{"id":1942,"date":"2016-03-07T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-03-07T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/jerry-bridges-a-humble-man-in-pursuit-of-holiness\/"},"modified":"2024-02-16T23:05:16","modified_gmt":"2024-02-17T06:05:16","slug":"jerry-bridges-a-humble-man-in-pursuit-of-holiness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/blog\/jerry-bridges-a-humble-man-in-pursuit-of-holiness\/","title":{"rendered":"Jerry Bridges Remembered: A Humble Man in Pursuit of Holiness"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jerry Bridges, beloved evangelical statesman and Navigator author, passed away Sunday, March 6, 2016, from heart failure. He was 86. Jerry was perhaps best known as the author of the bestselling NavPress book The Pursuit of Holiness<\/em>. But to those who knew him best, he was a kind, gentle soul who desired nothing more than to walk humbly with his God.<\/p>\n

A memorial service was held:<\/strong>
\nFriday, March 11, 2:00 p.m.
\nVillage Seven Presbyterian Church
\n4055 S Nonchalant Cir
\nColorado Springs, CO 80917
\n(719) 574-6700<\/p>\n

U.S President of The Navigators Doug Nuenke said, \u201cWhile a great multitude of people know Jerry Bridges because of books and teaching, my most significant memory will be Jerry\u2019s humility and service to the Lord for more than 60 years. I\u2019m inspired by his sacrificial service to support the work of The Navigators at our headquarters for 40 years. After becoming a well-known author, his humility and God-focus was always evident. I want to follow his example, as he followed Christ.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his autobiography, God Took Me by the Hand<\/em>, Jerry said, \u201cWhen I was seventeen years old, it seemed as if God took me by the hand and said, \u2018Come with Me.\u2019 And for more than sixty-five years, God has, as it were, continued to hold my hand and lead me in the path He has marked out for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

He went on to say, \u201cMy personal story is not important except to illustrate the providence of God. My life\u2019s story is meant to be only a backdrop and series of illustrations of specific acts of the invisible hand of God.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jerry was born on December 4, 1929, and grew up in a four-room house in Tyler, Texas, with his parents and older brother, Jack. Jerry\u2019s mother died on February 7, 1944, shortly after Jerry\u2019s 14th birthday. \u201cYou have to be amazed at what God has done for a cross-eyed, partially deaf boy growing up in poverty alongside the railroad tracks,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n

He was always a good student and hard worker. In junior high he had a paper route and worked Saturdays at the local Safeway. He was paid three dollars for 12 hours of work.<\/p>\n

Jerry was raised in a Baptist church and \u201cwent forward\u201d a few times when an altar call was given. But no one ever explained to him what it meant to be genuinely born again.<\/p>\n

With little hope of affording college, Jerry applied to a new education program offered by the U.S. Navy. Jerry was accepted despite his poor hearing in one ear. In what Jerry described as \u201can amazing act of God\u2019s providence,\u201d he passed the Navy hearing test with flying colors. He selected the University of Oklahoma in Norman from a list of possible schools and arrived with all his earthly possessions packed in two bags.<\/p>\n

On a visit home, Jerry\u2019s brother, Jack, by that time an assistant pastor at the local church, invited Jerry to join him on a house visit. Jack talked to the man they visited about having assurance of salvation. That night, Jerry lay awake in bed, finally admitting to himself that he really wasn\u2019t a Christian. He prayed, \u201cWhatever it takes, I want Jesus to be my Savior.\u201d And immediately he had an assurance that he had never experienced before. It was a confidence that never left him.<\/p>\n

He returned to school and started reading the Bible his father had given him in high school, a practice he continued the rest of his life.<\/p>\n

June 4, 1951, Jerry graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a degree in general engineering, having received the award for outstanding academic midshipman four years in a row. On the same day he graduated, he was commissioned as an ensign in the Navy.<\/p>\n

Shortly thereafter, Jerry met a fellow naval officer who invited him to a Navigator Bible study. \u201cFrom the first night I was hooked,\u201d Jerry recalled in a 2005 interview for The Navigators newsletter, One-to-One<\/em>.<\/p>\n

When more sophisticated testing equipment revealed a hearing loss in one ear, Jerry received a medical discharge after only two years of service. He accepted that as God\u2019s direction.<\/p>\n

Soon after, he settled in southern California and started working with Convair, an airplane manufacturing company. He was assigned the task of writing technical instructions for shop and flight line personnel. \u201cGod put me there to teach me how to clearly explain complicated information,\u201d he said.
\nDuring those years he lived with a Navigator couple, a common practice in the 1950s. His mentor, Glen Solum, brought Jerry to a Navigator conference in Colorado Springs in 1955. There Jerry met The Navigators founder Dawson Trotman, who asked him to come to work at headquarters.<\/p>\n

Jerry came to Colorado Springs for work and training and fully expected to be sent overseas for ministry. Instead, he received a home office assignment.
\nJerry spent the next four decades in various administrative posts, including headquarters\u2019 office manager, treasurer, and vice president for corporate affairs\u2014work he found both challenging and fulfilling. He said that of all the things he accomplished during those years he gained the most satisfaction from starting The Navigators retirement plan and the decision to participate in Social Security. He was also a founding member of the board of directors for the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability.<\/p>\n

Jerry White, international president emeritus of The Navigators, said, \u201cJerry Bridges lived as he taught\u2014simply, godly, and with deep commitment to Jesus and Scripture. He always did what needed to be done from being treasurer to being one of our most respected speakers and writers. I will miss his quiet humor and his godly insights. His influence was global in the Body of Christ, and in these last years he gave himself to our student ministry, impacting leaders for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

