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

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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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A man that flattereth his neighbour spreadeth a net for his feet (Prov

Absalom warmly greets petitioners at Jerusalem’s gate, while a folded net lies in the foreground and the king’s distant citadel rises beyond the gathering.
© By One Spirit Ministries

"A man that flattereth his neighbour spreadeth a net for his feet" (Prov. 29:5). "A lying tongue hateth those that are afflicted by it; and a flattering mouth worketh ruin" (Prov. 26:28). "They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak. The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things" (Psm. 12:2,3). These four verses of scripture provide us with more than enough evidence to show us that flattery is a dangerous thing to receive. The Hebrew word for 'flattereth' in our first verse is 'Chalaq,' and it means 'to divide.' There are two more variants of the same word in the next three verses, with the added emphasis on 'smoothness.' But before I deal with this issue of flattery dividing, I would like to first say that there is a difference between flattery and a genuine compliment to someone. A genuine compliment is always singular in motive, and that motive is simply to edify or encourage someone. Flattery on the other hand is a smoothly projected 'compliment' that is intended to puff someone up for the sake of slipping some kind of a dagger in along with the 'seeming' compliment. One needs to be perceptive about who is complimenting them, and why they are doing so. Flattery is always self gain motivated, and it will always cause problems for anyone who openly receives it. But getting back to the 'dividing' element of flattery, we need to realize that flattery when it is received will always divide someone's heart, their mind, and most likely a relationship; particularly one's relationship with the Lord, and often with someone who is a close link to God in someone's life. When David's son Absalom became intent on usurping the kingdom from David, he sought to do so by flattery: "And Absalom rose up early, and stood beside the way of the gate: and it was so, that when any man that had a controversy came to the king for judgment, then Absalom called unto him, and said, Of what city art thou? And he said, Thy servant is of one of the tribes of Israel. And Absalom said unto him, See, thy matters are good and right; but there is no man deputed of the king to hear thee...

Absalom said moreover, Oh that I were made judge in the land, that every man which hath any suit or cause might come unto me, and I would do him justice! And it was so, that when any man came nigh to him to do him obeisance, he put forth his hand, and took him, and kissed him. And on this manner did Absalom to all Israel that came to the king for judgment: so Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel" (II Sam. 15:2-6). The result of Absalom's flattery being received by the people was that much of Israel was divided from David, also David and those with him had to flee from Jerusalem for a time. It also resulted in Absalom being pierced through the heart by Joab, while accidentally being hung in a tree by his hair, with the kingdom being restored to David (II Sam. 15:14-17; II Sam. 18:14,15). It is certain that Absalom's flattering of the people of Israel worked a lot of ruin, including to himself in the end. It all brings another powerful and irrefutable proverb to mind: "Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein: and he that rolleth a stone, it will return upon him" (Prov. 26:27). As one of our four text verses says, a person who is flattering someone is "speaking with a double heart," which is to say a divided heart. That is why flattery serves to divide someone else's heart, because that is all it can do, seeing it is coming from a divided or double heart. And it always comes across with such smoothness, and with what appears to be good intent. The spirit of Christ spoke in prophecy of Judas, in this manner: "The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart: his words were softer than oil, yet were they drawn swords" (Psm. 55:21). These were also words of David about someone who betrayed him, most likely his trusted counselor Ahithophel who fell out to Absalom, and ultimately committed suicide (II Sam. 17:23). Another powerful example of flattery in the Bible is when Daniel was the first of three presidents over the kingdom of the Medes, and the other two presidents were envious of him and hated him. They wanted to defame Daniel to the king, but they couldn't find any fault with him; so they conspired to get the king to sign a petition that would condemn Daniel, without the king knowing what he was doing (Daniel 6:1-5).

The king loved Daniel, so the only way these men could accomplish this was by stealth and flattery: "Then these presidents and princes assembled together to the king, and said thus unto him, King Darius, live for ever. All the presidents of the kingdom, the governors, and the princes, the counsellors, and the captains, have consulted together to establish a royal statute, and to make a firm decree, that whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty days, save of thee, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions. Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not. Wherefore king Darius signed the writing and the decree" (Dan. 6:6-9). So they flattered the king and puffed him up about himself, and without realizing it the king signed a decree that would land Daniel in the den of hungry lions; because Daniel was not going to be deterred from his regular prayers to God, even if it cost him his life. The result was that Darius the king was divided from Daniel by this decree, and was deeply grieved about the whole thing when Daniel was cited as breaking this law through his prayer routine (Dan. 6:10-15). The king realized he had done foolishly, and it was only the faith that Daniel had in God that delivered him from the lions miraculously, and erased the grief of Darius (Dan. 6:16-23). And as it was with Absalom, these flatterers who had deceived the king with their smooth words of exaltation, ended up in the pit that they had digged for Daniel, along with their wives and children; all of whom were quickly eaten by the lions (Dan. 6:24). Darius also decreed to all his kingdom to worship the God of Daniel (Dan. 6:25-27). So once again we see the scripture fulfilled that says, "a flattering mouth worketh ruin." It is dangerous indeed to receive the smooth words of someone with a double heart, and equally as dangerous to be the one doing the flattering, if not more so. Also in both of these biblical examples we see that flattery was intended to separate, or divide someone from someone else who was a close link to God in their lives. No surprise there, seeing that flattery is a tool of the devil, the adversary of Christ and of all who love Christ. May God preserve us from smooth words that come to us for like purpose. Amen.

From the Preserved Writings of Lary R. Hale

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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