Some people are selfish; others are thoughtful. Some leave you depressed; others cause you to be hopeful. Some are easily forgettable; others are an inspiration. Adrean Warmick was one of the latter.
Her death came as a surprise, though it probably shouldn’t have, since she had suffered with health problems for several years. Her affliction was scleroderma, a disease which tightens and toughens the skin. One can only imagine how awkward and painful a person feels who is stricken with it. She was only 41 when she died in September of this year.
During the eleven years we lived in Peoria, I visited her a few times in the hospital when her condition placed her there. Patients are seldom predictable. Some are whiners (“Why did this have to happen to me?”–a direct quote); some are depressed; others somehow remain cheerful. I never left her hospital room without feeling better for having been there.
Even though at least on one occasion we talked for nearly two hours, I don’t claim to know her that well, but she always impressed me as a humble Christian who loved Jesus and His body, the church. She enjoyed talking about various ways of building up the congregation. Having mentioned some things that had been done in other congregations she had attended, she wondered if Southside could do them, also. She did not just talk, however, about possibilities; she helped make them realities. She helped design some very successful programs for the ladies of the congregation.
A person with her physical problems might have been content to indulge herself in self-pity. But she was not like some who complain, “Why hasn’t anybody called me?” or “Why hasn’t anybody visited me?” yet who for twenty or thirty years never personally telephoned any brother or sister, let alone visited them in the hospital. Adrean knew how the body of Christ was supposed to function (Eph. 4:16, 1 Cor. 12). She tried as best she could to build others up.
The spiritual attitude and emphasis in her life (despite her own limitations) have served as an inspiration to me. Over the years we have noticed so many who have enjoyed a heaping portion of good health, who have wasted much of it on frivolous pursuits, seemingly unthankful for the advantages God blessed them with. Those of us empowered to offer more of ourselves on behalf of the kingdom of God should be doing so. “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required” (Luke 12:48).
Some awake on a beautiful Lord’s day morning and immediately plan personal activities apart from the Savior who died for us (and who asked to be remembered–1 Cor. 11:22-29) and their spiritual family, the church. Most of us will probably never know how much of a struggle it is for those like Adrean to prepare herself to meet with the saints (as recently as two weeks before her death), but she was committed to being present for worship, if at all possible.
Adrean Warmick was not loud, domineering, or even all that visible (and an article like this one would probably have embarrassed her); yet she preached a number of eloquent sermons by her godly example. In my memory, at least, she will remain a quiet heroine of the faith.