January 2010
A Man of Faith
My heart is full, and I grope for words to express my deep thankfulness for the friendship and love and kindness of Bob and Lucille Bollinger across now many years. As we gather to remember and celebrate a life of giving and unselfish sharing it is remarkable just how many of us Bob has touched. He has helped so many of us in so many ways: with our tax returns, or our planning, or housing or other very practical decisions. He was gifted and yet never overbearing; ready to help anyone where he could.
Bob has been a pastor's friend. Many times Helen and I answered the phone to hear an invitation for dinner, or maybe just Lucy's apple pie after hours; but when we went we almost always stayed for the privilege of getting soundly beat in a game of Rook. Bob and Lucy drove Helen and me to look at a cottage he had discovered' on the Cape that became our home for years. I treasure memories of a week with them and Ken Sullivan in Nova Scotia, or work and witness days in Scotland- where Bob and I sat in a warm trailer office one morning while Lucy was unloading ceramic tiles on the church roof- on and on.
One miracle that happened while we were in Wollaston was how the sanctuary was built. God worked in so many ways, and many people were His instruments. But one story that most people never knew was how desperate the finances became in early 1980 as we were building; the prime rate went to 20% which meant that the medium sized loan we needed would cost the church more than $50,000 a year just for interest! Bob Bollinger came up with the great idea of asking many banks to share the loan at a lower rate; he took his pastor by the hand, as it were, and together we met twelve bank presidents. Actually I sat there looking smarter than I was, and Bob did the talking. And the banks came through- the mortgage was secure, the church completed. Not many people knew whose brilliant idea it was, but the heavenly Father saw and knew.
In the Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew 6, Jesus said," Take heed that you do not do your good deeds so others will see them. Don't even let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Then your reward will come from your Father in heaven, who sees in secret." Only God and Lucy have any idea how many times Bob used his gifts to edify and bless and build. But even these blessings are not Bob's greatest achievements!
One of the richest rewards of the privilege of being a pastor is watching a family prosper. Truly prosper. Across the years Bob and Lucille have faithfully kept their priorities straight, and they have been God's instrument of blessing in many ways. No question, Lucy was Bob's full partner and the love of his life. Bob's many contributions of help and wisdom have blessed us and our churches. But their greatest satisfaction, Bob and Lucy together, is a family committed to God; both sons, Brian and Larry, have become leaders in the church and men of God, taking responsibility and investing their lives in service, with their godly wives Jill and Lynn, and those beloved grandkids, Brandon, Jesse and Kari.
I thank God for the memories of Bob Bollinger, and it is my deep persuasion that his reward has been the heavenly Father's words: "Well done, good and faithful servant!"
-Russell Metcalfe