
The atmosphere was charged with anticipation as people began gathering at the Franklin Springs Pentecostal Holiness Church at 1 o'clock on Saturday, June 11, 2016. Jessica Synan Getz, the oldest daughter of Bert Synan, was seated at the grand piano playing the great hymns of the church her grandfather, Hubert Vernon Synan, Sr. loved.
I don't know who selected the speakers and the male soloist, but my hunch is that Vernon and Phyllis had talked about that, and they planned together for the final earthly tribute to a noble man of God who loved God, his family, his church, his country, and his friends.
There was no doubt about it but Pastor Harrison Lampley was making sure that everything was in order. He is a meticulous planner, and the microphones had to be just right, and made sure the platform chairs were evenly spaced for the men who would be speaking and one singing. There was an abundance of flowers.
Pastor Lampley spoke with authority as he called us to order to experience the celebration of Vernon Synan's life. The Scripture and prayer to begin the service were well prepared and delivered. A peace seemed to settle in as we prepared ourselves to hear the speakers and music.
Dr. Ron White spoke of his long association with Vernon and the lessons he learned from his mentor. He emphasized how important the words or lyrics of every song is to be heard and appreciated. He led us in a song that was one of Vernon's favorites. I had not heard it in many years, but I grew up singing it in church, and I did not need the words that were printed in the bulletin, but sang from memory.
Let me quote the lyrics of this great church hymn that talks about Jesus. Read the words and listen to your heart as God speaks through these words:
"The Lily of the Valley"
I’ve found a friend in Jesus, He’s everything to me,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul;
The Lily of the Valley, in Him alone I see
All I need to cleanse and make me fully whole.
In sorrow He’s my comfort, in trouble He’s my stay;
He tells me every care on Him to roll.
Refrain:
He’s the Lily of the Valley, the Bright and Morning Star,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.
In sorrow He’s my comfort, in trouble He’s my stay;
He tells me every care on Him to roll.
He’s the Lily of the Valley, the Bright and Morning Star,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.
He all my grief has taken, and all my sorrows borne;
In temptation He’s my strong and mighty tow’r;
I’ve all for Him forsaken, and all my idols torn
From my heart and now He keeps me by His pow’r.
Though all the world forsake me, and Satan tempt me sore,
Through Jesus I shall safely reach the goal.
He’ll never, never leave me, nor yet forsake me here,
While I live by faith and do His blessed will;
A wall of fire about me, I’ve nothing now to fear,
From His manna He my hungry soul shall fill.
Then sweeping up to glory to see His blessed face,
Where rivers of delight shall ever roll.
Dr. Mike Stewart, a former president of Emmanuel College, spoke from a pastor's heart. It was evident that he was very close to Vernon and Phyllis. His words were positive and brought hope and comfort to all in attendance. He is a masterful speaker, and spoke about Vernon as a man of faith, and one who was skilled in music. He told the story that was told by Bert, Vernon and Phyllis' oldest son, who is the pastor of the Peniel Pentecostal Holiness Church. One Sunday at church, Vernon was playing the piano with one hand, and in the other he was playing his trumpet. The amazing thing is that he was playing the piano in one key, and the trumpet in another key all at the same time. Not many people could pull that off, but Vernon did.
All of the speakers talked about the wit and humor of Vernon Synan.
Dr. Mike Stewart recognized Dr. Vinson Synan the twin of Vernon Synan. Vinson got up from his seat in the pew and walked up to the platform. Vinson is a masterful speaker and talked about the nine months they shared in the womb of their mother. He said. "Vernon was a kicker." He was born 20 minutes before Vinson. Vinson was concise, spoke up, and sat down.
Stan Oliver, one of the best baritone/bass singers who studied at Emmanuel College sang a solo entitled, "After," accompanied by Jessica Synan Getz. The following are the lyrics to this great song with so much hope when we will see Jesus at last:
AFTER
Words & Music by N.B.Vandall (20th Century)
(c)1932 by Harry D. Clarke
Published in The King's Songs
ed. Percy and Ruth Crawford
Van Kampan Press, 1938
Verse 1:
After the toil and the heat of the day,
After my troubles are past,
After the sorrows are taken away, I shall see Jesus at last.
Chorus:
He will be waiting for me, Jesus, so kind and true.
