Chapter 7 | Heaven

Chapter 7 - A Tribute to My Wife – Audrey Mae Minor Shults

Audrey was born in a large log house on a farm near Walden’s Creek in Lee County, Virginia near the city of Jonesville, on August 13, 1937. She was the first child of Frank and Elizabeth Minor. The family also lived in a smaller log house at Natural Bridge located near the city of Jonesville. From this location, the family moved closer to the city of Jonesville near the Methodist Church’s Campground on Highway 58. Early in the 1930’s, Frank purchased a small farm in Lee County where the large family of eight children were raised.

The entire family was active in the First Baptist Church of Jonesville. Frank was a deacon and Audrey’s mother was an outstanding leader in Women on Mission (old WMU). For many years, she was the leader of the Girl’s Auxiliary (GAs). She also loved to sing solos and participate in the church’s choir. Audrey’s love for Christian music was an inheritance from her mother.

Audrey became a Christian early in life and grew in her love for Jesus in a marvelous way. She and her dad were baptized on the same occasion.

A formal education for Audrey began in a small one room elementary school before graduating from Jonesville High School at the age of sixteen. Audrey was studying at Carson-Newman College in Jefferson City, Tennessee before the arrival of a young man from Cleveland, Tennessee in 1954. The encounter of this Tennessean with the ravishing beauty and incredible personality of the Virginian opened the floodgates of a romance that even death could never tear apart. We were married on September 4, 1955 in my home Church of Big Spring Baptist of Cleveland, Tennessee. We served three Churches in the states of Virginia, Indiana, and Kentucky from 1955 to 1966 before our missionary services in Brazil for 34 years.

Audrey was blessed with a nature that often led her to tears. She cried over lost souls, wayward children, kinfolks, friends, an unhappy or cantankerous husband, and for those who suffer in our wicked world.

I can only imagine, the moment when Jesus restored her breath and commanded her to open her eyes to life with Him. How high she leaped to her new and glorious life with lots of tears! Her tears were waves of joy, praise, and holy delight. The angels joined her in praise, and, why not? with tears!

When Audrey looked into the faces of her beloved parents, she burst into tears of real joy. One night in the hospital, Audrey asked me to telephone her mother. She wanted to speak with her. I could not make that phone call for her mother who had passed away several years ago. But now, she can speak face to face with her mother, her dad, or anyone she so desires that were written in the Book of Life.

Tears of joy was the same reaction when Audrey met Rebeca, other members of her family, hundreds of Brazilians who came to share her faith in Christ, and especially her former musical students. What a reunion also with former choir members she directed, and the Women on Mission groups she organized! All of these people join with Audrey in a holy celebration with shouts of praise and many, many tears. What a sight to behold!

Today, May 6, 2023, I witnessed the coronation of King Charles III as the Monarch of the Commonwealth of England. I also saw the 149th run of the Kentucky Derby. Both were exciting and large celebrations of many thousands of people. However, both celebrations put together will never even begin to compare with the happy day when God’s people will walk through Heaven’s gate and fall before the throne of the King of the universe. Both the joy of the coronation and Derby Day will pass. Heaven will last forever! And, the sad fact remains that the majority of those who participated or watched by social media the events of the coronation and the Kentucky Derby will not be present for the coronation of King Jesus. This reality calls for many tears!

On February 25, 2021, after some 24 hours on returning home from medical treatment, Audrey peacefully slipped away. It was a sacred moment. She felt no pain, expressed no anxiety, and was completely unconscious of her passage as God transformed her earthly body into a heavenly body that will never die. We wept. The angels shouted with joy. Jesus Himself opened Heaven’s door and walked through death to life with Audrey in His loving hands. Her “death day” became her true “birthday” into life eternal. She had long ago prepared for this special encounter with her Lord. Her life and her death had been trusted into the care of His precious hands.

Based on God’s Word, I know that Audrey was on “Loan” from Heaven to me. God knew her and loved her years before I came into her life. In fact, we were both His before He gave us to each other. He had planned the romance and the ministry we were to do in His name. Nothing was left to chance. As a result, our journey together was filled with wonder and tremendous satisfaction. We will have an eternity to reminisce on our adventures together with our family, and all of God’s children. That will be a very large part of our joy in Heaven.

One day soon, Audrey will look into my face and say, “Welcome Home, Darling!” And we will embrace each other in a river of tears! Why “Darling?” “Darling” was Audrey’s favorite word for addressing me. Our children heard the word so often, they were probably half grown before they realized that the word had nothing to do with my name. I still treasure that “name” and hope I’ll hear it again and again in Heaven.

On the mission field, Audrey was a missionary after God’s own heart. I’m sure He often smiled with delight to observe her in action. She loved, cared for, and more than anyone else, led and influenced all six of our children to faith in Christ. Through her warm, loving touch of teaching music, telling Jesus’ story, and caring for the “little ones” that she rounded up every Sunday afternoon, she was deeply loved by everyone. Even the criminals of our city respected Audrey. One man guilty of killing several people told me that he knew every move that Audrey made in our city. Yet, Audrey in some dangerous and terrible moments of our lives remained calm, unafraid, and knew by God’s grace what needed to be done.

On one occasion, I was traveling when around 100 people appeared at our home searching for food. Audrey took the group to our school’s chapel, presented the Gospel of Christ, and then gave each family enough food for several days. To her this was normal conduct. She constantly served her family, the lost, the hungry, the suffering, and the dying with the touch of Christ’s love – that was her life’s mission.