From 1960 to 1963, Jerry worked with The Navigators in Holland as the administrative assistant to the Europe director. Upon his return, he had a layover in New York City and invited a young woman on associate Nav staff to join him for dinner: Eleanor Miller. Their relationship blossomed\u2014mostly through the mail\u2014and in October they were married.<\/p>\n

Their daughter, Kathy, was born in 1966, and son, Dan, the following year.<\/p>\n

Through the years he worked at headquarters, Jerry also spoke on spiritual life topics at the Glen Eyrie Conference Center, another ministry of The Navigators. In the mid-1970s, the newly formed NavPress released a series of booklets based on transcriptions of conference sessions taught by various Navigators, including Jerry. When Navigator leader LeRoy Eims read Jerry\u2019s booklet Willpower<\/em>, he said, \u201cYou ought to try your hand at writing.\u201d So Jerry gave it a try, writing about holiness, a topic he\u2019d spoken on for years. Since its 1978 release, The Pursuit of Holiness<\/em> has sold more than one million copies.<\/p>\n

\u201cI expected that would be the only book I\u2019d ever write,\u201d Jerry said. But he went on to pen nearly 20 books, with combined sales of more than 2.5 million.<\/p>\n

In June 1987, Eleanor was diagnosed with cancer. She died November 9, 1988, just three weeks after their 25th wedding anniversary.<\/p>\n

Jerry received a sympathy card from a family friend, Jane Mollet. In it, she had written out Jeremiah 29:11, the same verse God had impressed upon Jerry as Eleanor\u2019s condition diminished: \u201c\u2018For I know the plans I have for you,\u2019 declares the LORD, \u2018plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future\u2019\u201d (NIV<\/span>). Jane\u2019s note caught Jerry\u2019s attention, and, as Jerry wrote, \u201cTo make a long story short, we were married November 24, 1989.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jerry retired from his administrative duties in 1995. By that time his writing and speaking career was in full swing, sometimes fulfilling more than 100 engagements in one year. In 1997, he was invited to join The Navigators Collegiate staff to be a Bible teacher and father figure to students.<\/p>\n

Jerry\u2019s influence spread around the world, as revealed in a statement from The Navigators International President Mutua Mahiaini: \u201cJerry truly ministered from the overflow of a profound walk with God. He made the great truths of the Bible come alive with a simplicity that was unusual and winsome. To the very last days of his life here on earth, Jerry has generously poured out his life with a passion to help people know, love, and become like Jesus Christ. His authenticity caused people on the other continents where he ministered to respond warmly to his teaching ministry, and he graciously made the message understandable in many different cultures. His writing ministry is one of the best gifts that the Lord has given to The Navigators and to the wider Body of Christ.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jerry\u2019s final book, The Blessing of Humility<\/em><\/a>, will be released in June. Pastor and author Max Lucado spoke of Jerry\u2019s legacy in his endorsement of the new book: \u201cWhen I read my first Jerry Bridges book twenty years ago, I had the sense that every paragraph had been pondered, prayed over, and carefully prepared. Each ensuing book has led to the same conclusion. The writings of Jerry Bridges are a gift to the church. In this new book, he addresses a relevant topic with the wisdom of a scholar and the heart of a servant.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jerry received an honorary doctor of divinity degree from Westminster Theological Seminary (Glenside, Pennsylvania) in 2005, and he received a Lifetime Influence Award from The Navigators in 2011. But in his autobiography he said that the recognition that meant the most was the thousands of readers telling him how his books had changed their lives. He wrote, \u201cWhen we go to be with God it is not the awards or recognition we have received, but the lives impacted for Christ that will count when each of us hope to hear, \u2018Well done, good and faithful servant\u2019\u201d (Matthew 25:21).<\/p>\n

NavPress Publisher Don Pape said, \u201cJerry Bridges has most certainly impacted millions worldwide. His Gospel-infused message challenged each of us. What an honor to not only call him author but, truly, a friend.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jerry is survived by his wife, Jane, his two children, Kathy Rodman, and her husband, Jeff, son Dan and his wife, Lisa, and seven grandchildren.<\/p>\n

In lieu of flowers, gifts may be given to the Jerry Bridges Memorial Fund, or to his church, Village Seven Presbyterian Church in Colorado Springs. The memorial fund will be used to assist The Navigators Collegiate Ministry.<\/p>\n

The Navigators
\nAttn: JERRY BRIDGES MEMORIAL FUND (24001100)
\nPO Box 6000
\nColorado Springs, CO 80934
\nNavigator Donor Services: (866) 568-7827
\nOr you may give online at navgift.org\/bridgesmemorial<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Village Seven Presbyterian Church
\n4055 S Nonchalant Cir
\nColorado Springs, CO 80917
\nOr you may give to the church online at www.v7pc.org\/give<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Other resources:<\/strong>
\nJohn Piper Interviews Jerry Bridges
\nhttps:\/\/vimeo.com\/55944419<\/a><\/p>\n

Five Lessons from a Remarkable Life of Faith
\nwww.desiringgod.org\/interviews\/jerry-bridges-1929-2016-five-lessons-from-a-remarkable-life-of-faith<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jerry Bridges, beloved evangelical statesman and Navigator author, passed away Sunday, March 6, 2016, from heart failure. He was 86. Jerry was perhaps best known as the author of the bestselling NavPress book The Pursuit of Holiness. But to those who knew him best, he was a kind, gentle soul who desired nothing more than […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":9,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_helpful_pro_status":1,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1227],"tags":[1367],"mission":[],"topic":[],"class_list":["post-1942","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-organization-news","tag-in-memoriam"],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/default-resized.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"The Navigators","author_link":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/staff\/thenavigators\/"},"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1942","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1942"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1942\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":263049,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1942\/revisions\/263049"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1942"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1942"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1942"},{"taxonomy":"mission","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/mission?post=1942"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=1942"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}