Torch, Fall/Winter 2007

After graduating, Rusty accepted his first teaching job in Springfield, Ohio. Within the next two years, Elvin and Joyce made the painful discovery that their son was living a homosexual lifestyle. “It made us realize,” they explain, “how a bad choice can lead you down a path you did not intend to travel … and how hard it can be to repent and seek God’s forgiveness.” Until that time, homosexuality was a subject that had never confronted them. In fact, they would both say the situation with their son put a face on something neither had ever considered before. Where they once may have crossed the street to avoid dealing with a sin they couldn’t tolerate, the Kings now have a longing to minister to those trapped by homosexuality — those who, like their son, need compassion and truth to be set free. “These are people,” says Joyce, “who are just as in need of love and spiritual care as anybody else.” They were often reminded of 1 Corinthians 10:12, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” As for Rusty, he moved to Mobile, Alabama, in 1991. He coached cross country at a college for a couple of years, then went into food service management. Within a few years, it became obvious that he was having health problems — getting sick several times, but blaming his ailment on the southern humidity. Hoping to spare his parents, Rusty never let on how sick he was — even when he returned home for Christmas in 1996, wearing a device that pumped a continuous supply of antibiotics into his damaged cells. The three returned to Mobile after Christmas — Elvin and Joyce were going along to help Rusty move into a new apartment. Instead, Rusty was kept in the hospital after a blood transfusion. “I won’t promise what will happen,” he told his father. On New Year’s Day they watched the Rose Bowl. The next day, Rusty’s doctor confirmed their suspicions: their oldest child and only son was dying of AIDS. Returning to Cedarville, the Kings tried to get their lives back to normal, starting the winter quarter while calling their family together for encouragement and prayer. Having obtained permission from Rusty to share his story, they reached out to loved ones and, in return, were offered understanding, concern, and shoulders to lean on. “God gave us incredible people,” Joyce says. “We received tremendous support from our family, church, the college, and our community.” The call came only two weeks later. Rusty was dying and might not make it through the weekend. The Kings hurried back to Alabama, where they spent more than a week with their son. During this amazing time, the family had a chance to witness the true mercy and love of their heavenly Father. In the presence of the family’s home pastor, Rusty was able to find the strength to confess his sin, repent of his lifestyle, and ask for forgiveness from the Lord, as well as his parents, his pastor, and his church. “We never stopped loving Rusty. Though we couldn’t condone the activity, he had to know we loved him. We’re thankful God gave us the opportunity to hear Rusty’s confession,” says Joyce, “and to hear him say he had made peace with God.” Then, just that fast, their son was gone. God, in his goodness, had granted them ten days with Rusty — ten days filled with music, love, Scripture, and prayer. A blessed time of grace that allowed all three to draw closer to each other — and to the Lord. Joyce still cannot tell her son’s story without tears, but the tears are a mixture of sadness and untold gratitude for God’s immense love and faithfulness. Most of the sadness comes from thoughts of what might have been. “Every once in awhile I think he would have been a great dad. Rusty was a talented young man,” Joyce says. “I don’t have all the answers, but I do know it’s all in God’s hands.” The Kings take comfort and encouragement in Isaiah 41:10: “Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” Fall–Winter 2007 25