MY TRIBUTE TO DENNIS—A MAN OF GOD
On June 24th, at 4:06 AM, God called Pastor Dennis Clark to his eternal home. He was 81. I had the tremendous privilege of knowing this wonderful man of God. He became a very dear friend for almost 50 years of my life. He was one of the founders of the movement of churches I spent all those years loving and serving. I have known very few men like him. This is my memorial tribute to this wonderful, godly man.
I first came to know of Dennis Clark in 1977, when my finance Kathy and I were going through an extremely intense season of persecution for our Christian faith. We lived in Ames, Iowa at the time and Dennis and his wife lived in Columbus, Ohio. They generously opened up their home for my wife to stay that summer of 1977, though they had never met us before. I have never, ever forgotten the love, hospitality, sacrifice, and kindness they showed to my wife during that excruciating time in our lives. They provided a safe haven and a place of refuge for her.
In 1979, Dennis sang in our wedding, and performed the song he composed, Psalm 123, for our wedding processional. Later that year, he and I worked for weeks in the music studio on my first album, for which Dennis was the producer. I had the privilege of spending extended time with him then, and what a rich blessing this man became to my life. He had recently moved his family to Ames and we started spending more time together.
Dennis was a man who lived the Christian faith. He was a living demonstration of the Gospel, and devotion to Christ. I had grown up attending a solid Christian church, but never had I witnessed a man living out his Christianity as I witnessed in Dennis. It wasn’t all talk to him—Dennis lived his faith and Christianity. He practiced it wholeheartedly.
I was deeply humbled that Dennis took an interest in my life. He really cared about me, and we would often go out on the ISU campus and share the Gospel with young college students. He was one of the few people who believed in me. He chose to see through the many rough edges of my life and personality, believing God could use me for His divine purposes. All through the last 48 years, he’s been that way with me. A true and faithful friend.
Dennis was genuinely humble, kind, gracious, faithful, and a man of real integrity. He wasn’t into fame or glory. He was into servanthood, and he was a remarkable example of this godly quality.
He wasn’t fake, he wasn’t a fraud, he wasn’t duplicitous, or disingenuous. Dennis was the real deal. He was a man of deep, abiding faith and love for Jesus Christ.
Dennis was, in my estimation, a wonderful father and husband. He loved his wife and children with all his heart. He sacrificed for them, loved them, spent time with them, and sought to exemplify Christ to them in every way he could. I greatly admired this in Dennis, as my own father abandoned his wife and children, choosing to move far away and stay uninvolved in our lives. Dennis was just the opposite of that. He was wholeheartedly devoted. He genuinely strove to bring them up in “the training and ways of the Lord,” as the Bible commands, and it showed. He was such a wonderful example to me as a young father. Dennis and Thelma were the first homeschooling family we ever knew. They were literally on the “cutting edge” of this revolutionary way of raising and training your family for Christ.
I always admired Dennis’s patience with his family and in his dealing with others.
I loved this man of God. I was enriched in every way knowing this man.
I wrote this to Dennis on his 80th birthday, and I share it now with all of you:
Dennis,
How I praise God my dear brother, that He brought you into this world and into my life.
What a tremendous blessing you’ve been to me. Your steadfast faith in Christ, your perseverance through all these years of afflictions, great trials, difficulties, setbacks, heartbreaks, and disappointments, has been remarkable. You have been a true inspiration to my own walk with Jesus Christ. Your faith is worthy of imitation my dear friend. I consider you a man of heroic faith.
I love your spirit, your humility, your joy, your smile, your Christ-like gentleness, and your devotion to helping others.
I have found great comfort over the last 48 years I’ve known you, in your faithful love. The many times I saw you through the years you always had an encouraging word.
I will NEVER forget your great kindness to me and to Kathy. Never!
You are an extremely wealthy man in eternity my dear friend.
Thank you for using your life, gifts and talents to serve the Lord and to serve all of us! God will not forget! I have not forgotten!!
I love you dearly.
Pastor Mark Darling
Dennis died on the Battlefield of faith. A true lover of Jesus Christ. I leave you with this song, Battlefield, as a dedication to this godly man. My two oldest children performed and recorded it for me for Fathers day. It accurately and beautifully portrays Dennis Clark. Please listen and remember this wonderful man.
https://strongdisciple.com/wp-
Helping you become a Strong Disciple,
Because of Jesus,
Pastor Mark Darling
