By One Spirit — Holy Ghost Ministry

Lary and his beloved dog Champ welcomed by Jesus into a radiant garden of flowers, waterfalls, and golden light
Remembering the ministry and teachings of Lary R. Hale

Faith carried forward

By One Spirit is a lasting home for Holy Ghost ministry, preserving the teachings of Lary R. Hale and the memories of the people whose lives he touched.

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From the ministry archive

Understanding the Heart

An elderly woman examines her heart in prayer beside a lamp, with moonlit olive growth beyond the window.
© By One Spirit Ministries

I have found over the time that I've been in Christ, that as I've gotten to know God better I have also gotten to know myself better. David understood what I'm trying to say, and the following words are evidence of it: "Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress" (Psm. 17:3). Job also got to know what he was made of over the time he had served God faithfully, and that is how he could declare the following: "Thou knowest that I am not wicked... But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined" (Job 10:7; Job 23:10,11). These were men who knew themselves because they knew God. If we continue to "purify [ourselves] even as he is pure," what we learn about ourselves will be better than what we expect it to be (I Jn. 3:3). Reason being that the only way we can be righteous is if we are partakers of his righteousness, and we abide therein (Heb. 12:10; Jn. 15:5). So what we learn about ourselves after abiding in Christ over a long period of time, and after coming through many trials successfully, is that we have kept our initial unity with him, or kept our "first love," as the scripture speaks of (I Cor. 6:17; Rev. 2:4). When it's all said and done that has to be good because it is Christ in us, which is the only good we have, and all the good we need (Rom. 7:18; Gal. 2:20). The truth is, everyone who is in Christ gets to know their own heart better as they go forward from day to day over a period of time. So what about those who are not finding out good things about themselves so much? Well, that is where we decide what we are going to be, because we have all at one time or another found out bad things about ourselves. The whole key to whether we fail or overcome is honesty. We start this walk with Jesus with honesty of heart by coming clean before God and being filled with his "Spirit of holiness" (Jn. 7:37-39; Rom. 1:4).

What it takes to remain holy after we are in Christ, I believe the apostle Paul said it best: "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him" (Col. 2:6). Nobody has ever received God's Spirit and had their sins taken away without being fully honest before God as to where they're at and where they need to be. That's just a plain fact of the Gospel. So if we remain honest before God every day about where we are at and where we need to be, we can always get to where we need to be, which is holiness. Those who eventually find out that they are better than what they realized, find that out because they have remained honest and humble before God every day, and have not tried to fool themselves about anything. They repent when they are wrong, and they are thankful for the righteousness that God let's them be a partaker of in him. The overriding reason that true followers of Christ are able to remain honest with God is because they have learned the enormity of God's mercy through their continuance in honesty and humility. They truly know the meaning of such sayings as this one: "For thy mercy is great above the heavens: and thy truth reacheth unto the clouds" (Psm. 108:4). And this one: "He delighteth not in the strength of the horse: he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man. The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy" (Psm. 147:10,11). On the other hand, those who do NOT remain honest before God, fail to do so because they simply do not trust in his mercy toward them. Sadly for some who have trouble overcoming failure, as all have had to deal with, they end up focusing more on their own shortcomings than on God's mercy to fix what is broken. If we fail to trust God's mercy to right our wrongs, then we run the risk of beginning to justify our faults rather than get them righted. That is where honesty can end, and erroneous mindsets and erroneous doctrines can take the place of that first honesty and humility that we began our walk in.

It is unspeakably sad that this happens because we who are in Christ have so much more mercy to hope in than either David or Job ever knew. We perpetually have the cross of Christ, the everlasting symbol of God's love for mankind, to look to. The price that Jesus paid for every sin that could ever be committed by anyone, was so very complete, and so much greater than the grand total of sins that anyone could ever commit. There simply is no reason whatsoever for anyone to be lost, or for anyone to not attain to and maintain holiness in their lives for that matter. Satan will give someone who has failed every reason under the sun to believe that their failure is too great to be cleared, but all he is really doing is diminishing the monumental sacrifice of the Son of God who died for our every sin, and will forgive every sin that is confessed honestly and humbly to him (I Jn. 1:9; I Jn. 2:1). Jesus actually instructed us to forgive one another four hundred and ninety times in a day if needed (Mat. 18:21,22). I really believe that he is at least as forgiving as he requires us to be, don't you think? So what it comes down to is that we need to dwell a whole lot more on what Jesus has done to succor our redemption, than on what we have done to mess it up. In other words it's more about him than it is about us. Does that make sense? He knows where we come from, and he knows that we have need. That is why the following was written: "Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (Heb. 4:14-16). To finish off the point, let's look no further than the words of Jesus, who defined what it would take for us to be saved in the end: "But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience" (Lk. 8:15). Amen.

From the Preserved Writings of Lary R. Hale

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Jesus Is All

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Selected Broadcast 50: Jesus Is All

In loving memory

Lary R. Hale

Lary smiling with his beloved dog Champ
Lary with Champ

A Hero Finally Rests.

Lary Redman Hale of Louisville, KY entered into his greatest joy, the presence of King Jesus himself, welcomed by the cheers of angels and the saints of God on Sunday night, April 21, 2024.

What the outside world would see as the untimely passing of a humble, local minister, heaven saw as the triumphant finale of a valiant warrior's life. He fought the good fight, having kept the faith, and received what Christ himself called "The Champion's Wreath of Victory".

Lary was born November 13, 1954 to Marvin and Norma Hale. Being the youngest of his siblings ensured he had lots of time with his loving mother, from whom he undoubtedly developed his profound sensitivity, heartfelt sentimentality and emotional comfortability - characteristics that were trademarks of his life. He grew up surrounded by cousins and classmates that became his best friends.

