out. The Irish Warrior knew his time was short but he moved with haste to re-print books and recover tapes lost when trustees of his beloved “Open Bible Ministries’ closed the doors. Lessor men might have simply given up and retired, but not the Warrior. He was too much the servant of God to pass up any opportunity to preach God’s Word. And so, it can easily be said of this man, as it was written in 2 Samuel 3:38, “Don’t you know that today a leader, a great man, has fallen in Israel?
You know, even before I met Alan Campbell, he was a source of great inspiration for me. When the late and equally great Tom Mitchell introduced me to the Israel Truth in the very early 1990’s, I acquired my education through the words of two scholars. One was America’s Promise Sheldon Emry, though his tape library. I well remember the day I called Martha Barley and purchased 100 of his tapes. The other scholar, of course, was Pastor Campbell and I bought every tape they carried at the British-Israel Bookstore in Vancouver. I listened every day for weeks but by the time I finished, I knew with certainty the path I was destined to take.
I met Pastor Campbell a couple of years later and like with most of our Vancouver membership, we became fast friends. When he came to Vancouver, he invariably stayed with Jim and Marjorie Read, our late president and his wife, and I was invited often to share in Bible studies. In later years when I too became a speaker, I had the honour to share the stage with Alan in places like Toronto, Spokane, Tacoma and here in Vancouver. He had earned the distinction of being the premier speaker in the Israel Movement and you couldn’t listen to him without being inspired to the point where serving God became an even greater mission in life.
I recall someone once saying, “if someone is given great gifts, he (or she) must often travel the rough roads of hell”. Something like that! Well, Pastor Campbell had some pretty rough roads to journey. I know of three times since the beginning of the 21st century, that in similar circumstances, lesser men would succumb. Alan didn’t, he got up and with God directing him, he re-established his role as a teacher, writer and inspiration. He reminded me of the words of the oft-quoted poem, ““Fight on, my men,” A little I’m hurt but not yet slain. I’ll just lie down and bleed a while, And then I’ll rise and Fight again.”
Several years ago, I called Alan and asked him if he would like to be a writer in this Association’s monthly magazine, “Thy Kingdom Come”. He readily accepted and I think he was guided a great deal of the words of Luke 12:48, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded …” Remember, Alan was very sick at the time, but true to his word, he made sure that each month, there was an Alan Campbell article in our magazine. And judging from the comments we received from our readers, they were among the first articles read when the magazine was delivered to the readers’ doors.
Let me end this memory of Pastor Campbell by quoting a verse that I think describes him to a T, it is from Romans 12:6-8. It’s almost like Paul was describing the Irish Warrior. “We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.” Pastor Campbell had all these gifts and he didn’t let God down.
Goodbye again Alan, We shall see you in the Kingdom.
