A beloved Kentucky pastor succumbed to COVID, two weeks after contracting the illness.
Tim Parsons of Center Point Church (CPC) in Lexington passed away on Aug. 26. The announcement was posted on the CPC's Facebook page, Kentucky Today reported.
"We are saddened by the loss of our beloved Lead Pastor, Tim Parsons. He was loved by many and he leaves an impactful legacy in the lives of thousands of people," it states.
"We are grateful that he is now in the presence of the Savior he loved so deeply and proclaimed so passionately," the statement also says.
Todd Gray of the Kentucky Baptist Convention expressed his grief, remembering the minister as a "man of God" who impacted many lives.
"Pastor Tim Parsons will be remembered as a man of God who invested personally in other people. Only Heaven can tell the number of lives that have been profoundly impacted through his own. We are saddened by this passing and continue to pray for his family and Center Point Church," Gray said.
Speaking to the WKYT, Tyson Steelman, a CPC congregant, disclosed that the pastor tested positive for coronavirus on Aug. 9, Monday, but was only taken to the hospital by Friday that week, when his condition worsened.
In a statement released to the media outlet at the time, CPC Associate Pastor Graham Withers said that the church moved its worship service online to observe caution.
Captured by the Lexington Herald Leader, Parson's wife, Susan, revealed that he died at around 1:00 AM on Thursday, surrounded by his family.
"He will be greatly missed, but we trust our Heavenly Father as we know that, no matter what, HE IS GOOD!" she added.
To honor the memory of the minister, Susan shared that the church set up a mission fund to support overseas church plants. Donations can be forwarded by visiting cpclex.org/give.
"Thank you. This is a great way to honor Tim. This was his passion and desire," she further stated.
Parsons was a former youth pastor of more than a thousand students at a Florida congregation, but eventually called by the LORD to plant a church. He and his family moved to Lexington in 2005, paving the way for the establishment of CPC by September that year. The church began with 200 people at a theater and gained about a hundred regular attendees by the end of 2005.
In August 2008, CPC grew to about 175 members and moved to a new location in Lexington, wherein it was able to also reach out families from other cities, such as Versailles, Georgetown and Richmond.
The congregation's West Campus, which began in October 2013 at an elementary school, has now become an independent church called Gospel Collective Church.
According to his obituary, Parsons was born in Altoona, Pennsylvania on Dec. 12, 1962. He is described as someone who loved to proclaim the Bible and worship God. His passion for the LORD is articulated through a statement in which he is said to have lived by.
"Things work better when you do them God's way," the minister declared.