At his 50 year class reunion he was overjoyed and excited to catch up with so many of them, smiling and laughing more than he had in a long time. He would often tell stories of how he treasured those times as a young boy riding bikes, shooting B.B guns and playing with his childhood dog Peanuts; all while getting into assorted harmless mischief. He cherished the time he spent living on his parents houseboat and helping his dad, a united states marine veteran, take care of the boat and dock.

His relationship with his dad was only strengthened in their later years as they watched boxing matches almost every weekend for the remainder of his dad's life. He admired his brother Gary for his athleticism and industrious attitude, and thought his sisters Vicki and Mila had hearts of gold just like his mother. In his teen years Lary developed three of his lifelong loves: swimming, cool cars and lifting weights.

Some people said Lary was part fish because of how well he swam, but Lary would correct them, he was actually part dolphin. As a young man he managed a health club where he helped multiple people lose weight and counted that a huge joy. He loved nature and taking photos of it, honing his skills and knowledge in cameras. His vocabulary was second to none and he enjoyed learning new words and using them especially in his writings.

Before he passed he still exercised as much as his body would allow and he longed to return to the ocean and the white sands of Destin, Florida.

Like most disenfranchised teens in the early 70s, Lary indulged in countless vices that left him empty and searching for more. Although his long black curly hair, loud clothes, muscles and muscle cars made him the envy of the boys and the heartthrob of the girls, none of these things satisfied his heart. He pursued a college education briefly, desiring to be a marine biologist or philosopher but found that this was not what he was missing either - he longed for true fulfillment.

Depressed, empty, and feeling hopeless, Lary heard about a particular beautiful girl he had a crush on that was attending a small church where the "Spirit of God" was changing people's lives. After wondering why someone like her would attend a church like that, he began to attend also.

After a few months, he made a simple prayer on his hands and knees, saying "God I can't stop smoking, drinking, raging or any of the other countless vices I have - but if you can set me free from these things, I'll know you're real and that you want me to serve you". The next morning Lary woke up and described the next few hours as "walking on air" realizing he was, in his words "delivered" and never going back to those vices.

This began his life long commitment to glorifying Jesus, the king of glory, for how he transformed Lary's life from darkness to light. Lary would marry that same beautiful girl, the love of his life, Fay Kustes, and they would have two sons together, Benjamin Isaac and Elisha Daniel. Lary's greatest joy in life was being a husband and father.

He was happiest when he was sharing what he was learning in the bible with his family, and teaching them that knowing God was simplistic and yet powerful - that God was not merely a religious concept, but a powerful savior on a day to day basis. As Lary made it his life's goal to find "the lost sheep", he would tap into his multifaceted creativity that went largely underappreciated.

Lary produced well over a thousand episodes of gospel presentations: self-producing, mixing, editing and encoding both a radio and television show. Between the two, he broadcast for over 30 years. All of this in the analog age, where self produced radio and TV shows were nearly unheard of, especially without any budget whatsoever.

Lary was an evangelist in Louisville and southern Indiana, being asked to preach and teach in multicultural and multi-generational churches across the city. The churches he was most loved and welcomed by were the African-American Baptist and Pentecostal churches that loved and welcomed his passionate, excitable and action packed style of preaching.

Once the dawn of the internet came, he immediately worked to have a website published, making his literature and gospel teachings available. Eventually he'd use social media to teach, preach and encourage believers all across the world. He would spend every night praying with and encouraging christians from every nation until the end of his life. Many of which saw him like a second father and all of whom greatly mourn his passing.

Even though he produced over a thousand episodes of media, taught in multiple churches, mentored in multiple countries, and had multiple printed works of literature, he considered his greatest life's work to be his two sons. One of their earliest memories is Lary saying "the most important job in the world is not preaching the gospel, it's raising kids in the gospel". This threaded through his entire life.

In his final week on earth, he reminisced on his life saying "I see my life as the highest success, because my life's work are my two sons, who I am so incredibly proud of - not for their natural achievements but for their love, humility and personal faith in Jesus that is not only evident in their lives but also in their love. Because of them, I know my life is a true success - and I credit Jesus for all of it".

His sons today see him as the most successful man they will ever know. He succeeded in loving them and never hurting them. Leading them and never controlling them. Being there for them and never leaving them. He was a man that would apologize quickly, forgive quickly, and always encouraged his sons to "get up and go from here". He succeeded in teaching them faith, hope and love in a world starving so badly for all three. His ministry lives on in them.

The lives of everyone touched by their lives are forever indebted to this humble, prayerful man of faith.

He is preceded in death by his father Marvin, mother Norma, sister Mila, sister-in-law Marlene, nephew Adam, aunts, uncles, treasured cousins, and his beloved dog of 18 years, Champ.

Until they are reunited in the glory of heaven, he is survived and will be missed by his sons, Benjamin and Elisha (Katrine), his wife of 30 years, Fay, his brother Gary, His sister Vicki (Dan), his cousins, nieces, nephews, his friends, and those that called him their pastor and teacher.

"The righteous perish, and no man lays it to heart: merciful men are taken away and no one considers that the righteous person is being spared from the evil to come. He shall enter into peace: he shall rest in his bed, having walked in uprightness." Isaiah 57:1&2

A life in pictures and film

Watch the tribute video shared with Lary’s obituary. It brings together moments from his life and footage of the man so many loved.

Video hosted by Tribute Slides through Newcomer Kentuckiana.

Original obituary at Newcomer Kentuckiana

Memories of Lary