Rogers' Family Statement
We would like to thank all who have offered prayers, sent expressions of love and kindness, and given practical help on behalf of our family during these days. We are also especially grateful for the wonderful team of doctors, nurses, and other medical staff, who have given the very best of their time, knowledge, and creative energy, in order to preserve the life of our beloved husband, father, and grandfather, and minimize his physical pain.
Although we had all maintained hope up to the very end for a miraculous restoration of his health, we are comforted in the knowledge that he is now resting in the presence of his Lord and Savior to whom he dedicated his life and ministry on this earth. We cling to the assurance of God’s grace, as He, in His infinite wisdom, has determined the right timing of his homecoming.
On various occasions, he had proclaimed: “when my time comes, don’t be sorry for me; I’ll be kicking up gold dust on the streets of glory.” Shortly after being admitted to the hospital diagnosed with cancer-induced pneumonia, he stated “this is a win-win for me,” indicating his confidence that, whether God chose to heal him or not, he was in his hands. Among the last words that he uttered before being hooked up to the ventilator which inhibited his speech during his last days were “I am at perfect peace.” His favorite Bible passage was Romans 8:38-39: “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
His last days, spent in the hospital on artificial ventilation, were marked by an unusual sense of spiritual strength and serenity. He maintained his positive attitude and sense of humor up to the very end. Even during this time, in which he was unable to communicate verbally, we all felt his deep love for us. Moments before undergoing intubation, he wrote a note containing the words “I love you!” and the names of his four children and their spouses, his nine grandchildren, and his first great-grandchild, Marianna Rose Luce, born on November 14th. A second note expressed his love for his wife, Joyce, who later commented: “In all our life together, there was never a day that passed that he did not say 'I love you.'"
We, although deeply saddened by our loss, are at the same time profoundly grateful for the many years of happiness we have been blessed to share with this wonderful prince of a man named Adrian Rogers.
Adrian Rogers was one of the few Christian leaders that I highly respected. He will certainly be missed.
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