On His beautiful throne He will welcome me home
After the Day is through.
Verse 2:
After the heartaches and sighing shall cease,
After the cold winter's blast,
After the conflict comes glorious peace: I shall see Jesus at last.
Verse 3:
After the shadows of evening shall fall,
After my anchor is cast.
Finally, Presiding Bishop Doug Beacham put it all in proper perspective. He is a lover of the great hymns of church, and having worked with Vernon in the church, he knows many of the hymns that are so meaningful to those of us who are older. As a church historian he was able to talk about the evangelism of John and Charles Wesley. He said that John Wesley never became a Methodist but remained an Anglican. The songs that Charles and John Wesley wrote were full of Biblical theology. Many of the people in England who were getting saved were not able to read. But when they printed the words of the hymns these uneducated people began to learn to read.
He compared the Wesley brothers to the Synan brothers in a beautiful and insightful way.
Bishop Beacham said, "Charles Wesley wrote 8,989 hymns (at least three times the output of poet William Wordsworth). Dr. Frank Baker calculated that Charles Wesley wrote an average of 10 lines of verse every day for 50 years! He completed an extant poem every other day.
John and Charles Wesley published 56 collections of hymns in 53 years.
Doug shared several hymn titles that Charles Wesley wrote among them were these: "O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing," "Jesus Christ is Risen Today," "And Can it be that I should gain?" and "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing."
Bishop Beacham closed with a powerful, pastoral prayer which he ended in the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit."
[Editor's Comment: I wish I could tell you about all the people who were in attendance. There was Vernon's brother and sister-in-law, Dr. H. Vinson and Carole Synan of Chesapeake, VA; and sister and brother-in-law, Maurine and Albert Gminder of North Carolina. Bishop James D. Leggett, a former General Superintendent of the International Pentecostal Holiness Church, John and Rita Ingham, Bill and Karen Jones, Bishop Tim and Carissa Lamb, Wiley Clark, Dr. G. Earl and Nancy Beatty, a number of Gideons that filled up three pews. Keith and Sue Hearn, James and Rachel Sorrow. and Coach T. J. Rosene.
Vernon Synan's casket was draped with the American flag. He had served in the United States Amy.
In closing, I would like to invite those of your who were present at the funeral to write about your observations and what you gleaned from speakers or Stan Oliver who sang.]
I don't know who selected the speakers and the male soloist, but my hunch is that Vernon and Phyllis had talked about that, and they planned together for the final earthly tribute to a noble man of God who loved God, his family, his church, his country, and his friends.
There was no doubt about it but Pastor Harrison Lampley was making sure that everything was in order. He is a meticulous planner, and the microphones had to be just right, and made sure the platform chairs were evenly spaced for the men who would be speaking and one singing. There was an abundance of flowers.
Pastor Lampley spoke with authority as he called us to order to experience the celebration of Vernon Synan's life. The Scripture and prayer to begin the service were well prepared and delivered. A peace seemed to settle in as we prepared ourselves to hear the speakers and music.
Dr. Ron White spoke of his long association with Vernon and the lessons he learned from his mentor. He emphasized how important the words or lyrics of every song is to be heard and appreciated. He led us in a song that was one of Vernon's favorites. I had not heard it in many years, but I grew up singing it in church, and I did not need the words that were printed in the bulletin, but sang from memory.
Let me quote the lyrics of this great church hymn that talks about Jesus. Read the words and listen to your heart as God speaks through these words:
"The Lily of the Valley"
I’ve found a friend in Jesus, He’s everything to me,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul;
The Lily of the Valley, in Him alone I see
All I need to cleanse and make me fully whole.
In sorrow He’s my comfort, in trouble He’s my stay;
He tells me every care on Him to roll.
Refrain:
He’s the Lily of the Valley, the Bright and Morning Star,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.
In sorrow He’s my comfort, in trouble He’s my stay;
He tells me every care on Him to roll.
He’s the Lily of the Valley, the Bright and Morning Star,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.
He all my grief has taken, and all my sorrows borne;
In temptation He’s my strong and mighty tow’r;
I’ve all for Him forsaken, and all my idols torn
From my heart and now He keeps me by His pow’r.
Though all the world forsake me, and Satan tempt me sore,
Through Jesus I shall safely reach the goal.
