She died, just as she lived--graciously. Debby Dillard was and is a saint. She was the most kind and gracious woman I ever met. Debby has been like a second mom to me over the last 25 years. She knows all the dirt on me there is to know and yet she still called me her pastor. Certainly she was a saint because of having Jesus Christ in her life, but she lived like a saint too. It did not matter how bad she felt, she always had a smile on her face. Whether she had little strength or not, she would go out of her way to make you feel like you were the most important person on the face of the earth. Whether she was working at a bank, for a contractor, in an insurance office or serving as a teacher in Sunday School, Debby did it with excellence. As her pastor, I will never forget her telling me, "All I can do is help with children." Well, the "all" she did could not be matched by any other. Children loved Ms. Debby. I wish I could do "all" she could do and have people love me the way all the kids loved her. There will be countless kids in heaven because of her faithfulness to serve, whether she felt like it or not.

I believe there is as much of a story in how we die as there is in how we live. Debby proved that to be true. She kept her faith. She bragged on Jesus. Debby was gracious and ready. It is no surprise that a week after the doctors told her they could do no more, she went out to meet her Lord and her Savior, but not before showing up at church one last time to see a few precious children follow through with believer's baptism--no doubt they were children her life touched. Our loss is certainly heaven's gain. She truly was a saint and she would want make sure that I told you this major truth: She was a saint because of her Savior, Jesus Christ. Without Him she would not have been the person she was. Thank you Debby for showing us how to live and how to die as a Christ follower. And Praise to You, O God, for the difference You make in our lives.