Remembering Pastor Porterfield

Lately I have had Jamie Porterfield on my mind. He was my pastor at House Mountain Baptist church when I was a member there. He was the first pastor that I ever felt really close to besides my grandpa Rev. Edd Spencer, and my great uncle Rev. Adral Hall. Pastor Porterfield (we just called him Jamie) had such a kind heart and was so open and honest. I was able to talk to him without feeling intimidated or cautious. He taught me a lot in the few years I knew him.

I guess I was first drawn to Jamie because of his outstanding musical talents. He was one of the best singers I had ever heard in my life. There is no question that he could have made a living just from singing. He had such range and beauty in his voice. His rendition of the song Beulah Land was the very best of anyone I have ever heard. You can listen to a short sample of it in the video that is posted below.

Jamie took interest in me and would go out of his way to help me in my Spiritual walk. It was he that taught me how to lead congregational music and conduct a choir. He worked with me on how to keep proper time with my hands through all of the different time signatures. He would give me pointers and correct me when I would do something wrong. He always stressed that I needed to lead the songs with my heart and he gave me books that told the stories behind the hymns. He encouraged me to read the books and find out why the authors wrote them.



It was during Jamie's pastorship that I received the call to preach. He encouraged me all of the time. He saw potential in me and would give me opportunities to preach. I will never forget the night we got the terrible phone call telling us that Jamie's 19-year old son, Joe, had fallen asleep while driving and had died in a car accident. Jamie and Judy were so distraught. I took it upon myself to try and lead the church during this difficult time. One night we all drove to Jamie's house and stood in the driveway and prayed. He came outside and even in his grief and mourning, he told me how much he appreciated me and thanked me for stepping up.

Jamie never was quite the same after Joe passed away. I think it was hard for him to be so far away from his community in South Knoxville. He held on as long as he could and eventually resigned and went to pastor Fellowship Baptist which was just up the road from his home. I was the minister of music of House Mountain and the members put me in as the interim pastor after Jamie left. I held that position for nearly a year while they searched for a permanent replacement.

The last time I saw Jamie alive was in 2001. I had resigned from House Mountain and left the church. I had allowed the devil into my life and had been neglecting my family. It was the lowest point in my entire life and I was on the verge of some kind of breakdown. I was at my ropes end. One evening I was just driving around aimlessly in my truck trying to figure out what to do with myself. Something told me to go and talk to Jamie. I drove to his house and asked him if he had time to talk with me. He said, "lets go sit up here on the hill and talk." We sat on the ground behind his house for a long time and I poured my heart out to him. I told him everything that was going on in my life and he quietly listened without interrupting. I told him things I had never told anybody else. He put his arm around me and told me he understood and he offered me some advice and prayed with me. He didn't know it but he saved my life that day.

Three years later when I heard that Jamie had passed away from cancer, my heart was broken. I had deep regret that I hadn't went back to see him since that day in 2001. I wanted to thank him and tell him that my life was straightened out and my family was whole again and healing. I visited the funeral home on Sunday evening. I talked briefly with his wife, Judy. She told me that Jamie had mentioned me in his last days. The feeling of regret swept over me.

It is hard to believe that Jamie has been gone for 5-years now. I still think of him a lot. I've got some of his old preaching tapes and one of his CD's that I listen to every now and then. I thank God that I was allowed to be acquainted with Jamie Porterfield.
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PORTERFIELD, REV. JAMIE - age 49, of South Knoxville, went home to be with the Lord Thursday, January 22, 2004. He was the former Pastor of Fellowship and House Mountain Baptist Churches. He was well known for his beautiful singing of Gospel Music and his spiritual leadership of the South Knoxville Community. He was preceded in death by his: Sons, Jason and Joe Porterfield and by his father, Rev. A.J. Porterfield Survivors: Wife: Judy Porterfield Daughter: Jessie Porterfield and fiancée Will Cogdill Mother: Lorene Porterfield Brother and sister-in-law: Robert Porterfield and wife Becky Sister and brother-in-law: Kathy Wallace and husband Kenny Mother-in-law: Vina Knight. He will be missed by his breakfast buddies at the Korner Market and will always be in the hearts of those who knew and loved him. We are confident, I say and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:8. Funeral service 1 PM Monday at Valley Grove Baptist Church with Rev. Chuck Young, Rev. Ed Parton and Rev. Guy Milam officiating. Interment will follow in Atchley's Seymour Memory Gardens. The family will receive friends 3-9 PM Sunday at Atchley Funeral Home Seymour, 122 Peacock Court, Seymour TN. (865)577-2807 (www.atchleyfuneralhome.com)