Transcription
Jake
Hey Veritas I’m here with Gordon Lewis he’s a dear brother and a connection group leader at our church and we want to get to know you a little bit better. And so Gordon tell us what you do.
Gordon
Ok. Well right now I'm serving as a hospice chaplain with St. Croix hospice here in Cedar Rapids and my background has been combined pharmaceutical sales as well as serving in the ministry as a pastor and my job as a pharmaceutical rep is what brought us to Cedar Rapids. But that job was downsized and so I was always hoping to do something ministry wise afterwords so the Lord led me into this hospice role and loving those serving as a chaplain. But my story just real quick I came to know the Lord not until the age of 26 in Miami Florida of all places and really grew and my faith was discipled for four years during my time there and that was the highlight meeting Jesus down in Florida and having my life all of a sudden have purpose and meaning and reason for living. But the second great thing that came out of that was I met my wife Cheryl and met her on a church visit and she had visit our church and shared the gospel with her and she prayed to receive Christ and two years later God brought us together in marriage. So thankful for that but since since coming to Jesus so my life stopped being so consumed with me and more about him and what I can do. I became less he became more and what I could do to impact those around me for Christ. So it's it's been a great adventure throughout these years knowing Jesus and I just look back with awe and he's been gracious and merciful and faithful and so.
Jake
Seeing you and Cheryl the way that you guys care for people love the Lord it's just extremely encouraging. So you accepted Christ in Florida went into some ministry then in the pharmaceutical sales. Now a chaplain you've done some ministry you've sold them drugs. You’ve done a little bit on both ends of the spectrum.
Gordon
So so covered covered the gambit and in that time we had four kids who are now all grown and married and we have eight grandchildren and we're thankful for that and there are they just amaze us each day.
Jake
How long have you guys been a part of Veritas?
Gordon
For three and a half years. Yeah.
Jake
We've been in connection group together right?
Gordon
Yes we started out that way. That's right. That was the springboard. But yeah. So it's it's been interesting. Our ministry with our connection group has been so sweet to us and precious but also we've had a yearning a desire to reach our neighborhood for Christ. We've done things like give away and not give away but take deliver — Sheryl makes an incredible Key Lime Pie taking key lime pies to neighbors just to build a relationship with them when covid hit we took toilet paper and cookies and different things just to let them know we're there for him we care about them, but covid seemed to just shun everyone withdraw everyone even more and isolate him even more so that made it tough for us to build relationship. And all of a sudden — how do we say it.
Jake
Derecho.
Gordon
Derecho yes. So I should know that the term it's been so impactful in my life. But when Derecho hit — It's amazing not only seeing the the devastation and damage at our house but the opportunities in our neighborhood this week have been profound as far as building relationships and coming alongside and really getting to know them on a personal level like we've been yearning to do.
Jake
Yeah so tell us so tell us about that storm — I showed up at a house a couple days after the storm, there was still a lot to do. You got a lot of trees in your property what happened?
Gordon
So so on Monday when it hit it was like bombs were going off in our yard we had twenty nine — sixty to one hundred foot locust trees in our little yard and we live over near East Post Road and lots of trees there and we — So we we were just so devastated we just I'm not handy with it with the chainsaw and and not able to attack that but we couldn't even get out our front door. We had to go to the side and climb up the ladder to our neighbor's yard and then get out to walk the neighborhood so we just walked the neighborhood prayed and sought the Lord and I just thought hey God this is bigger than us. This is in your hands in God who has called us into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ our Lord is faithful and we were. We've seen it happen in times past and anticipated that again and the next morning we got up and just still kind of struck just overwhelmed in a sense but in my quiet time I was journaling and came across Psalm seventy one and it just talks about how the psalmist was crying out for desperate help from God. God came through helped him and he said I will testify of your goodness and he's been more than good. And so yes or right after sharing that we share we prayed we get a knock at the door and it's our son in law from Ames. About five minutes later our daughter and son in law from Pella come and they all had damage in their yards and our son from Michigan showed up and it was pretty awesome. Our daughter from Cedar Rapids and some other folks and family and friends and so that meant the world and that kind of cleared on our front yard in a sense of a lot of the tree damage. But then the next day Jake and Pastor Michael and several other members of the church family here at Veritas showed up and that was that blew us away. I couldn't even be there. I was on conference calls all that day in my car in a parking lot where I can get coverage or reception but just blown away. Our backyard got more cleared out than ever before and so that was impactful and then this week I've had a lot of buddies that I play pickle ball with — my mission playing pickle ball with them is to reach them for Christ and what they've done is turn turn around and —
Jake
One of the one of your players showed up and cleared some trees with us.
Gordon
Right. And he was — he was really impressed with that. I'm hoping he's gonna be coming to Veritas. Oh yeah. That's neat to see.
Jake
That's good. Yeah. It's been an emotional week.
Gordon
Yeah. Without a doubt.
Jake
A roller coaster, but to see God's faithfulness — even to hear how as you climbed out of your house the first thing you did is just walk your neighborhood and pray and to seek to get to know your neighbors. Gordon’s been such an example of faithfulness of sharing and reaching other people with the gospel and you've loved people well and your connection group and we’re so encouraged by you. Hopefully you guys get to know Gordon a little bit so if you see him at church tell him hi or if you live in his neighborhood or want to move in you might get a key lime pie. So yeah we're so thankful for you.d
Gordon
Thank you.