Keys to the Kingdom By Carolyn Tucker
My sweet and tender-hearted big brother slipped away from all those who loved him on June 17, 2022.
Always thinking and planning ahead, Randy made sure he and his sweetheart Corda made it to their 55th wedding anniversary the day before.
When I was two years old, I couldn’t talk plain, so when I wanted a drink, I would go to my brother and say, “Nanny dink.” There was a ten-year difference in our ages and I remember asking my Dad in later years, “Why in the world did you and Mom have us so far apart?” Without missing a beat, his pithy answer was, “We didn’t want you two to fight.” Well, their scheme worked! We never had a fight, misunderstanding, or disagreement in all my 64 years.
However, he did have a mischievous streak because he once convinced me to taste dirt. I did it because I was little and stupid…and he knew it!
During our youngest years growing up together in California, he was an excellent entertainer. We had twin beds and he would make a bridge with his body between the beds and I would crawl across on his back from one bed to the other. Then when he was 15 years of age, we moved back to our folks’ roots (Stockton, Missouri) so Randy wouldn’t marry some California girl and get stuck out there. I thought that was really wise on my folks’ part and it worked out great for all of us. I got to go on some of Randy and Corda’s dates and that was really fun and made me feel special. Just seven-years old, I had no idea I wasn‘t supposed to sit in the middle of the lovebirds. But I got by with it because I was Randy’s little sister.
Through the years, I watched my brother devote his life to becoming a man that God could use to accomplish His will. Randy was a man after God’s own heart. He listened to the gentle whispers of God’s voice and then he simply obeyed. Many years ago, he had a super-nice bicycle that he enjoyed very much, but he gave it away to someone who needed it. “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?” (1 John 3:17 NIV).
I watched my brother obey the vision and direction God gave him in 1993. Jailhouse Rock Ministries ships Bibles and Christian literature to jails and prisons across the entire State of Missouri. He had a heart for helping those who could not help themselves. “Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself.“ (Hebrews 13:3 NLT). I now pray, “Heavenly Father, let the man (whom You have chosen) hear and obey Your voice. I believe he is waiting in the wings right now, ready to stand in the gap for JHR.“
Just five days before Randy met Jesus face to face, he selflessly stood at the pulpit in Pittsburg, Missouri and delivered one of his most-anointed messages ever. I suspect he knew it was the last time, so God’s Spirit came down and helped him preach a home run. “For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes — the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in His sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith“ (Romans 1:16,17 NLT).
My brother loved hard, prayed hard, and was passionate about sharing the uncompromised Word of God. He loved the Lord with all his heart, soul, mind, and strength. He stood with his feet on the Rock, defended the faith, and showed mercy to those who were going down for the last time. He ran hard and finished his race as a good and faithful servant of Jesus Christ.
The Key: Even though he was small in stature, Randy Hayward was a giant of a man.