Read the following tribute to a powerful man of God, written by his loving daughter. He will be greatly missed... Tribute to my dad, Delbert L. Otwell By Adonna Otwell August 28, 2013, 1:58 pm It has been said that the last words of “Antipas, [Jesus] faithful martyr,” [Rev. 2:13] were, “I have lived my whole life for this day.” Upon seeing Jesus, my father could have well uttered those same sentiments when he transitioned to heaven on Wednesday. Daddy was a “man full of faith and the Holy Ghost,” as was said of men of old. He never dwelt on or talked about death, but was daily “looking for the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior, Jesus Christ”—the rapture of the church! Isn’t that the way we are all supposed to live! Most people do not know this about Daddy, but he held a degree. He served as a deacon at De Leon Assembly of God for 30 years. The Bible says that “they which have used the office of a deacon well purchase to themselves a good degree…” His father Granddad Jack, would work in the fields all week, and tell Daddy he would get him a testimony together—like a mini-sermon. Then Granddad would give it at church during the testimony service, and people would be greatly blessed. So Daddy followed in his footsteps and did the same thing, and people were greatly charged by his anointed testimonies. When he was a child, Granddad would ask Daddy to go to the barn and pray with him—Daddy loved to go with Granddad everywhere. Granddad Jack would pray a little, and then say, “Delbert, you pray a little.” Daddy followed his father’s example and became a great man of prayer. One of my most treasured memories, is Daddy being my alarm clock, as I would awaken to him praying in the living room every morning. Monkey see, monkey do. Parents and grandparents, let your kids see and hear you reading the Bible and praying. This will save them from much regret. Daddy read the Bible daily, even having us read a chapter out of the Old and New Testament, until the day he went to Heaven. He read the New Testament through, over 100 times, and the entire Bible through over 50 times. He was an avid proponent of Sunday School, reading that lesson without fail every week. He could have been the poster child for Sunday School in the A/G. There was not a wild cat that came to our farm that Daddy did not tame. He would have been a great animal trainer. Daddy was the toughest man I ever met. His endurance was amazing. The World War II Vet mentality is rare these days. Daddy was a Biblical Barnabas, “son of encouragement.” He looked for something to compliment in every person, thus he made many friends. When he was in the military, a soldier friend who could not read or write, asked Daddy to compose a letter for him to his sweetheart. Daddy really poured it on, just like if he were writing Mother (incidentally Mother wrote Daddy a handwritten letter every single day for 3 ½ years when he was in the Army)—that’s rare love and devotion! Daddy asked the soldier what he thought: “Boy, that is good!” was the reply. He was what I would call a hospital chaplain, in the bed, in his homegoing season. He prayed and witnessed to doctors and nurses alike, including medical professionals from Nigeria, Liberia, Sierre Leon, Philippines, England, Vietnam, India and Mexico, including a Buddhist and a Muslim doctor. I remember one morning he opened his eyes to a nurse and said, “there’s only 2 places you can go, either up or down!” She said, “Well I don’t want to go down!” Daddy proceeded to make sure she was ready. He loved to sing—that’s one thing he looked so forward to every day—We daily sang, “It Won’t Always be This Way,” “Wilt Thou Be Made Whole,” “Bigger than all my Problems,” and “Walking the Sea.” He went to Heaven to the song, “I am Determined to Hold Out to the End.” He agreed in prayer with me down his prayer list one last time. The Lord spoke a verse to me that he had “an abundant entrance into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” The last thing I told him was, “I will be right behind you.” “Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” “Behold He cometh.” Daddy went to Heaven with his hand resting on the Bible, Rev. 17. The Director of Nursing walked in and said, “This room is full of angels, and it is giving me chills all over.” Thus Daddy transitioned from earth to heaven on Wednesday. He taught us how to live, and he taught us how to graduate. This is just a pause, he’s on vacation, and we will join him soon. If you will live like he lived, you will go where he is.
Posted on: Thu, 05 Sep 2013 21:04:05 +0000