With the Lord

David E. Taylor - April 23, 1942 - December 9, 1998

David was born in Chicago, Illinois, the oldest of nine children. As a child, he often heard the message of salvation, and accepted Christ as Savior at the age of nine. While a junior in high school, David fully yielded his life to Christ. At Cedarville College, Dave met Barbara Blackburn, and the two married in 1964. They went on to Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary, where Dave pursued a Master's of Divinity degree. The Taylors interned in youth pastorate positions, including one at a fundamental Black church. During that time, the couple were becoming increasingly interested in a missions career.

The Taylors were appointed by ABWE to Brazil in 1969, arriving in the country in the summer of 1972. For more than 25 years, Dave was active in church-planting in the S‹o Paulo area, helping to start and strengthen four different churches. He was well-known in the churches for his unusual evangelistic tools which included chalk art, evangelistic magic tricks, whistling, ventriloquism, and lariat demonstrations.

One of Dave's key emphases to the local churches was that the congregations must play a major part in the construction of their church buildings. Many members work full-time, so they used their vacations, evenings and weekends for church construction. Dave led this effort by example. While assisting with a construction project for the São Mateus congregation, Dave was rushed to the hospital, but was unable to be resuscitated.

At his funeral in Brazil, national and missionary colleagues remembered Dave's enthusiastic energy for the cause of Christ in Brazil which demonstrated his commitment to winning souls for eternity.

Missionary colleague Ronald Meznar said he found it credible that Dave's final act should have been involvement in the São Mateus construction, "for he was tireless in bringing to fruition every project he tackled. We will miss him greatly, and pray that the Lord will raise up others to take his place."

Dave was buried in the Cemetery of Peace where Dorothy Cuthbert and Janet Lewis were buried in 1974, following the tragic accident in which Barbara Taylor was seriously injured.

Dave is survived by his wife Barbara, their married daughter Patricia and her husband, their college-age son Jonathan, and their high school-age daughter Cynthia; and by a granddaughter, Hannah White.

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