Humble Service in Jesus’ Name: The Role of a Second—Part 2

Story by Claire Wren Engeron and Trinity Grau
Photos courtesy of Calvary Chapel Golden Springs, CA, and Calvary Chapel Magazine

Following is Part 2 of a recent interview between Raul Ries, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Golden Springs, CA, and his “Second,” Assistant Pastor Dale Goddard. In this part, the men discuss the importance of setting standards for ministry and the legacy of a well-known Second, L.E. Romaine.

Raul Ries (left), senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Golden Springs, CA, and his Assistant Pastor Dale Goddard stand before the congregation in 2002 during a church celebration. Dale, Raul’s “Second,” has served him for more than 35 years. Dale shared, “I want to know what Raul is thinking and what he needs and to be there if he needs me.”

Known simply as “Romaine,” he served as the Second to Chuck Smith, the founder of the Calvary Chapel movement and first pastor of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, CA. The role of an assistant pastor, although not glamorous, is crucial for a healthy church. Romaine understood that serving as a Second is a calling that not many desire. At the request of many, he penned a popular book called Second: Humbly Assisting Those in Leadership, in which he emphasizes the importance of having a humble heart and the willingness to go above and beyond what is asked.

Find Part 1 of this interview here: Serving the Pastor, Serving Jesus

L.E. Romaine, longtime assistant pastor to Calvary Chapel founder Chuck Smith, set the standard for service to the senior pastor. Known as “Romaine,” he authored a book, Second: Humbly Assisting Those in Leadership, in which he emphasizes the importance of having a humble heart and the willingness to go above and beyond what is asked.

                  

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:58

                  

Setting the Standard for Ministry

[Dale Goddard] Raul and I hang out a lot during the day; we are always together. I want to know what Raul is thinking and what he needs and to be there if he needs me. We have been friends for 60 years, but we don’t talk about old times, and we don’t look at the clock. We take a half-hour- or 20-minute lunch. We give our employees an hour lunch; but as an example, we don’t like to do that, so we eat and come back. And when we talk, it is about the Lord. When out to lunch together, often someone is listening to our conversation, and the Lord always opens a door of opportunity to give testimony about Christ.

People have heard that conversation, and more than one person has gotten saved because they heard us speaking at a table, or just speaking casually to one another!

Dale (left) and Raul serve together outside the church walls. Both men were mentored personally by Romaine, and both honor his memory. Romaine was known for his straightforward, straight-speaking manner. “He meant what he said, and he said what he meant,” Dale admitted.

First, Raul is my pastor, and secondly, he is my friend. He knows I always have held him in esteem and have always respected him. I have never violated our friendship by saying or doing anything inappropriate. I have always had his back in loyalty. If you are not loyal to your senior pastor, and you’re talking bad about him, or you’re in those little circles, Raul and I see that. You will not last long at Calvary Chapel Golden Springs if you are looking at the clock, if you are criticizing how many hours we make you work. Listen, we do not care what kind of contract we signed with you, whether it is part-time, full-time, or for X-amount of dollars. We want the same from everybody.

[Raul Ries] We want to be one in the church.

[Dale] We have never cheated anybody financially here; they serve the Lord. Raul has told everyone from day one, “We get our salary from the people. The people work for that money, and we have a responsibility and a duty to give them the best.” Raul meets with us almost daily as a staff to remind us of these things. In our last staff meeting, Raul told us, “On a scale of 1 to 10––10 being the best––I only want 10s here as employees because our people deserve the best. When was the last time your pastor told you that you had to be the best? Well, for the people and for the Lord, you have to be the best.

This weathered newspaper clipping from the early days of Chuck Smith’s ministry show him joyfully relaxing on the ground, enjoying the music of a young man playing a guitar. Also pictured are Romaine (center) and two other young men. Chuck was known for ministering to and discipling the hippies of the 1970s.

The Legacy of a Second

[Dale] Another thing that Romaine wrote:

The assistant pastor needs to be teachable––constantly learning, listening, keeping his head and mind on the things that need to be done and [are] necessary for the ministry.

