My wonderful farther died on August 24. We had a beautiful celebration of life at St. Marks UMC, cedar rapids (thank you pastor Bonnie.) I wrote this testimony to my father's faith. Thought some of you who knew him would be interested in seeing this.
Richard Ralph Plocher. You may have known him as “Dick” or “Rich” but I knew him as Dad .
God gave us the gift of his life for 76 years and called him back to his glorious home on August 24 while mom and I were reading devotions at the foot of his hospice bed. We were reading Psalm 118 which says, “THIS IS THE DAY THAT THE LORD HAS MADE, LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.” Moments later Dad took his last breath here on earth and experienced the glorious sunrise of the new day that we call heaven. Suddenly Psalm 118 takes on a whole new meaning for him, and for me.
I am going to ask you to say that verse with me several times while I speak. I will begin. “This is the day that the lord has made.” You will respond, “LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.”
“This is the day that the lord has made-...-LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.”
There are so many stories I could tell, and memories I could share, but each of you have your own memories too. So I want to take this moment to just testify to my father’s faith and faithfulness. When we moved to Cedar Rapids and joined St. Mark's, dad almost neve missed Sunday worship. As important as worship was, however, for him that faith started on the way out the church door and was really a way of life.
Dad went the extra mile, or should I say the extra several hundred extra miles, because he knew both his customers and his family depended on him. Some days he would leave home so early that he would be halfway across the state before I got up to go to school so that he could make it to some far corner of the state, fix wheel balancer, and most nights be home for supper. Dad lived the golden rule. “Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you.” “This is the day that the lord has made-...-LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.”
Dad was a neighbor to anyone in need whether it be a stranger alongside the road, a neighbor experiencing an illness, a friend who needed help moving, or anyone who needed a ride. I used to tease him about taking in strays, because he was always willing to help people whom other people didn’t even notice- the ones Jesus would call “the least of these.” Dad lived by Matthew 25 “When you have done it to the least of these you have done it to Jesus.” “This is the day that the lord has made -...-LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.”
Dad loved being in mission. He loved working at the Clothes Hanger next-door to the church , delivering Thanksgiving meals, volunteering with Matthew 25, and supporting the Habitat for Humanity Restore.
He especially enjoyed going on mission trips. When Orrin and I were youth, he drove that big FMC van to Tennessee with us on two mission trips. Of course, most people thought FMC stood for First Methodist Church. After two more mission trips to the UMCOR Depot in Louisiana, and many years later, mom and dad jumped at the opportunity to help me out when I needed a couple more adults on a mission trip to Colorado . They were so proud to have three generations of Plochers on that trip. They became grandma and grandpa to every one of those 80 kids that week. And at least one of them is in the congregation this morning. Dad never failed to ask about whether I had heard from Matt because he hoped that maybe that trip had some small part in Matt's decision to enter the pastoral ministry. Dad truly tried to be faithful to Jesus’ command to “love your neighbor” “This is the day that the lord has made -...-LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.”
Recently I asked my dad how many of these crosses he thought he had made and given out across the country. He had no idea, but was sure there were several hundred. (I suspect that's quite conservative.) We mused together that day about who might be wearing them and what kind of witness they might be spreading after all these years.
Of course, there were also the toy vehicles, ranging from the beautiful train he made for Orrin, to the suitcase of simple wooden cars he sent with me to Haiti to put a smile on the faces of orphans who had no other toys. He loved that he could turn his hobby into a ministry. We recently talked about how those children have probably worn the wheels off those toys, and how he wished he could send more.
He even found a way for his tools to be in ministry when he no longer needed them. He sold many of his tools - large and small - at fire sale prices to a pastor who sent them to the Congo to be used in ministry there. Dad really tried to live as a faithful witness to Christ.” “This is the day that the lord has made -...-LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.”
Even his 14 year battle with cancer became a ministry. He took every opportunity he could to encourage others who were just learning to live with the disease. I was also amazed that he always had the idea that even if a treatment wouldn't help him, the doctors might learn something from him that would help someone else. He would be so happy to know that after he no longer needed them his corneas went to help someone else to see. “This is the day that the lord has made -...-LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.”
Now let me be clear, that I am not here to saint my father today, no one is perfect. My point is that dad tried his hardest to live most of his life for others, and all of his life for God.
Sure, Dad taught Orrin and me lessons like “use the right tool for the job,” “a little blood won't hurt you,” “you’ll never be able to keep that a secret from your mother,” “be nice to girls,” “keep gas in the tank and check the oil,” and “keep a spare key in the wheel well.” (That was when wheel wells used to be made of metal). There were other lessons, however, that we learned from Dad that were even more important. Lessons like loving your neighbor, doing unto others, the joy of servanthood, the value of sacrifice, and most importantly, that we were always loved, no matter what. “This is the day that the lord has made -...-LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.”
My prayer in these last months has been that dad would have as many good days as he could have, and when he could have no more, that God would give him peace. God answered my prayer. The night before he died, I read him this passage from Revelation 21. “God will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the old order of things has passed away, and the new has come.” Then I played a song by Jeremy Camp which we will play in just a few minutes. The Lyrics say, “There will be a day with no more tears-- No more pain, and no more fears --There will be a day when the burdens of this place --Will be no more, we'll see Jesus face to face.-- But until that day, we hold on to you always.”
We still hold on to the wonderful memories of a faithful man of God, a good man, a good husband, and a great dad whom we love very much. But we also give thanks that, for him, the battle with cancer is over and the great a glorious new day has come in eternal life. And we can almost hear his voice from heaven saying with us as we say together, “This is the day that the lord has made-...-LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.”
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