When I received the news of Voddie Baucham’s passing, I was at a men’s retreat I had organized. We were in the cafeteria at Camp of the Woods, and table by table, the word spread. I was scheduled to speak first at the conference, just half an hour after hearing the news. It did not feel real then, and to be honest, it still does not. I expected the reality to hit me hard on Monday, but it still has not. I cannot believe Voddie is gone.
I would not describe my relationship with Voddie as close, but we certainly knew each other and spoke on the phone from time to time. Usually, he was the one calling, often with a random question about some evangelical leader or situation. Our last conversation was in August. We talked for about forty minutes about music, the state of evangelicalism, his health, his thoughts on Israel, and his sons, whom he spoke of with great pride. The news of his passing was especially shocking given how well he told me he felt during that call.
Another thing I find difficult to understand is why God would take Voddie at a time when Reformed evangelical Christianity is in such disarray. His death feels as though the last adult has left the room. I cannot help but wonder if this is a sign of God’s judgment on America. After the passing of John MacArthur, the assassination of Charlie Kirk, and the various scandals that have removed figures such as Steve Lawson and former G3 President Josh Buice, it is hard not to see it that way.
There were many things I respected about Voddie Baucham, but what stood out most was how unseriously he took himself. He was offered prestigious positions and could easily have become a college president or a political commentator with a comfortable salary. Instead, he chose to spend nine years in Zambia as a missionary and educator—hardly the path for someone seeking the limelight. When he returned to the United States, he chose to serve at a small seminary in Southwest Florida, believing that training pastors mattered far more than attending cocktail parties with the who’s who of conservative institutions and politics
Sometimes I wondered if Voddie even realized how popular he was. He tended to assume the best about people, even those who name-dropped or tried to use him. Perhaps that was part of what made our relationship special. I never saw him as a platform. To me, he was just Voddie. The same man I first met in January 2019 at a hotel in Atlanta, who wanted to “chop it up” about my experience at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. The same guy who broke his toe and laughed as James White retold the story. The same man who believed that talking about real life mattered just as much as diving into deep theological discussions. He truly embodied the integration of theology and everyday life.
His approachability, sense of humor, and care for others were refreshing and stood in stark contrast to many speakers on the Reformed evangelical circuit. I wanted to be more like him in this regard: convictional in the pulpit but compassionate with people. He showed me compassion when he prayed for my wife and me as we went through our own fertility struggles, and he rejoiced with us when Anna finally came into the world in June of last year. He also corrected me when I made a distinction between adopted children and one’s own children on my podcast. He told me that adopted children are your own children, and he shared his own story of coming to adoption so that it might help my wife and me discern if that was the path we should take.
I will probably never get over the fact that Voddie regularly listened to my podcast. I always thought he was the one who should teach me, not the other way around. But he was so humble that he could learn from anyone.
Usually, articles like this end with Christians affirming their trust in the sovereignty of God and His perfect timing. I believe those things, but I do not think I can end it that way. Voddie’s death leaves a great hole in the evangelical world and in my heart as well. And now that I have written this, I think it is finally sinking in.
He is gone to be with the Lord.
