Every once in a while, you come across someone who touches your heart in one way or another.
You just know this person is special in some way for some reason – and you know this person will be with you forever, even after he or she has passed on to bigger and better things.
I’m extremely fortunate to have some very, very good friends around here – people who mean the world to me and people who would go into battle with me, or at least always be there during the thick and thin of life.
They are the special ones we can share anything with and have those always essential “off the record” conversations as we call them in my little corner of the world.
Jack Purcell passed away late last month after living a long, important and eventful life. His memorial service is scheduled today.
From every angle, every corner and every reason I can think of, he was a good man – and a good friend.
If you didn’t already know, Jack wrote a faith column for The Star for years and years and years. Titled “On the Journey,” he tackled and explained issues of faith, quoting scripture and backing up Jesus Christ as his savior, my savior and your savior.
Jack published two books containing the columns he wrote for The Star, and he gave me a signed copy of both. They have a special place on my bookshelf next to some other favorite books.
In each book, he wrote me a little message.
“Keith, Blessings on you in your journey ahead, my friend” is what he said in his first book, published in 2019.
“To Keith, my friend, may God bless you on your journey” is what he scribed in Volume II, published last year.
He even mentioned me in the Preface of the second book: “This is Volume II of a collection of columns written for The Boerne Star, the local paper for the growing town of Boerne, Texas. These articles are reprints that appeared weekly in the Friday edition of the paper. The author is grateful to the paper’s editor and friend, Keith Domke, for his support.”
In both books, he wrote to everyone, “May you be blessed On the Journey.”
I can’t honestly say I knew Jack as well as I know many of you, but I certainly knew him well enough to call him a good friend and a good partner of the Great Commission as found in Matthew 28.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Amen.
Jack was not afraid to tell it like it is, using scripture as his basis and proof. He believed, as I do, that the Bible is the infallible word of God and that the centuries have not watered down its purpose or meaning. It remains our instruction book, and as we say in the courts is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
When Jack would turn in his column to me before it was published, I read it both from an editor’s standpoint and a Christian standpoint. I’d tuck away points he made about how we are to live, trust God and follow Jesus. It was all good stuff.
When Jack got too sick to write anymore, I decided to go back a few years and republish some of his columns. For no real reason, I landed on 2013 and have been printing those every Friday for several weeks – and will continue to do so.
Jack’s words still ring true as he follows our Lord – and now is with Him – and helps us understand what true faith, trust, believing and, yes, even sin and its consequences and repentance are all about.
On several occasions, Jack would stop by the office for a visit. They never were overly lengthy, but they were good and fun. We shared jokes, making each other laugh, and talked about newspapers, the military, Boerne and Kendall County, family and, of course, faith. The faith conversations were especially wonderful as a couple of Christians shared thoughts, “war stories” and insights and encouraged each other on the next steps of our journey.
I truly wish I would have had more talks with Jack, but I will savor the ones we did have.
We all need a Jack Purcell or two in our lives, and my life is better – and stronger – because our paths crossed. It’s not going out on a limb to call him a biblical scholar, even though he was not an ordained minister.
And, certainly, it’s not going out on a limb to call him a true friend.
I will miss Jack Purcell … a lot. And to his lovely wife, Mary, and Jack’s other family members, may God continue to bless you and keep you and give you peace on your journey.
Goodbye, my friend. And thank you. I can’t wait to see you again and continue our wonderful conversations at a future date in heaven. I know God already has a seat reserved for me there, but please save me that seat somewhere near you.
As always, thanks for reading. And, I encourage you to read Jack’s words every Friday in The Star, too.
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