TBC LOSES A GREAT FRIEND: DENNIS HARRIS
By David R. Currie,
executive director

Dennis Harris, businessman, evangelist, author, and close personal friend, passed away on June 6, after a long and courageous bout with cancer. Dennis Harris’ death is a great loss to the Kingdom.

I do not remember exactly how I first met Dennis. It was at least ten years ago. He called me to inquire about sending Buckner Fanning’s great sermon, “The SBC has Fallen from Grace,” to everyone on our mailing list at his expense. This launched Texas Baptists Committed as an organization. Through the years, Dennis continued to give generously to TBC, contributing $25,000 to help us mail Jimmy Carter’s letter, which included Charles Wade’s excellent tape on the problems with the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message.

More than that, he was a great personal friend to me. He pushed me, supported me, prayed for me, and urged me to take care of myself. He cared deeply for me, TBC LOSES A GREAT FRIEND: DENNIS HARRIS and our friendship encouraged me.

Dennis was a man of great courage and integrity. Once, he wrote an article for TBC that came at a high price. After the article came out, Dennis had eight scheduled revivals cancelled by fundamentalist pastors, not a one of whom had the integrity to tell him the truth about why he was being uninvited to preach. He handled it with grace, saying being faithful to God was more important.

Last year he preached an amazing message at our 2001 TBC convocation on missions. If you would like a copy, contact us. We will give you one as a tribute to Dennis. Dennis never let his support of Texas Baptists Committed and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (he preached one of the breakout worship services when CBF met in Fort Worth in the mid-1990s) interfere with his work of telling the Good News.

Dennis loved missions and he especially loved Mexico. We helped Dennis put together a revival team to Mexico. He wanted everyone to participate and Texas Hispanic leaders did (over 30 leaders, all expenses paid by Dennis) including Rudy Camacho and Rudy Sanchez from our TBC board along with Rudy Hernandez, past president of the Southern Baptist of Texas. Dennis dreamed that the BGCT could one day buy the seminary in Mexico City. I hope and pray that someday this dream becomes a reality.

What I loved most about Dennis Harris was that there was not a fake bone in his body. He was genuine and truthful. He was wealthy, but he never put on airs. Dennis was just who you saw, no fake exterior.

He loved Jesus, but used his faith to make you comfortable. He had a gift of leading people to Christ. I am sure he used his gift until his end came on this earth, and many share eternity with him because of his faithfulness to God. What a wonderful legacy.

I will miss Dennis Harris and I thank God he was a part of my life.

June 2002