Two Deaths; God is Faithful

Pastor Lawrence Armour of Epiphany Baptist Mission went to Heaven on Thursday of this week after a lengthy hospitalization at Ochsners and Tulane Hospitals. Over the years, Lawrence had had to deal with a series of on-going strokes which limited his life in important ways. We’ll post the funeral details here when we learn them.I don’t know Lawrence’s age, but estimate that he was around 50. Our hearts and prayers go out to his family.

Lawrence’s sister, Winniefred, is married to another of our fine pastors, Johnny Jones of Free Mission Church.

Alpha Cottingham, wife of Pastor W. O. Cottingham, of St. Rose went to Heaven last night (Friday). This incredible lady was in her early 80’s, I imagine, and was a constant fixture at associational meetings, right beside her husband. She and W. O. started the First Baptist Church of St. Rose in 1959 and they stayed with that ministry until his retirement in 2005.

I dropped by the FBC of St. Rose one weekday just after becoming director of missions. W. O. and I had known one another since my seminary days (mid-60s) when we pastored in the same parish (I was just across the river in Paradis). He and I had a nice visit that day as he filled me in on his ministry (he was police chaplain and associational hospital visitor among other things). Then he asked me to go home with him and see Miss Alpha. This was a church running perhaps 30 on Sunday morning, but that weekday morning Alpha had a dozen women and girls in her living room for a WMU meeting. She was something. A charming and classy lady.

Josh Carter pastors FBC St. Rose now. The services are expected to be at the church on Wednesday afternoon. Muhleisen Funeral Home of Kenner is in charge.

Please pray for these two families. We claim for them the assurance of Hebrews 6:10. “God is not unjust so as to forget your work of faith and the love which you have shown toward His name in having ministered to the saints and in still ministering.”

Now, other things….


I was delighted to see that my pastor, Mike Miller, is now in the process of moving into his new home on my street. We’ll be a half-block from one another. A wit said that may be more righteousness than any street was intended to endure! But anyone who knows these two preachers has no worry on that count; we’re each still working on the righteousness part! (Thanks for not sending me comments on the righteousness Christ has provided for us. I know, and rejoice in it.)

We’re ordaining Adam Gillespie to the gospel ministry this afternoon. I wrote about him in the previous blog.

The price of gasoline keeps dropping–along with the employment rate and the Dow Jones Average. I was chatting with son Marty (he lives in Charlotte NC) this afternoon. I said, “I just passed a service station advertising gasoline for $1.55 a gallon.” He said, “Wow. I just paid $1.91 for a fill-up.” Both numbers are amazing, considering where we were two months ago.

My theory is if the price of gasoline keeps dropping at the rate it is now, by Christmas it’ll be free.

I’m speaking Monday night in Muskogee, Oklahoma, for that Baptist Association in their annual “M” Night. Flying into Oklahoma City on Monday afternoon. Longtime friend and present Oklahoma state music director Ken Gabrielse will pick me up and we’ll motor up to Muskogee, then we’ll return to his home that night. Tuesday, he’ll run me back to the airport. A friend at FBC Kenner (where Ken served as music minister for 16 years) said Friday, “I envy you.” I smiled and said, “I envy myself.”

God is good. God is faithful to His promises. We all are staking our very existence on that.

3 thoughts on “Two Deaths; God is Faithful

  1. Yes, God will always keep what He has promised.

    Praise His Holy Name. ”Faithful is he who hath promised, who will also do it.”

    We serve A Faithful God. ”God is not a man, that he should lie, meither the son of man that he should repent.”

    He will always bring to pass what he has said.

    Dr. Paul W. Foltz

  2. Dear Bro. Joe:

    Always good to read your articles. David Fox forwarded me the one above. Please include us on your list so we can get all the news each week.

    Just wanted to share something with you. Google in Capt Thomas Gingles, USMC, and look under Justice P. Chambers Award. We will be in Washington, D.C. next to see receive this award from the Commandant of the Marine Corps. It will be the second time Trey has received an award from the Commandant of the Marine Corps. The other time was when he was in Kuwait. Anyway, just wanted to share the good news with you.

    Hope all is well with you and Mrs. McKeever and children and the grands. May the Lord bless your Thanksgiving. My mother turned 90 on the l6th. We will be blessed to spend the day with her. Carla will join us, too.

    Miss you all, Marjorie and Tom

  3. Dear Bro. Joe:

    Always good to read your articles. David Fox forwarded me the one above. Please include us on your list so we can get all the news each week.

    Just wanted to share something with you. Google in Capt Thomas Gingles, USMC, and look under Justice P. Chambers Award. We will be in Washington, D.C. next to see receive this award from the Commandant of the Marine Corps. It will be the second time Trey has received an award from the Commandant of the Marine Corps. The other time was when he was in Kuwait. Anyway, just wanted to share the good news with you.

    Hope all is well with you and Mrs. McKeever and children and the grands. May the Lord bless your Thanksgiving. My mother turned 90 on the l6th. We will be blessed to spend the day with her. Carla will join us, too.

    Miss you all, Marjorie and Tom

Comments are closed.