A Tribute to Bro. Dees
On the first Sunday morning that I sat in Irvington, I was as famished and dry as the desert sand.
In the first few minutes the rain of love deluged me as my faith blossomed again.
Bro Dees words were like living wells,
Reviving my soul from the onslaught of hell.
Words of power hurled worlds of wickedness away,
Revelation's pen wrote Redemption's story as darkness vanished into a new day.
His anointing answered every awful announcement of my accuser,
Faith rose up like the Lion of the Tribe of Judah and tore asunder my abusers.
Rivers of love with enough liberty to heal hearts filled with bitterness and hurt
Filled dry riverbeds of lives ready to give up on church.
Fervent preaching turned the dead air of my spirit into a symphony of grace
As we were urged to persevere until the end of the race.
Bro. Dees's focus on excellence robed us as princes in robes of purple,
As we pursued the best, ran through troops and leaped every hurtle.
Fresh concepts led us out of the Dark Ages of fear and into the dawn of the days of Grace
So that we were not afraid to look up and expect to see God's smiling face.
Grace prepared a table in the presence of guilt and grief;
Full platters of blessings replaced the empty cups on a larger tables extended leaf.
Bro. Dees invited us to travel the Universe in the chariot of God's infinite creation;
Super novas and galaxies of light were the wheels in the middle of the wheel of anticipation.
The revelation of the greatness of God made us want to shout,
As God lifted up the people and cast demons out.
Many times we were led into the vaults of priceless heavenly treasure
To experience excitement and glorious understanding beyond measure.
Scripts of passion played on the paper of his proclamations,
As the lies of deceit were destroyed by Deity's declarations.
The name of Jesus and His precious blood flew on the wings of the pulpit,
To banish sin and bring out those bound in the waterless pit.
Bro. Dees presented Our Friend, Savior, Deliverer, and Lord as a Gentle Shepherd's embrace
As God covered our shame with His glory in spite of our mistakes.
Bro. Dees ministry was the epitome of love, the essence of faith, and the inspiration of grace.
He showed us God through one cell becoming a man to take our place
As He swallowed up the punishment of every man's guilty case.
Monuments of stone and rhetorical eulogies
Will express only a small portion of the impact of his ministry in our lives.
Yet the canvas of our lives hold the reflection
Of the mundane being transcended before our very eyes.
Don Grigsby December 2005