Heaven is always pictured as a real place with real people where there is laughter, feasting, singing, praising, and even shouting. The Bible does say that God will wipe away all tears in Heaven. However, the tears that God will wipe away are the tears of sorrow, suffering, pain, and death. In Heaven, these tears stained by sin will no longer exist. Therefore, when we stand face to face with Jesus, we are going to fall before Him in praise, thanksgiving, and with lots of tears. There will be enough tears to make Heaven’s River of Life rise! This will be our greatest moment of joy as we stand in the wonder of our redemption and God’s glory. We shall be clothed with the spotless Robe of righteousness of Jesus Christ. We will walk the streets of gold, bow before the throne of the Lamb, fellowship with the family of God, and hear the voice of the King of kings shout: “Welcome Home My Children!” And the tears of joy and peace will flow!

Some Biblical writers believe that Audrey, and others like her, still shed tears in Heaven over those on earth who do not know the Lord, such as, lost family members, lost friends, and the lost in general. Other writers maintain that for people in Heaven to be aware and concerned with evil and suffering on earth would make Heaven a less desirable place to live. However, one may ask, if God and His angels see the torment of hell, and yet Paradise does not cease to be Paradise, then why would anything that is seen on earth spoil Heaven? (Rev. 14:10; Lk. 16:23-26). If Jesus grieved for His followers and for lost humanity while on the earth, did He stop doing so when He got back to Heaven? (Matt. 23:37-39; Jh. 11:33-36). We know the answer to this question is a big “No!” (Acts 9:4-5). God knows everything that’s going on in Heaven, on earth, and the universe. The angels are God’s messengers and man’s protectors (Ps. 91). They know a lot of things but not everything. Only God is omniscient. Yet, both are happy, content, and at peace. And, since Jesus makes intercession for people on earth before the Father, could it be that Jesus invites Heaven’s saints to join Him in praying? (Heb. 7:25). Let’s find out when we get to Heaven.

Speaking of “getting to Heaven,” are you aware that a large majority of people believe that they are on their way? Multitudes of people are in for a big surprise! Jesus says that the gate to Heaven is narrow, and the way is difficult which leads to life, and there are “few’ who find it. Why? Because the gate to Hell is wide, and there are “many” who travel the broad road that leads to destruction (Matt. 7:13-14). It will be a terrible moment when many discover that their names are not written in God’s Book of Life. What were they thinking? They may present in vain a variety of reasons for not following in Christ’s footsteps, such as, too busy with life, not interested, or planning to but putting it off. And many are deceived in thinking that just going to Church, being born in a Christian family, or doing good things is enough. The problem is they never responded to Christ’s invitation to repent of their sins, ask for forgiveness, and trust Jesus as the Lord and Savior of their souls. They never fell in love with God’s Son. They had declared that their life was their own to do as they pleased. The truth is that our lives are a gift from God who is giving us a chance to live His gift for His glory. Jesus even paid the price of our sins on a Cross to open Heaven’s door. The entire Bible was written as God’s Map revealing the way back home through faith in Christ.

Don’t let Satan and sin deceive you causing you to miss Heaven (Pro. 14:12). The vital search of how to get to Heaven is worth more than all the gold in this world. And only a complete submission of your life to Jesus Christ will open Heaven’s gate for you to be a guest at the greatest Wedding Banquet ever planned for the Lamb of God and His Church. Don’t miss it!

What do you think that you are going to see when we get to Heaven? At least in part, I think that I’m going to see the largest choir that only God Himself could put together. The choir will be made up of musicians, angels, and representatives of the redeemed Church. Their number of choir members will be “ten thousand times ten thousand” which means that they can’t even be counted by man. Only God knows the number. The choir will be accompanied with stringed instruments by the thousands, and many different kinds. (Audrey may even be using one of these instruments!) There will be no old, dried up, wrinkled choir members with unqualified voices in this choir. Each voice will hit every note with perfect precision. The volume of the voices and instruments will fill Heaven to its maximum capacity of harmony in praise, thanksgiving, and glory to the King of kings. The choir members will be dressed in the most exquisite celestial robes that Heaven alone can offer. The choir will sing with the vitality and the strength of a youthful army on the march to victory.

Be still for one moment.
Ponder the musical power of the thousands of stringed instruments!
Listen to the marvelous message of the song the choir is singing!
Don’t stop to wipe away the tears falling from your face!
Let your heart beat with the harmony of praise and thanksgiving!

Join the choir and make a joyful sound with Heaven’s New Song!

Worthy is the Lamb

(Rev. 5:9-10)

“You are worthy to take the scroll,

And to open its seals;

For you were slain,

And have redeemed us to God

by your blood

Out of every tribe and tongue and

people and nation,

And have made us kings and

priests to our God;

And we shall reign on the earth.”

One more moment please! Did I see tears flowing on the cheeks of Jesus? And in that great multitude of choir members, there was Audrey! She was in the vigor of her youth – not more than in her early twenties and more healthy and more beautiful than ever! She was beaming with a great big smile on her face and tears in her eyes. The choir member next to her? Why! That’s Audrey’s mom!

The greatest gift that God can offer is Eternal Life. And, Jesus said that Eternal Life is to know the Father as the only true God, and to know the Son whom the Father sent into the world to save sinners (Jh. 17:1-4). Without Christ, you will miss Heaven! The Bible teaches that “the fool has said in his heart, there is no God” (Ps. 14:1). Don’t be a fool and miss Heaven!

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