GRIM REAPER

Many older people, at some point in their lives, question whether they made the right decisions, especially whether they’re fully secure in eternity.

Looking back at my 71 years, had I not decided to follow Jesus Christ, there’s no telling where I would’ve ended up in this life. It’s highly doubtful I’d still be alive. Where eternity is concerned, Heaven is the only direction for this cat.

Growing up a military brat, pulling up stakes and moving every 3 years, I often wondered how the friends I’d made along the way fared. Several years back, I decided to try to find out, using information some of my old pals had given me, along with news Mom’s friends had provided her.

Social media didn’t exist in the late 1980s; the only way to find what I needed to know was by letter or telephone. When Facebook came along, it expedited matters. I was successful in reconnecting with many classmates — the news I gleaned from them was mostly uplifting. There were two exceptions.

In 1972, Todd Mold unfortunately passed away not long after graduating from high school. A car he was a passenger in left the road and struck a tree. Todd died a few days later in a Massachusetts hospital. Todd and I were good friends at Reese Elementary in Texas.

Larelia Sadler Ragsdale, a classmate from Texas, was sadly killed in 1976 after being in a car accident with her husband, Roger. A drunk driver was at fault for driving in the wrong direction and hitting their vehicle.

The couple were high-school sweethearts and had been married only a few years. During a school play at Reese Elementary School in Wolfforth, Texas, Larelia played Mary, while I played Joseph. We were good pals back then.

Oftentimes, the survivor of a horrible accident is considered the fortunate one. That wasn’t the case in the accident involving Larelia and Roger. I didn’t know the whole story until just a short time ago, as something kept nagging at me to keep researching over the past 5 years to see what ultimately happened to Roger Ragsdale.

After I discovered what I had done, the information was kept under wraps, and I wondered what good it would do to openly disclose it. Some might question why I’m doing so now, yet there’s an important lesson to be learned here, especially from someone perhaps going through the same turmoil as Roger did. There’s help out there if one merely seeks it.

We often come across people who have ruined their lives through alcohol, drugs, or erratic psychological behavior. I know several. Thankfully, a few of them got on the right track and turned off their destructive paths to disaster.

Our church, Calvary Baptist, has a program called Celebrate Recovery. Hundreds, if not thousands, of people have benefited from their weekly prayer and counseling sessions.

Roger Ragsdale not only lost a precious wife on that September day in 1976, but he also lost the direction of his own life as public information dictates. Badly injured, with his face almost totally obliterated, the man spent considerable time recovering, yet the hurt went much deeper than physically.

Records show that he was arrested numerous times afterward for driving under the influence, after crashing his motorcycle into a fence and injuring a female passenger in the process. Roger Ragsdale was cited in connection with the incident and later sued by the other party.

Illegal drugs eventually came into play, with Ragsdale arrested for not only using them but also selling them to undercover investigators. Things came to a head early one morning outside a seedy bar called the Busy Body Lounge in Evansville, Indiana, when he shot and killed a member of the “Grim Reapers” Motorcycle Club during an argument.

Roger went to prison because of this, most likely the same prison Jack Aper should’ve been in. Aper is the man responsible for driving while intoxicated and recklessly crashing into Ragsdale’s car in 1977.

Newspaper records show that the prosecution wanted Aper behind bars, but articles also have him playing golf and bowling by 1978. If he was incarcerated, it was very minimal or not at all. Jack Aper lived to 84 after retiring in Florida.

I never met Roger Ragsdale, but I’ve come across several people just like him, men and women who lost control of their lives because of some underlying physical calamity, addiction, or mental problem. Unless they ask Jesus Christ to intercede, their caustic actions can destroy not only themselves but also friends, family, and loved ones in the process.

Some of these folks I knew were habitual users of alcohol and drugs, yet after they ditched their pride and sincerely asked for God’s help, a few of their lives changed for the better. Unfortunately, not all took that same route.

I’m not singling out Roger Ragsdale for his faults. We’ve all come short of God’s glory — me included. If he hadn’t already done so, before taking his last breath and meeting the Grim Reaper on May 8, 2004, at only 51 years of age, hopefully, Roger Ragsdale reached out to God.

Somewhere along the way after that terrible accident, a friend or concerned acquaintance needed to take this wounded man by the hand and lead him to scripture, showing that help was available to release him from his earthly torture. The ending to this story will only be known when I reach Heaven.

“Do not be afraid, for I am with you; do not be discouraged because I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10.