Aunt Eleanor Wade Goins . . . In Loving Memory

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Posted by Rev. Nadine Drayton-Keen in Poetry

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Aunt Eleanor, compassionate, evangelist, fruit of the Holy Spirit, godly woman, in loving memory, one of 12 children, prayer warrior, preacher, soft-spoken, sweet, tribute, visionary, Yeshua-like

But the fruit of the Ruach is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Messiah have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

If we live by the Ruach, let us also walk by the Ruach. Let us not become conceited—provoking one another, envying one another. – Galatians 5:22-26, TLV

It has been years since I last saw Aunt Eleanor, which was on January 20, 2007. She was back in Wilkes-Barre on that day to say her final goodbyes to a sister who helped raise her – my Mom, Lucille Wade-Drayton.

The last thing I heard my Mom say about Aunt Eleanor was how powerfully she prayed for Mom. This prayer happened some weeks before Mom died peacefully in Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center. So, what stands out the most when I think about my Aunt Eleanor, is that she was an evangelist, a pulpit preacher, and a prayer warrior.

She also was very sweet and soft-spoken, and these two things I realized about her when I saw her on January 13, 2007. While I was sitting in Mount Zion Church’s multipurpose room – where the family had gathered before my Mom’s homegoing service started – Aunt Eleanor came close to me, commented on how much I looked like my Mom, told me she had heard some great things about me during her frequent talks with my Mom, told me how sorry she was about my loss, and gave me a big hug and a sweet kiss on my right cheek.

Most of what I know about my Aunt Eleanor I learned from my Mom because my aunt lived in Chicago while I was growing up in Wilkes-Barre, so I rarely saw her. Nevertheless, I do have some things that I liked the most about her because they are things we have in common.

The first thing I like about Aunt Eleanor is how deeply she loved YeHoVaH. As I already mentioned, she was a preacher and an evangelist; however, what I recently learned is that she preached the Gospel of Yeshua every 4th Sunday, and she evangelized on the streets wherever she went, up until the end of her life. That information inspired me, as I am a preacher and evangelist, too.

Like me, Aunt Eleanor also experienced the loss of a child. She lost her son, Franky, in 2013, and I lost my son, Ade, in 2017. But what is most important is that none of her losses kept her from doing what YeHoVaH called her to do. It is my prayer that someone one day will say the same thing about me.

“Godly Woman” is the poem that I have dedicated to my Aunt Eleanor who was a godly woman. I finished writing this poem just a few minutes before I posted it here. This poem is my tribute to an aunt I rarely saw or spoke to, yet I know more about her than I know about my aunts I did see and did talk with more. The poem I wrote is as follows:

            Godly Woman
 
 
Some people you can know for years,
Yet not know the real them;
Other people you can know of but never
Spend much time with them,
Yet know their spirits and their souls.
 
Aunt Eleanor is an old soul who displayed
Wisdom and special talents in her youth;
Her sage-like qualities put her in a world
Of her own – peerless vision mom noticed
About her when she was just a teenager,
Exhibiting a special talent – an empathetic
Flair to connect with people – spirituality
Too hard to ignore, as was her giving gift.
 
She consoled others even when she hurt,
She lifted her head and walked in turmoil;
She spoke constant words of wisdom – not
Malice, or envy, or gossip, or resentment;
She rejoiced in YeHoVaH with a grateful
Spirit and joyful one that inspired women
Like me – her niece – who saw in my aunt
Strength to carry others’ burdens, courage
To take the fall for someone else’s misdeeds,
Love to pray powerfully and compassionately
For others with heavy-laden heart, gentleness
To admire other women and compliment them
Genuinely, humility to admit she was wrong or
Admit she needs help, peace to help her endure
Evil words and actions from haters, kindness
To be friendly and considerate to everyone,
Faithfulness to be generous enough to bless
Others with the things she needs, patience
To wait on YeHoVaH’s Promises, joyfulness
To praise and worship YeHoVaH in times of
Trouble and comfort, and self-control to love
Her enemies and her neighbors as she loved
Herself – and to serve others.
 
Aunt Eleanor’s life typifies that godliness that’s in
People who are so full of The Spirit’s Fruit, Power,
Authority they’re  able to spiritually and faithfully
Walk on water, raise the dead, and feed thousands.
 
