Appreciation for a Spiritual Father
Our beloved brother, Leonard DeBuhr, whom the Lord received into His presence September 8, 2007, has now gone to his reward and is with the One Whom he so faithfully served.
He was saved on December 23, 1938, and commended to the full-time service of the Lord in 1946. The Lord blessed him much in his labors in the Midwest and especially in this area of northeast Iowa. In 1947, he and George Gould saw a large number saved in a gospel tent in Parkersburg, IA. In 1959, he and Eric McCullough held a gospel series in the Stout Gospel Hall and preached for seventeen weeks with over forty professing salvation. I was among this group that God saved. I remember that, after closing this long gospel series, the preachers had a week and a half of ministry for the newly saved. This was very beneficial. As a result of these efforts and others through the years, many are in assembly fellowship through his labors.
Through the years, Leonard’s visits to the assemblies, conferences, and our homes were much appreciated. His ministry was always fresh and readily assimilated into our Christian lives. This dear brother taught us the wonders of the person of Christ and the mind of God by holy precepts.
Brother Leonard demonstrated a very warm personality and a kind and gentle spirit. I was privileged to visit him frequently in his later years; although his poor eyesight limited his activities, he was always cheerful, upbeat, and enjoying the things of God. After a visit with him, I always left with an uplifted spirit and fresh thoughts of Christ. He and his wife were a couple that demonstrated their love for one another and their Lord. When his dear help-meet went home to glory in 1992, Leonard had told her he would join her a “little later” and he has done so now.
His labors on earth have now ended and we cherish the memories of our dear brother, Leonard DeBuhr. We appreciated the fellowship, friendship, support, and guidance of this “man of God.”
