On July 20, when Tammy Faye Messener passed away at age sixty-five, it was on international news because she was considered one of the interesting and extraordinary people of these times. As the wife of Jim Bakker, she was a co-founder of Heritage USA, and one of the pioneers of Christian television. After the failure of the PTL ministry, Tammy Faye continued to surface in the news, and drew continual interest from millions because she was such an interesting person.

I only met Tammy Faye once, when she and her husband, Roe Messener, came to see the restoration work at the Heritage Grand Hotel and Conference Center. Her suggestions were both insightful and helpful, but she was also very encouraging. I was touched by her grace and dignity, and especially with her genuine concern for all of the former PTL partners. It was obvious that she did not care nearly as much about the buildings as she did the people, something we have resolved to always try to emulate.

As Tammy Faye's health deteriorated over the last few years, we received regular updates from her friends or family members. There was one recurring theme in every one of these reports—her faith in the Lord was strong. While her body was being relentlessly attacked by that most terrible enemy—cancer—her faith seemed to just grow stronger and stronger. Even when she was obviously in great pain, she never seemed to fail to take an opportunity to testify of the goodness and faithfulness of the Lord. She faced the greatest fear of all—the fear of death—not only with great grace and dignity, but seemingly without fear. That is possibly the greatest testimony of all of true faith.

Everyone who has lost a loved one to cancer knows that it is one of the most evil and terrible enemies of all. The church will one day have total victory over this evil, and then no Christian will have to die that way. I prayed as I know multitudes did for Tammy Faye's deliverance from it, and though she may have lost the physical battle against cancer, death is always swallowed up in victory for those who die in Christ. I pray that the courage and dignity she maintained while fighting this battle will be passed on to others to fight the good fight and never quit. She never quit.

Tammy Faye lived an extraordinary life and she died well. I was honored to know her as little as I did. We are planning to do a memorial for her on our Wall of Faith at Heritage International. She deserves to be honored as a mother of the ministry that touched many millions, and will continue to touch many more.

I just talked to Roe Messener, who said the family was doing about as well as could be expected. Her children, Tammy Sue and Jamie, have of course taken her passing very hard and need our prayers.

This is also a hard time for many of the former PTL partners, who loved Tammy Faye like she loved them. Many of these have also been a remarkable demonstration of loyalty, forgiveness, and faith through some of the most difficult and confusing times. Those who did not become bitter became better, and are now some of the strong pillars wherever they are found in the body of Christ.

The foundation of our faith is redemption and restoration. The end of that whole story will be a good one. Let's not ever forget that the foundation of our faith is based on the resurrection! Those who die in the Lord do not die! They live forever. Tammy Faye is more alive now than she has ever been, and she is a part of that great cloud of witnesses.