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Arthur Stone, 1924-2008

Obituary

Arthur Stone entered consciously into God’s presence on December 10. Born in Hartlepool in 1924, his father George Stone (known as Jack) was the minister of Thornton Street Baptist Chapel. When war came, like many of his generation, with the help of his dad’s stolen / borrowed trench coat and trilby, he lied about his age and signed up with the Durham Light Infantry.

He was involved in the Normandy landings and, after ten days of non-stop fighting, he collapsed and was invalided out of the war zone with shell shock.

On his return he married Muriel. She would be his lifelong partner and a vital member of a team who God would use mightily. Not long after, Carol and Norman were born.

His first pastorate was in Hartlepool at Thornton Street. This was followed by pastorates in Warboys (Huntingdon), Thornhill (West Yorkshire) and Bradfield and Rougham Baptist Church near Bury St. Edmunds.

A sudden stroke just before retirement age brought him back to his hometown of Hartlepool, where, after his health recovered, he was able to preach regularly again.

His last six years were spent on the outskirts of Glasgow where he continued preaching and writing articles until shortly before his death.

Arthur’s was an exceptional ministry, not only because the churches where he went clearly grew and prospered, but because the growth was mainly through conversions. With Arthur, one outstanding characteristic was that he allowed his faith to take the lead. He had total confidence in Christ and was single minded. This was illustrated by his willingness to leave a successful, prosperous work at Warboys to head north to help tiny churches in West Yorkshire. On the face of it, this did not make sense and many of his friends tried to dissuade him. His son Norman comments: ‘Dad, however, was totally persuaded and we all duly de-camped from our happy home in a borrowed van into a very uncertain future’.

He did not even know which church he would go to, but got himself a job with W.H. Smith, eventually settling at Thornhill. Through open-air evangelism (always a priority with Arthur), a regular outreach magazine of excellent quality, and lots of visiting, God began saving people.

What can we learn from someone who, when called to go to a place, obeyed and went even though he did not know where he was going? I reckon it has to be how God honours those who live by faith. As it was with Abraham, so it was with Arthur. Is it true of us?

His son Norman sums him up: ‘He lived for the Lord, he gave his all, and he died in harness… that was my dad’.

Mick Lockwood