-      Composed September 1, 2020

Rest In Peace, Aunt Eleanor!

Lastly, the funeral services for my aunt, Eleanor Wade Goins, will be next Friday, September 11th, at Taylor Funeral Home located at 63 E. 79th Street in Chicago, IL 60619. The wake is at 11am, and the homegoing service is at 12 noon.

SHOW KINDNESS ALL THE TIME INSTEAD OF RANDOMLY

29 Wednesday Jun 2011

Posted by Rev. Nadine Drayton-Keen in Faith and Wisdom

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bumper-sticker theology, Christmas season, deliberate, fruit of the Holy Spirit, half-truth, integral, love, mantra, moral attractiveness, random acts of kindness

Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other. ~ John 13:34-35, The Message

One of their religion scholars spoke for them, posing a question they hoped would show him up: ‘Teacher, which command in God’s Law is the most important?’ Jesus said, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.’ This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: ‘Love others as well as you love yourself.’ These two commands are pegs; everything in God’s Law and the Prophets hangs from them.’ ~ Matthew 22:35-40, The Message

“Isn’t it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?” ~ James 2:17, The Message

Since the central virtue of our Christian faith is LOVE, and not KINDNESS, I refuse to buy into this world’s ubiquitous bumper-sticker theology, which declares people can change the world through their “random acts of kindness.” In fact, I really dislike this “random acts of kindness” mantra, because the tiny bit of wisdom that can be found in this commonly repeated expression is based on a half-truth. Furthermore, it is this half-truth that clearly has deceived/misled the believers who have adopted this half-truth as a Divine Truth!

My point here is that being kind never can be a bad thing, per se. For sure, no matter what the reasons/motives are for why some people carry out their acts of kindness, it is a fact that most acts of kindness do some good and shine some rays of hope. However, the problem many believers in God and Jesus the Christ should have with the moral attractiveness of the “random acts of kindness” motto is that this widely accepted saying basically suggests that being kind to one another is something that ONLY should happen every once in a while, and happen coincidentally or even unconsciously!

The absolute truth is that there is a distinct difference between the “random acts of kindness” shown by non-Christians and the “good deeds” true Christians do. Furthermore, where believers are concerned, the Word of God says that faith without works is dead, as James writes: “Isn’t it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?” ~ James 2:17, The Message.

The Word of God also says that the LOVE believers have for God and for mankind will move them to do good deeds, which have an “eternal significance,” because the doing of loving good deeds was part of God’s plan for the world before life began (cf. Matthew 22:37-40; Ephesians 2:10; Hebrews 10:24; Hebrews 13:1-3; and Titus 3:8). Indeed, it was God’s plan from eternity not only to rejuvenate and save humans from a life of sin, but also to sanctify born again and justified believers in Jesus the Christ via His Holy Spirit so that they will have the mind of Christ and the desire to live a life like Jesus the Christ lived.

As a result of the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying ministry, believers are able to produce the nine fruit of the Holy Spirit, of which LOVE is the MAIN fruit and from which comes the eight other fruit of the Holy Spirit, including kindness (cf. Galatians 5:22-25). True Christians, thus, love others because this is God’s Perfect Will. For these reasons, NO act of kindness should ever be “random”: (made, done, happening, or chosen without method or conscious decision) or (having no specific pattern, purpose, or objective) or (lacking any definite plan or prearranged order; haphazard) or (governed by or depending on chance).

Why not random? Well, for one thing, the Word of God makes it clear that believers who have the God kind of LOVE in them should be making conscious (intentionally conceived) efforts to be loving and therefore kind to all mankind at all times, which means believers just don’t do acts of kindness during the Season of Giving, or annually during a week’s observance, or when “special” scheduled events are taking place during a “church” year. Then too, godly acts of kindness undoubtedly must be an integral (essential, fundamental) part of every believer’s life. Lastly, when believers’ acts of kindness become their way of life—when they are living out Jesus the Christ’s message (Gospel)—then believers’ acts of kindness will prove to the world that these acts never were supposed to be “random,” but, instead, they always were meant to be loving (godly), deliberate (conscious/on purpose), and altruistic, and they should happen daily!