The greatest pleasure I’ve had in ministry with Romaine was when we were both speaking at an assistant pastors’ conference. It was packed out. I drove there and came in by myself. I did not know a lot of people. Everyone knew Romaine. He was encircled by people. He was up on some steps and saw me coming. All the guys were listening. All of a sudden, he stopped and said, “See that guy over there [they all turned and looked], he does it the way I do it.” I admit, I puffed my chest up and walked a little straighter that day, but it also gave me [a strong] feeling of responsibility to carry on what a lot of churches have stopped doing—[keeping] our legacy as associate pastors. Romaine taught me that legacy. We have to be this man, otherwise we’re not doing what God wants us to do.

[Raul] We are not doing the will of God

[Dale] Yes, the will of God. We are certainly not helping the body of Christ at all.

Romaine (second from right) stands with Paul Smith, Chuck’s brother, and his wife Ruth (both left). Paul enthusiastically assisted his brother in starting the international radio ministry, The Word for Today, which then developed the Calvary Chapel KWVE FM, a 24-hour, daily national Christian radio station.

[Raul] When you think about the things we have read [in Second], that is for the assistant pastor. For me, there are two times I became very emotional. I had the privilege of Romaine calling me to go to see his wife, Ruth, who was dying. We went to the hospital, and Romaine asked me, “Hey Raul, can you pray for my wife?” We laid hands on her; and I saw Romaine, for the first time, so emotional for his wife. He loved his wife. When your wife loves you, she puts up with a lot of things. Ruth put up with a lot of things, but she never stopped him from doing ministry. Her mind and heart were for ministry, respecting Romaine for what he was doing. Romaine not only loved the Lord, but his wife loved the Lord. Later on, I got to meet his whole family. It was incredible to see that Romaine was no respecter of persons. For there is no partiality with God (Romans 2:1).

[Dale] No, he wasn’t. At his funeral, everyone was invited, but only a few went to the graveside. I was at the graveside with you, Raul. After it was over, didn’t they roll up a prayer rug that he used and give it to you?

[Raul] Yes, they gave it to me.

Romaine (left) and Raul in May 2000 as Raul enjoys holding a baby. Dale shared, “As rough as Romaine’s exterior was, he was soft toward Raul. I think he considered Raul more like a son. His family extended that same sentiment to Raul, and [after his death] they gave him the prayer rug where Romaine would pray on his knees.”

[Dale] As rough as Romaine’s exterior was, he was soft toward Raul. I think he considered Raul more like a son. His family extended that same sentiment to Raul, and they gave him the prayer rug where Romaine would pray on his knees. That was so personal to me to see that happen.

When we knew Romaine was dying, nobody was allowed in the hospital. When we got there, the first person who saw us said, “Thank you for coming, but you can wait out here because nobody is able to go in.” Romaine couldn’t talk, but when he heard we were there, he motioned for us to come in, and we went in. Raul did most of the talking, but I never forgot that he nodded to us and held up his thumb

How great is it to honor a man who devoted his life and never sought any attention for himself. There was not an egotistical bone in his body. He did it for the Lord, and he set the standard, in many ways, for the associate pastors today because so many ministries are watering [the call of an associate pastor] down now and using it as a ladder to becoming a senior pastor. There might be five associate pastors in every church, but there is only one senior pastor. So everyone is not going to be a senior pastor; some are called [by God] to only be a Joshua or a Jonathan.

Pastor Chuck (left) and Romaine. Romaine understood that the role of an assistant pastor, although not glamorous, is crucial for a healthy church and that it is a calling that not many men desire.

[Raul] For me right now, it has been a tremendous time for us to share about Romaine. We have shared the truth about who Romaine really was, and who he was to us. I hope those in the ministry use the things that have been said here. It is not about us––it is about Jesus. And because Romaine loved Jesus, guess what happened? He followed and taught the life of a Second to other people. Continue to pray to see if God wants you in the ministry where you serve other people. In ministry, you start on your knees—and you finish on your knees—every single day. So, may the Lord bless you and keep you.

Romaine (right) congratulates Raul at one of his graduation celebrations in the 1990s.

                  

Find Part 1 of this interview here: Serving the Pastor, Serving Jesus

                  

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All verses above are quoted from the New King James Version, unless otherwise noted.

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