Well Done Good And Faithful Servant

 

        I remember Joyce telling me that Ardell Lanier was on the phone.  If Ardell is calling me, I thought, it must be something important.  It was.

        One of Lexington’s most generous and faithful servants is being laid to rest this weekend.  Ardell Lanier was a successful businessman who believed in giving back to the community who supported his business.  He was a cornerstone in First United Methodist Church.  Ardell and Edna have been generous benefactors of numerous agencies, charities, and worthy causes in the community.  My son’s agency, Carolina Cancer Services, is indebted to the Lanier’s for the house where they are headquartered. 

        Lanier Hardware is an institution in our town.  No visit to Lexington is complete without time to browse through Lanier’s.  If Lanier’s doesn’t have it—you probably don’t need it.   A few years ago I was getting ready to go to Belize when I got a phone call from a missionary in Belize telling me about a part he needed.  I had never heard of it.

        “It will be hard to find,” he told me.

        I went to see Ardell.  He knew exactly what I was talking about, but did not have it in stock.  “When do you need it?”  He asked.

        “I’m leaving for Belize in two days,” I told him.

        When I got on the plane I had the part with me, thanks to Ardell. 

        But perhaps nothing tells you more about the heart of this great man than the reason for the phone call that day.  Ardell told me that the prison needed a chapel and he was committed to raising the money to make it happen.  He wanted me to serve on the committee.

        I had every reason to say no.  I was already serving on two hospital boards, several community boards, and had more on my plate than I could remember.  But saying no to Ardell never entered my mind.  As Max Walser said, “The members of the prison board all told me that God was leading them to do this.  I wasn’t sure I heard the voice of God, but I heard Ardell’s voice and that was all I needed.”

        Raising money to build a chapel at the prison was an impossible task.  Lexington’s economy was at an all time low.  The recovery from the recession had not even started to materialize.  And this was a very unpopular cause.  Many people would not even consider investing in a chapel for prisoners. 

        But Ardell didn’t worry about popular opinion or economic forecasts—he had a greater calling.  He accomplished the impossible and a beautiful chapel is in use at the prison today.  I don’t know of anyone who could have accomplished that other than Ardell Lanier.   And nothing tells you more about the heart of this humble servant than his desire to build a prison chapel for the “least of these.”

        Hear the words of Jesus from Matthew 25.

³¹ “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. ³² All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, ³³ and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. ³⁴ Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; ³⁵ for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, ³⁶ I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ ³⁷ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? ³⁸ And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? ³⁹ And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ ⁴⁰ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.

  Well done, good and faithful servant.