I came across this photo last week and was reminded of the great time Nanci and I had back in 2007 at the Desiring God National Conference in Minneapolis. What strikes me is that though 18 years doesn’t seem that long to someone like me who is 71, the years have gone incredibly quickly, and the memories are so vivid. With John MacArthur’s recent passing, most of the people in the picture above are now in Christ’s presence. From left to right: Jane and Jerry Bridges, John MacArthur, Helen Roseveare, Noël and John Piper, and Nanci and Randy Alcorn (me).

Of the eight of us in the photo, only Noël and John Piper and I are still on this side of Heaven. The other five are with Jesus. (And yesterday, August 21, Dr. James Dobson also went to be with Him.) This passage came to mind:

“Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be.
Remind me that my days are numbered—
how fleeting my life is.
You have made my life no longer than the width of my hand.
My entire lifetime is just a moment to you;
at best, each of us is but a breath.” 

Psalm 39:4-5, NLT

At that conference, the speakers and wives spent an unusual amount of time with each other, which I loved, since sometimes speakers are like ships that pass in the night. We may get some minutes together in the green room, but nothing approaching hours.

Nanci and I loved getting to know Jerry Bridges and his wife Jane. I had met and spoken with Jerry years before, but this was the first time I’d had extended conversations with him. His books The Pursuit of Holiness, The Practice of Godliness, the Joy of Fearing God and Trusting God had a great impact on me. In Nanci’s final years God spoke to her powerfully through Trusting God. If Jerry’s writing had only touched me and Nanci rather than millions, I would always be grateful for him!

My friend John Piper’s books Desiring God, The Pleasures of God, Future Grace, Don’t Waste Your Life and others have impacted my life deeply, and Nanci’s too. Our children and grandchildren have likewise been beneficiaries of his writing. In 2022 John and Noël Piper kindly came to our home to visit with Nanci and pray over her. A powerful and heartwarming time.  (Maggie may have thought they came just for her, though her attention was normally on Nanci.)

Back in time to 2007: there was also John MacArthur (whose celebration of life is on Saturday, August 23, and can be watched on livestream) at that same table with Bridges and Piper, a larger than life figure, who I loved first at a distance and then closer up, though I sometimes very much disagreed with him. Here is a man I respected so much that even though 35 years ago he spoke out publicly and adamantly against me and other pastors for committing civil disobedience to save the lives of unborn children, Nanci and I gladly paid the way for our daughters to attend his Master’s College, and I have zero regrets. Why? Because he believed the Bible and would not put up with having teachers who did not. Karina went there for years, and Angie for only a year before going to nursing school. I’m grateful my daughter Karina’s husband Dan Franklin, pastor of a great church in Upland, California called Life Bible Church, graduated from the Master’s Seminary. John’s books had great impact on me as well, especially The Gospel According to Jesus. Our disagreements were secondary, and in person I thoroughly enjoyed his company.

One day at the conference, Nanci, Jane, Noël, and Helen Roseveare sat together at one table. Nanci told me the women were mesmerized by Helen, who had served God as a missionary in Zaire, and whose story of service and suffering was incredibility powerful. Her session at the conference was more unforgettable than those of any of the rest of us who spoke. I know for sure her reward in the presence of Jesus will be greater than mine, and I would guess it’s greater also than that of all the rest of us in the photo, including the men so well known. (If you doubt this for a moment, you need to read just this one account of Helen’s Christ-glorifying life.)

Meanwhile, as the women had lunch, nearby John Piper, John MacArthur, Jerry Bridges and I were at our own table, close enough that I could hear Nanci’s laughter and the other women joining in. 😊 Not surprisingly, we were discussing a unique theological issue in the interpretation of a biblical passage, one which we didn’t agree on. I pondered, here I am talking theology with Jerry Bridges, John Piper, and John MacArthur! I kept thinking, what am I doing at this table and speaking at this conference? It was the theological equivalent of Sesame Street’s “One of These Things Is Not Like the Others.” 😊

It was also very fun and refreshing. The four of us could disagree (Jerry Bridges with the greatest gentleness) without disrespect, and with the uniting common core of belief in God, His Word, His Son, and His sovereign grace. Our mutual commitment to loving and following Him wholeheartedly overrode all else. (As long as we experience the unity of John 17, our diversity makes the church stronger, not weaker.) It was such a delight to have that unforgettable discussion with three men whose books God had used in my life. One of the most unforgettable experiences of my life. I have sat with many people on many platforms who I deeply respect (and sadly others who, often later, I did not), but I think if I were to choose only three men to have been with that day, those would be the ones.

Despite the 18 years since that conference, the messages are timeless. You can watch them on the Desiring God website. You might enjoy any or all the sessions, including the speaker panel, but let me highly recommend—you guessed it—Helen Roseveare’s session and also the one in which Justin Taylor interviews John Piper and John MacArthur. He asks them about their fathers, and their responses are touching. He asks how they met, and how they have dealt with times of discouragement in their ministries. That was where it got very revealing and pretty funny, as you see two great men who are in some respects similar and in others, especially their emotional makeup, radically different (to the point that they didn’t really “get” each other in this way). But I thought then, and still do now, that it was all the more wonderful because it demonstrates that our unity transcends our differences. I will never forget Nanci and I sitting together in the front row watching that 53-minute interview of these men who God had used in our lives. (It was assigned seating for speakers and wives, or Nanci would never have chosen to sit up front!) Years later, in 2022, there was a second interview of Piper and MacArthur that was an hour and a half, and then two years after that, one that was 72 minutes long. Those are well worth watching also.

Thinking of Piper and MacArthur continuing their relationship in Christ’s presence makes me smile. There’s every reason to believe we’ll pick right up in Heaven with relationships from Earth. We’ll gain many new ones but will continue to deepen the old ones. I think we’ll especially enjoy connecting with those we faced tough times with on Earth and saying, “Did you ever imagine Heaven would be so wonderful?” (It’s also possible that in some cases there will be people we never resolved conflicts with, and we will need to in Heaven where all things must be made right. So let’s get a jump on Heaven now, while we still can, by seeking reconciliation if that’s possible.)

I remember the conference worship was incredible. Most sessions Nanci and I were in the front row, and when we stood, we had over three thousand voices behind us. At times the power of the voices was overwhelming, and God’s Spirit was palpably upon us. And the song selection was tremendous—hymns and choruses and praise songs filled with grace and truth and overflowing with a BIG view of God.

Imagine what Jane and Jerry Bridges, John MacArthur, Helen Roseveare, and my Nanci are experiencing now worshiping in Heaven! Revelation 5:13-14 gives us a glimpse of multitudes of God’s people gathered to sing praise to God for His greatness, wisdom, power, grace, and mighty work of redemption:

And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying,

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb

be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”

And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

One day, overwhelmed by Christ’s magnificence, we will all fall on our faces in unrestrained happiness and say, “Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!” (Revelation 7:9-12).

How I look forward to that! And I hope you do too!