ARLINGTON—Family and friends of Pastor Clint Dobson choose not to dwell on the circumstances of his death. Instead, they celebrate a life well-lived and remember a man whose actions demonstrated an unswerving love for God and people.
Dobson, 29, was killed, and robbers at NorthPointe Baptist Church beat his 67-year-old ministry assistant, Judy Elliott, March 3. Her condition has not been released at her family’s request.
Robert Creech, Dobson’s pastor at University Baptist Church in Clear Lake from the time he was 4 years old until he left for Baylor University, remembered Dobson as a little red-haired boy “who looked like he stepped right out of a 1960’s sitcom. He was just a good young kid.”
“It was sad,” Creech said, “that his life only became newsworthy when he was murdered, because his whole life really was newsworthy.”
Jeff Waldo, minister of missions at University Baptist Church, recalled Dobson’s return to the Houston area to work as a missions intern for the church engaged in apartment ministry. He remembered how he saw Dobson mature spiritually.
“It was a time to see a little red-headed boy was growing into a handsome young man with ministry skills to relate to a variety of people—young, old, rich, poor, those who were well and those who were sick,” Waldo said.
A summer internship living among the poor produced a great burden for the poor in his heart, he said.
“He was embodying incarnational ministry and gaining his own voice, as well as insights that could not be gained from books or classes,” Waldo said.
“Clint Dobson’s life was lived well. Whatever he did, he gave his all and his best. He exemplified the best with his example. His brilliance was always cloaked in his friendliness, and what time he lived, he got it right. He loved people, he loved God and was able to communicate God’s love with clarity.
“Clint had a big heart, but the truth is, he had the ability to get into the hearts of others—getting into our hearts, into my heart.”
Daniel Goodman, a friend since they both were in elementary school, said Dobson was full of life and fun. The two talked almost daily on the telephone, he noted.
“To Clint’s friends, he was thoughtful, curious, caring and intelligent. Clint was without a doubt the most fun-loving person that I knew, and hanging out with him was even more fun than talking with him on the phone,” Goodman said.
“It didn’t matter what you were doing with Clint. He could get very into it, and it was fun, as a result.
Dobson’s roommate at Baylor’s Truett Theological Seminary, Brady Herbert, knew a man devoted to God and ministry.
“He had an unmatched heart and mind for God,” Herbert said. “He had that rare combination of a love for truth and a love for people.
“Clint had a sharp, sharp mind. He naturally had a mind for comprehension and could navigate serious and deep theological concepts seemingly with ease. When he came across the tough questions our world offers us, he had the courage and integrity to say, ‘I don’t know.’
“Quite simply, Clint was someone who loved God with all his mind. But he didn’t leave it there. He’d not allow his love for Scripture to stay in his mind—it sunk deep into his heart and out into his hands and into his feet. He had a heart that was even bigger than his impressive mind.
“He made thousands upon thousands of sacrifices for those around him because of the love that compelled him through Jesus Christ.”
At a memorial service for Dobson, Herbert and every other speaker spoke of Dobson’s love for people in general and of his devotion to wife, Laura, in particular.
“But Clint had one passion that stood above the rest of all those things he loved and that was Jesus Christ,” he said. “Clint’s live was lived to love Jesus and make him known to all he came into contact with.”
A video of Dobson's "celebration of life" service can be viewed here.