Dorothy went to be with the Lord on Saturday, October 14, 2023. This is the message that her husband Alan gave at her memorial service on November 17, 2030, along with both a slideshow and video recording of her. We know that she is with Jesus and no longer has to suffer. As we always said, ‘Our times are in His hands and the best is yet to be!’

Dorothy was born in Rhyl, a seaside town in Wales, Great Britain. She immigrated with her parents to Sydney, Australia, and moved into a house down the road from the church that my family attended. Dorothy and her family joined the church, which is where we met.

We started dating when Dorothy was only 14 years old. Years later, when our daughters turned 14, I wondered, ‘What were we doing? What were our parents thinking letting us start a relationship when we were so young?’ I remember the song ‘Too Young,’ by Nat King Cole, which was popular then.

Yes, Dorothy and I were too young, but six years later, when Dorothy was twenty, we got married. And all told, we were together for nearly 71 years – six years of dating followed by 65 years of marriage. Together, we built a starter home at Padstow Heights. Our first daughter Beth was born and then I later entered the ministry in 1963.

Then, in 1966, we entered into what was the most terrible time in our lives together when Dorothy was pregnant with our second daughter, Joy. She was sick throughout the entire nine months of pregnancy. At one point, the doctors put her in hospital for a week. Nobody was allowed to see her, including myself, as they tried to stabilize her. They induced labor ahead of time, but it was two to three years before she fully recovered through medical help and spiritual ministry. During that time, we cried out to God, ‘Lord, there must be something more.’ The answer to that prayer came in 1971 when we discovered the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which led us into a whole new life and ministry as we were ‘called together’ to step out in faith and begin a ministry called The Temple Trust.

Dorothy immediately began to move in the gifts of the spirit as she began to hear the voice of the Lord more clearly. I have to say that as she did, I was somewhat threatened by it all until I, too, began to hear the voice of God also more clearly. For seven glorious years, we experienced God’s blessing on our ministry together. In that decade of destiny, we ran national conferences culminating in the Jesus 79 conference in Sydney, we pioneered a bible college, we invited many speakers, especially from America, to minister in Australia, and we produced a national magazine, to mention just a few things. The Temple Trust became the major renewal ministry in Australia at the time.

Then things changed, as God called us to lay down the ministry and move to America. As often happened, Dorothy got the message to move to America before me. She received a word about ‘living under the American flag.’ I did not know what to do about that word. ‘Was I supposed to put an American flag on top of the roof of our home?’

Later, God spoke to me about moving to America, and within a few months, we had relocated to Minneapolis/St. Paul. As we were getting ready to move, Dorothy, along with our two daughters, contracted a viral infection. Joy was miraculously healed one weekend. Beth got progressively better, but Dorothy never fully recovered. She ended up with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia, which she had for the rest of her life. I am not sure everyone knew what she had to battle.

We lived in America together for almost forty-five years. Many of you have walked with us through those years.

WHO SHE WAS

Let me share some of my own thoughts about Dorothy:

Dorothy was a Christian. As re-told in her own words from her book ‘Called Together,’ Dorothy encountered God at a young age.

The sun was warm on my back. The long summer grass waved slightly, stirred by the gentle breeze. I loved being out in the middle of the large field behind our house. The field was the perfect place to play. My brother David and I would make hospitals for wounded butterflies there and run snail races along the wall.

That particular day, I was all by myself. Snuggled down in the grass, I felt as though I was in a secret place where no one could see me. All of a sudden, I became acutely aware of the presence of God. Instantly I felt close and special to Him. I knew He was speaking to me. “I have something very special for you to do when you grow up,” He said, although I heard no audible voice. My heart responded without hesitation. “Yes, God!” Even at the age of seven, I knew that my life belonged to Him. I began to understand that there was a call of God on my life. I had been born to fulfill a destiny. I kept that secret all to myself and treasured it in my heart.

Dorothy accepted Jesus as her Savior that day; she loved the Lord, and ever since she experienced the Holy Spirit, God was especially real to her.

Dorothy was very much a family person. She loved her husband, her daughters, her grandchildren, and her great-grandchild. Last week, Dorothy would have celebrated her 85th birthday, and on that day, I received this email from Jessica and Jonathan, our grandchildren who live in Germany.

As today is grandma’s birthday, I want to let you know that Jessica and I are thinking of you, all the cousins as well as Joy and sending our prayers.

The memories that I have of grandma will live on forever in me, I’m sure of that. She always struck me as joyful, courageous, hopeful and loving. She always had time for me, and gave me strength and hope even in very dark times. I am deeply thankful for every conversation and every moment I spent with her. When I think of her I see her smiling, often in places such as the Arboretum, at the church and at the Cousins house. I particularly remember releasing the Monarch butterflies with her in the front yard.

Much Love and Blessings – Jessica & Jonathan

Dorothy was very creative. She could sew, bake, and decorate ornate cakes, and she especially loved gardening.

Dorothy was an intercessor. I could tell countless stories of her intercession and prayer for people, churches, and ministries. She undergirded our ministry in prayer.

Dorothy was used by God to minister to individual people, as well as in churches, conferences, and bible schools. I received a card from a friend in Australia who wrote, ‘We celebrate the amazing gift she was to us all. Her love for the Lord, shone through her strength and courage, was a constant witness, and she willingly gave of herself to bring healing and encouragment into our lives. Her insight was truly a gift of God.‘

Dorothy was a woman with prophetic insight. A leader here in the Twin Cities wrote that Dorothy ‘had a clear gift of prophetic discernment, which I respected deeply.’ God gave her prophetic words for people, which she often shared with them privately.

Dorothy was a woman of faith and obedience. Let me tell you one story that demonstrates her faith and obedience.

One October, she was scheduled to travel back to Australia to visit her parents. She had received a first-class ticket on Qantas through her brother David, who worked there. Air travel was different years ago, and when she called to book her flight from San Fransico to Sydney, she was told not to fly there from Minneapolis as there were no first-class vacancies for a flight to Australia till December. Dorothy, however, did not heed their warning, as she believed that she was meant to go then. So, she flew to San Francisco, where she was again told, ‘there are no open seats for her on the plane.’ Knowing she was to be on that plane, she waited at the gate, and just before they closed the doors, they called her over and let her know that a seat was now available in first class. It took faith to fly to San Fransico and sit at the gate, waiting for a seat to open up. But that is what she did.

GONE AHEAD 

I want to finish with one last thought. When Dorothy was terribly sick in 1967, it was the worst time of our lives. I was close to a breakdown as I didn’t know if she would pull through and what life would then be like. During that time, there was a song on the radio that I would hear over and over. Sung by Bobby Goldsboro, it was called ‘Honey.’ Some of the words of this song bring back so many memories of our life together, capturing some of the emotions I had for Dorothy both back then and now.

Dorothy did come through, and we had the privilege of being ‘called together’ for such a time as this . . . for nearly 65 years of marriage and ministry. And as the song perfectly said, ‘Honey, I miss you. And I’m being good and I would love to be with you if only I could.’ 

 Dorothy, I miss you. I love you, and I always will.’ 

God spoke to me in my grief, reminding me of a time when Dorothy and I were to travel back to Australia. Dorothy went on ahead of me, and I flew over later. Dorothy has now gone ahead of me to heaven and is with Jesus, and I will follow later.