In 1989, I made my first visit to Willow Valley Baptist Church, where a Wednesday night Bible study was being led by the pastor, Reverend Ray Greene, more commonly and affectionately known as “Preacher Ray.” The way in which he mined the scriptures and brought forth gems of insight took me to a new level of biblical understanding that, along with the wonderful church family there, led me to join their congregation within the following year.

As I got to know Preacher Ray better, I would learn that he had been a basketball star during his growing up years in East Tennessee, and he could have had a lucrative career in sports, particularly in the world of professional refereeing. But God had other plans for his life, and he was obedient in responding to God’s call for him to preach the Gospel. 

For many years, he was bi-vocational, working a full-time job while pastoring. I can only imagine how tired he must have been at times after putting in a long day at work and then traveling many miles to preach revivals or conduct services, not to mention the hours he spent visiting the sick and in private communion with his Heavenly Father, opening his heart and mind to the divine inspiration that would become his sermons.

I also came to know that Preacher Ray was a man of great reputation. Well-known, well-regarded, and highly respected, he had a good and honorable name. His character and integrity were without blemish or scandal, and we were proud to tell others that he was our pastor. The consistency with which he lived his life was an outcropping of his walk with the Lord. Kind, loving, and good-humored, he readily extended his friendship, encouragement, and counsel to others.

Sadly, Preacher Ray passed away yesterday evening at the age of 83, about nine months after he had resigned from the pulpit. Health concerns had led to his retirement, but he had pastored Willow Valley for an extraordinary 48 years – an accomplishment that is practically unheard of these days. He was my pastor for 35 of those years, and through those decades, he was there time and again for me and my family. 

Preacher Ray seems to have been part of a dying breed…one of the last of the old time Baptist preachers. For some, that might conjure images of a “hellfire and damnation” preacher, angrily yelling or shouting, pounding his fist, or shaking his finger in accusation at wayward souls, but that was not how he operated. Rather, he preached out of love and compassion and concern – the fullness of his heart for others that had been born within him ever since his own acceptance of Jesus as his Savior. 

Still, we could ALWAYS expect and rely upon Biblical truth from Preacher Ray. He did not sugarcoat anything by glossing over the reality of hell and the repercussions of rejecting salvation. Rather, he gave the full picture of those things while simultaneously emphasizing God’s great love for mankind, the extension of His mercy and grace that resulted in Christ’s death on Calvary, His blood that paid for our sins, and His resurrection that promises us eternal life. 

As a good shepherd of the flock entrusted to him, Preacher Ray was careful to protect his people from those who might speak or teach anything contrary to the Word. He was very deliberate and discerning in terms of who was invited into his pulpit, and we are the thankful beneficiaries of his thoughtful watchcare. 

I’ll always fondly recall that, during particular Spirit-filled moments, Preacher Ray might offer a high-pitched “Whoo!” or a “Well, glory!” At other times, he might threaten to take off running, jump the pews, or “have a spell.” In contrast, when things were lacking in Spirit, he often classified them as “drier than last year’s corn shuck.”

Although Preacher Ray had a great disdain for cucumbers – something we enjoyed teasing him about, he was passionate about music. For many years, he sang in a gospel group, and his love of music endured throughout his lifetime.  He sang tenor in our church choir, and at times, he would encourage us, saying, “Now, on this next verse, do your very best…give it all you’ve got.” With certain songs, he liked us to hold the long notes until we ran out of breath. One of his favorite hymns was “The Haven of Rest,” the chorus of which says, “I’ve anchored my soul in the Haven of Rest, I’ll sail the wide seas no more. The tempest may sweep o’er the wild, stormy deep; in Jesus I’m safe evermore.”

It seems surreal that Preacher Ray’s time on earth and his long ministry have ended, and it’s hard to say goodbye to someone you’ve known for so long, whose life was such an integral and impactful part of your own. But he has entered his eternal rest, he is safe evermore, and he is finally in the presence of the One in whom he anchored his soul and spent the bulk of his life proclaiming.

Rest in peace, Preacher Ray. You have fought the good fight. You have finished the race. You have kept the faith. I am thankful and blessed to have known you, and I take comfort in the fact that your legacy lives on and our separation is fleeting.