Diakonos...This Was Ray POINTS T O PONDER


by PASTOR SCOTT HECHT God providentially worked in the bookends of Ray Re-


imer’s life, birth and homegoing. He was born on All Saints’ Day, November 1, 1926.


What a fitting birthday for one who would be set apart for the Lord’s work for many, many years! A brief synopsis of these years of ministry: In 1947, Ray Reimer went to Oma- ha, Nebraska, to attend Grace Bible Institute, graduating from the Mission Program in 1951. It was there that he met Gertrude (Trudy) Brown who would become his wife on July 22, 1951. Following graduation, Ray became the Omaha director for Child Evangelism Fellowship until the fall of 1957 when Ray and Trudy accepted the call from a church near Arnold, Nebraska. During the next 30 years, Ray and Trudy served in four churches in Iowa and Ne- braska. In 1991, Ray and Trudy moved to Lincoln, Nebras- ka, to retire, but the Lord had other plans. Ray served as Pastor of Holmes Park Bible Church, now Heartland Bible Church, and continued in leadership there as pastor and/or elder until just last year, 2020.


He went home to heaven on a Sunday morning,


August 1, 2021. What a fitting homegoing for Ray! If at all humanly possible, he wanted to be worshipping with the Lord’s people on a Sunday. In his last several weeks, his health prevented him from attending worship; but on that Sunday morning and now through all eternity, he joined together with the spirits of the righteous made perfect (Heb. 12:23), worshipping in the direct presence of him who loved him, and gave himself up for him.


He had this God-given inner drive and determination


to continue serving; to continue to minister. Even into his 80’s he continued in very difficult volunteer ministry with the Lincoln Fire and Police chaplaincy corps; even into his 90’s he continued to serve as an elder at Heartland Bible Church.


I take it his humor helped in those times when he fought


the weariness. He was great with the one-liners. A difficult choice? It was like being between the tree and the bark.


His last time speaking from the pulpit was October 4,


2020, our 50th anniversary service. As a matter of fact, you can still see that online on our Heartland Bible YouTube channel. In a classic way, to end his message he said, “I’m just a little bit like the bear cub sitting on a block of ice, saying, 'Mama, my tail is cold.'"


Ray was not only a tenacious minister. He was a faithful


one. One passage I heard Ray quote often was 1 Corinthi- ans 4:1-2. "This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful. "


He was entrusted with the Word of God; and he want-


ed to faithfully convey it as long as he was able. It was about in 2007 that we determined to have as


part of our Sunday School curriculum a through-theBible- in-5-years track. Ray was 81. “Would you be willing to take on this task of teaching through the entire Bible in five years?” I asked. Well, he responded something like, “Will I even be around that long?” Of course, he said yes to this ministry; and of course, he made it through that series – and then some!


He was a tenacious minister. He was a faithful min-


ister. Finally, he was a minister of the gospel. The apostle Paul once said in Ephesians 3:7, "Of this gospel I was made a minister (diakonos) according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the working of his power."


Because he believed the Bible; because he believed Ray Reimer (font center) led a men's Bible study for over 30 years. For all of us who knew him, a good one-word descrip-


tion of Ray is the word “minister.” In the New Testament, it is a translation of the Greek word diakonos, and very literal- ly it connotes the idea of being a servant. Sometimes that is just how it is translated in the New Testament. Jesus once said in Matthew 20:26, “It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant.” Diakonos ... this was Ray.


He was a tenacious minister. His favorite verse was


Galatians 6:9, and he exemplified it: And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.


in Jesus Christ; Ray knew that matters of eternity hang in the balance.


As a minister of the gospel, he even, for a time, consid-


ered making a video of himself sharing the gospel for his memorial service. That didn’t end up happening, but to the end, he remained minister, servant.


We who knew him well, will greatly miss him!


Scott Hecht is head pastor at Heartland Bible Church in Lin- coln, Nebraska. He graduated from the University of Nebras- ka-Lincoln, and from the Master’s Seminary in Los Angeles, California (1995). Scott has pastored churches in Springfield, South Dakota, and Indianapolis, Indiana. He joined the Heart- land Bible Church staff full-time in October of 2003.


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