When my wife Sara and I were in Louisville, we had theblessing of being part of Tom Nettles’ Sunday school class at DeHaven Memorial Baptist Church in Lagrange, Kentucky. Through that class, Tom was our friend and pastor and cared well for us as we went through a range of life changes. Two instances in particular stand out.
One was when Sara was giving birth to our third child, Andrew, in 2001. Tom and Margaret not only came out to the house to check on us, but they brought us a meal, thoughtfully packaged with foods that were appropriate for our then two older children (then three and a half and two).
The other was shortly after that. We had bought a house and were moving from Crestwood to Bedford, Kentucky. Who was out there to help me load the truck? Tom – I can still remember him loading our refrigerator on the truck and making sure that our relatively few possessions safely made the journey to the next county.
Those two instances have always stuck with me, both because they were a mark of Tom’s friendship to me, but also because they spoke about him as a Christian man: gracious, caring, humble, helpful. I’m so thankful that God caused our path to go through Louisville so that we might know Tom Nettles. I congratulate him on closing this part of his ministry at Southern Seminary but know that God will continue to use him in the days ahead for his glory.
Sean Michael Lucas
Senior Minister, First Presbyterian Church
Hattiesburg, MS
Associate Professor of Church History
Reformed Theological Seminary/Jackson