"Fessor" Charles H. Jones
Graveside
Remarks
"The
Lord Bless You and Keep You"
Charles H. "Fessor"
Jones
September
11, 1915 ~ December 25, 2007
Graveside Remarks
on
December 28, 2007
by Dr. Gene Wilder,
pastor
First Baptist Church
Jefferson City, Tennessee
Here we are, huddled
together around a humble graveside, paying tribute to a dear
friend,
a beloved teacher, a close colleague, a faithful father and a
loving husband. I’m sure this simple graveside
ceremony is a surprise to some. Because Fessor was loved and
respected by so many, some might have expected
a more formal, grand affair, attended by hundreds in the
sanctuary of our church. Fessor’s service
could have included numerous testimonials by friends and co-workers
complete with grand musical
presentations, perhaps even a requiem sung by the A Cappella
Choir.
But that’s not how
Charles Jones wanted to leave this world. Fessor wanted to leave
this world with
nothing more than a few simple words uttered at his graveside by
his pastor. And if you really knew Fessor
at all, you shouldn’t be surprised. You see, Fessor
did very little in life to draw attention to himself.
Instead, Fessor lived behind the scenes, doing all he could to
help the rest of us take our place in the spotlight.
In the end, Fessor did not
live his life to secure the best for himself.
Fessor lived to bring out the best in each of us.
Fessor did so much to bring
out the best in me. As many of you know, I was one of
Fessor’s students.
He taught me music theory and was the director of A Cappella
Choir when I was privileged to be a member.
Yes, Fessor taught me much about music, but I really think the
greatest lessons I learned
from him were the lessons he taught me about life.
To be perfectly honest, when
I studied under Fessor I was somewhat afraid of him. All of us
were.
Fessor set extremely high standards for us, particularly when it
came to singing in A Cappella Choir.
Fessor demanded your best, and if you didn’t give your best
he let you know about it in no uncertain terms.
Over the last few years,
Fessor would get amused when I’d talk about how tough he was.
When I’d reminisce back to old A Cappella days, he’d
look at me and laugh.
Then he’d say, “Gene, I wasn’t really that hard,
was I?”
But
I wouldn’t let him off the hook. I’d tell him,
“Yes, Fessor, you really were that hard.” Then I’d
tell him,
“But in the end, we were glad you were, because you had a
way of bringing out the very best in all of us."
As students do, sometimes
we’d complain among ourselves about how hard Fessor was on
us, but when performance
time came, we stood on the risers and opened our mouths knowing
we were going to excel, knowing we were going
to be at our best because Fessor wouldn’t let us be anything
less.And at that moment, all of us were extremely
grateful to the man who taught us what it meant to excel.
There’s
a verse in Philippians that I think properly memorializes the
life of Fessor. In Philippians 4:8 Paul writes,
Finally, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is
right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely,
whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or
praiseworthy—think about such things.
I believe these words represent Fessor’s theme for living.
Fessor lived his life looking for that which was true,
that which was noble, that which was beautiful, pure and
praiseworthy. He modeled those things in himself and
he looked for those things in others.
As a teacher, Fessor looked for excellence, truth and beauty in
us, often times seeing what others could not see.
Yes, Fessor kept pushing us to be our best, pushing us to be
everything God intended us to be. Never would he
allow us to be satisfied with mediocrity. Instead, he made us
strive for beauty, for truth, for dignity, for excellence.
Providence charts a strange
roadmap for each of our lives, doesn’t it? For me,
Providence could have led me upon
no stranger journey than the one on which I embarked in 2002.
That was the year I became the pastor of the
First Baptist Church of Jefferson City. That was the year when I
became Fessor’s pastor, and to be quite honest,
even though I was a 52 year old man, I wasn’t sure I was up
to the task.
I’ll never forget the first time I looked out across my
congregation and saw Fessor seated there. It was almost
like showing up to his office for my sight-singing final. I kept
thinking, “I sure hope I’m at my best today,
because Fessor won’t tolerate anything less.”
Imagine my delight when, at
the end of the service, Fessor greeted me at the door, shook my
hand and said,
“Excellent job, Gene. Excellent, simply excellent. You
don’t know how thrilled I am to have you as my pastor.”
And when he said it, I knew he meant it.
I’ll never forget that
day as long as I live. Getting that kind of affirmation from
Fessor was almost like hearing God
say, “Well done, well done, my good and faithful servant.”
Over the last six years,
every time I’ve talked to Fessor, he’s always been so
dear and so affirming. And every time
he smiled at me and told me how proud he was of me, I felt like I
had been touched by the hand of God
Interestingly, as a 20 year
old student Fessor knew what it took to bring out the best in me
and, though his
methodology was certainly different, he knew what it took to
bring out the best in his 52 year old pastor, too.
Like
I said, he taught me much about music, but the greatest lesson of
all is what he taught me about life.
He taught me to be my best and, for that, I owe him a great debt
of gratitude.
Ann, Fessor's not the only
one who taught us how to excel. You have done the same as we've
watched the way
you cared for the husband you loved. You did so much to enrich
his life, to preserve his dignity and to care for
his most significant needs. He loved you so much and all of us
could tell how much you loved him, too. Thank you
for the way you loved our dear friend and for the example
you’ve given us in loving one another.
Like many of you, I look
forward to heaven, to the place without pain, a place where I
will see loved ones
and a place where I can experience the eternal fullness of Christ.
But now, when I think about heaven
I’ll have one more thing to anticipate. I’ll look
forward to the day when I can, again, sing in Fessor’s choir.
I’m sure God will let Fessor lead the heavenly choir,
because God wants the best, doesn’t he?
And who better to bring out the best than Fessor?
Yes, I’ll look forward to that day when
I’ll stand with the throng who will intently watch
as Fessor strokes that first downbeat, and even though his
conducting pattern
will be somewhat unconventional, we’ll flawlessly sing
together;
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord lift His countenance upon you,
And give you peace, and give you peace;
The Lord make His face to shine upon you,
And be gracious, and be gracious;
The Lord be gracious, gracious unto you.
Amen.
I’m going to miss my
dear friend Fessor, but there’s a part of him that will live
on in me forever.
It’s the part of me that strives to excel, to be the best I
can be for the glory of God,
and while death may take away Fessor’s body, it can never
take away the spirit he implanted in each of us.
Thanks be to God for the
life of Charles Jones.
Thanks be to God for Fessor,
our teacher, our encourager and our dear friend.
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