Tribute to Brother Frank Harper
By Pastor Paul Fedena
Mt 25:23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
If I had a title to attach to Brother Frank Harper’s name, it would be “Faithful Frank”!
I know practically nothing about Frank’s life before he accepted Christ and joined Faith Baptist Church of Fairless Hills, PA when I became his pastor. But what I know about him from that time on was positive indeed. “Faithful Frank” seems to be a fitting title for him in that ministry. He and his wife and family were faithful in services and his children were enrolled in Faith Baptist Christian Academy. Frank was faithful visiting his church bus route in the Bristol, PA area each Saturday and in picking up his riders each Sunday. (He did have a few “fender benders” while doing so because the streets in Bristol were narrow with vehicles parked on both sides. Nothing serious and we never had any riders injured.) Frank was faithful in all the services at FBC. (He wasn’t into singing, but otherwise participated and often gave testimonies (sometimes lengthy ).
I think he worked the longest as a mail man, and made many friends along the way. He was the mail carrier who would gladly interact with those on his route. He used his job there in Bristol to make contacts for his church bus route as well.
In his private life Frank was very industrious, hanging shingles, and installing rain gutters, while working with his son Steven. He also was on the maintenance staff at St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, PA for a time. When I retired from the full-time ministry after 31 years serving our Savior at Faith Baptist, my wife Shirley and I finally settled at Straightway Baptist Church. Shirley became one of our faithful pianists when we were not on the road preaching in other churches. Pretty soon Brother Frank moved to Straightway, where he became very active and was not only in all the services up to the last 3 months of his life on earth, but was out knocking on doors in the Lawrence, NJ area nearly every Saturday morning. When my wife moved to Heaven and my health was failing, I would call Faithful Frank and he would give me a lift.
Frank played golf most weekdays, and bowled on Saturdays, until he could no longer do so due to losing strength in his arms and shoulders.
Frank called me one day and asked if I wanted to go on a cruise to the Caribbean. I am not a cruise person, but when he said he would pay my way, we flew to Florida and boarded a nice cruise ship. I brought plenty of Gospel tracts and Frank could easily engage crew members in the dining area and passengers on deck, and I would follow up by giving each person a tract and witnessing when possible. Over all, we had a great time.
The Bible says in John 15:13: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” Frank was willing to do that for me, as his pastor! On a Wed. night as I was teaching, a muscular young man sat next to my wife on the front row at church. I knew he had played basketball with some of our guys occasionally but didn’t know him personally. I had an after-service appointment with a couple in our church in my office when suddenly the door burst open and this man pointed his finger at me and said “I want to talk with you, RIGHT NOW!” I told him that this couple had an appointment, and he would have to wait. He angrily said: “I SAID RIGHT NOW!” At that point brother Harper, my head usher at the time, stepped in the doorway and took this muscular young man by the arm and said “You will have to go through me to get to him (meaning me)”! It wasn’t till later that night that I found out from his mother (a member of our church) that her son, that young man, had stabbed a young woman in Trenton, NJ 37 times, murder-ing her! His wild accusation against me was that I had poisoned the water in the church fountain.! (???) That Sunday he was found on our church grounds and the police were notified and they eventually apprehended him. I testified against him at the grand jury trial and he threatened to kill me and my family when and if he got out of prison.
“Faithful Frank” probably saved my life that night in my office.
Truly, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” “Faithful Frank” proved himself a true friend indeed that night!
If I had a title to attach to Brother Frank Harper’s name, it would be “Faithful Frank”!
I know practically nothing about Frank’s life before he accepted Christ and joined Faith Baptist Church of Fairless Hills, PA when I became his pastor. But what I know about him from that time on was positive indeed. “Faithful Frank” seems to be a fitting title for him in that ministry. He and his wife and family were faithful in services and his children were enrolled in Faith Baptist Christian Academy. Frank was faithful visiting his church bus route in the Bristol, PA area each Saturday and in picking up his riders each Sunday. (He did have a few “fender benders” while doing so because the streets in Bristol were narrow with vehicles parked on both sides. Nothing serious and we never had any riders injured.) Frank was faithful in all the services at FBC. (He wasn’t into singing, but otherwise participated and often gave testimonies (sometimes lengthy ).
I think he worked the longest as a mail man, and made many friends along the way. He was the mail carrier who would gladly interact with those on his route. He used his job there in Bristol to make contacts for his church bus route as well.
In his private life Frank was very industrious, hanging shingles, and installing rain gutters, while working with his son Steven. He also was on the maintenance staff at St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, PA for a time. When I retired from the full-time ministry after 31 years serving our Savior at Faith Baptist, my wife Shirley and I finally settled at Straightway Baptist Church. Shirley became one of our faithful pianists when we were not on the road preaching in other churches. Pretty soon Brother Frank moved to Straightway, where he became very active and was not only in all the services up to the last 3 months of his life on earth, but was out knocking on doors in the Lawrence, NJ area nearly every Saturday morning. When my wife moved to Heaven and my health was failing, I would call Faithful Frank and he would give me a lift.
Frank played golf most weekdays, and bowled on Saturdays, until he could no longer do so due to losing strength in his arms and shoulders.
Frank called me one day and asked if I wanted to go on a cruise to the Caribbean. I am not a cruise person, but when he said he would pay my way, we flew to Florida and boarded a nice cruise ship. I brought plenty of Gospel tracts and Frank could easily engage crew members in the dining area and passengers on deck, and I would follow up by giving each person a tract and witnessing when possible. Over all, we had a great time.
The Bible says in John 15:13: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” Frank was willing to do that for me, as his pastor! On a Wed. night as I was teaching, a muscular young man sat next to my wife on the front row at church. I knew he had played basketball with some of our guys occasionally but didn’t know him personally. I had an after-service appointment with a couple in our church in my office when suddenly the door burst open and this man pointed his finger at me and said “I want to talk with you, RIGHT NOW!” I told him that this couple had an appointment, and he would have to wait. He angrily said: “I SAID RIGHT NOW!” At that point brother Harper, my head usher at the time, stepped in the doorway and took this muscular young man by the arm and said “You will have to go through me to get to him (meaning me)”! It wasn’t till later that night that I found out from his mother (a member of our church) that her son, that young man, had stabbed a young woman in Trenton, NJ 37 times, murder-ing her! His wild accusation against me was that I had poisoned the water in the church fountain.! (???) That Sunday he was found on our church grounds and the police were notified and they eventually apprehended him. I testified against him at the grand jury trial and he threatened to kill me and my family when and if he got out of prison.
“Faithful Frank” probably saved my life that night in my office.
Truly, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” “Faithful Frank” proved himself a true friend indeed that night!