He’ll never, never leave me, nor yet forsake me here,
While I live by faith and do His blessed will;
A wall of fire about me, I’ve nothing now to fear,
From His manna He my hungry soul shall fill.
Then sweeping up to glory to see His blessed face,
Where rivers of delight shall ever roll.
Dr. Mike Stewart, a former president of Emmanuel College, spoke from a pastor's heart. It was evident that he was very close to Vernon and Phyllis. His words were positive and brought hope and comfort to all in attendance. He is a masterful speaker, and spoke about Vernon as a man of faith, and one who was skilled in music. He told the story that was told by Bert, Vernon and Phyllis' oldest son, who is the pastor of the Peniel Pentecostal Holiness Church. One Sunday at church, Vernon was playing the piano with one hand, and in the other he was playing his trumpet. The amazing thing is that he was playing the piano in one key, and the trumpet in another key all at the same time. Not many people could pull that off, but Vernon did.
All of the speakers talked about the wit and humor of Vernon Synan.
Dr. Mike Stewart recognized Dr. Vinson Synan the twin of Vernon Synan. Vinson got up from his seat in the pew and walked up to the platform. Vinson is a masterful speaker and talked about the nine months they shared in the womb of their mother. He said. "Vernon was a kicker." He was born 20 minutes before Vinson. Vinson was concise, spoke up, and sat down.
Stan Oliver, one of the best baritone/bass singers who studied at Emmanuel College sang a solo entitled, "After," accompanied by Jessica Synan Getz. The following are the lyrics to this great song with so much hope when we will see Jesus at last:
AFTER
Words & Music by N.B.Vandall (20th Century)
(c)1932 by Harry D. Clarke
Published in The King's Songs
ed. Percy and Ruth Crawford
Van Kampan Press, 1938
Verse 1:
After the toil and the heat of the day,
After my troubles are past,
After the sorrows are taken away, I shall see Jesus at last.
Chorus:
He will be waiting for me, Jesus, so kind and true.
On His beautiful throne He will welcome me home
After the Day is through.
Verse 2:
After the heartaches and sighing shall cease,
After the cold winter's blast,
After the conflict comes glorious peace: I shall see Jesus at last.
Verse 3:
After the shadows of evening shall fall,
After my anchor is cast.
Finally, Presiding Bishop Doug Beacham put it all in proper perspective. He is a lover of the great hymns of church, and having worked with Vernon in the church, he knows many of the hymns that are so meaningful to those of us who are older. As a church historian he was able to talk about the evangelism of John and Charles Wesley. He said that John Wesley never became a Methodist but remained an Anglican. The songs that Charles and John Wesley wrote were full of Biblical theology. Many of the people in England who were getting saved were not able to read. But when they printed the words of the hymns these uneducated people began to learn to read.
He compared the Wesley brothers to the Synan brothers in a beautiful and insightful way.
Bishop Beacham said, "Charles Wesley wrote 8,989 hymns (at least three times the output of poet William Wordsworth). Dr. Frank Baker calculated that Charles Wesley wrote an average of 10 lines of verse every day for 50 years! He completed an extant poem every other day.
John and Charles Wesley published 56 collections of hymns in 53 years.
Doug shared several hymn titles that Charles Wesley wrote among them were these: "O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing," "Jesus Christ is Risen Today," "And Can it be that I should gain?" and "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing."
Bishop Beacham closed with a powerful, pastoral prayer which he ended in the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit."
[Editor's Comment: I wish I could tell you about all the people who were in attendance. There was Vernon's brother and sister-in-law, Dr. H. Vinson and Carole Synan of Chesapeake, VA; and sister and brother-in-law, Maurine and Albert Gminder of North Carolina. Bishop James D. Leggett, a former General Superintendent of the International Pentecostal Holiness Church, John and Rita Ingham, Bill and Karen Jones, Bishop Tim and Carissa Lamb, Wiley Clark, Dr. G. Earl and Nancy Beatty, a number of Gideons that filled up three pews. Keith and Sue Hearn, James and Rachel Sorrow. and Coach T. J. Rosene.
Vernon Synan's casket was draped with the American flag. He had served in the United States Amy.
In closing, I would like to invite those of your who were present at the funeral to write about your observations and what you gleaned from speakers or Stan Oliver who sang.]