Beverly J. Luce

From one perspective, an unspeakable tragedy occurred on August 31, 2023 when a lady of incomparable blessedness and goodness suddenly left this world. Yet those who can scarcely imagine living without her are not in despair; rather, their sorrow is mingled with joy in the assurance that she will spend her eternity in Glory with her Lord Jesus, whom she served so faithfully for so many years—and that they will be reunited with her. “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” Psalms 116:15. Beverly Mahon Luce was born on December 13, 1939 to Alonzo and Gertrude Mahon, who have preceded her in death. She came from the hills of Pennsylvania, with no neighbors for about four miles, the eighth of nine children. The valedictorian of her high school class and the first of her family to go to college, she fell in love with a Baptist preacher from upstate New York who took her to Louisiana where they lived most of their married life together. She is survived by her husband of 60 years this December 21, Rev. Nathan Luce. A schoolteacher by trade, Beverly stayed home to raise her three sons, George, Lonnie, and Robert. She eventually went back to work and retired after teaching English and history at various public schools in Louisiana including Capitol Senior High School and St. Amant High School. Her sons all survive her, along with their wives Josie, Christine, and Kelly, respectively. She is also survived by her five grandchildren, Karen, Robbie, Kimmie, Lauren, and Abby, and one great-grandchild, Greycen Bear. Beverly was a gentle, humble, meek person who always put others’ needs and interests before her own. Such people will be exalted in the Kingdom of Heaven! Mathew 23:12. She was so pure and holy that her own sons would be hard put to identify a single sin they ever saw or knew her to commit. Yet there was not a trace of pharisaical self-righteousness in her. Her goodness, though, was vastly more than the mere absence of blemish. Rather, her predominant characteristic was Christ-like love that illuminated the universe of those in her orbit. All of her physical and emotional resources, down to her very lifeblood, were at the disposal of her family. She magnified her loved one’s joys by rejoicing with them in their successes and good fortune. Yet in times of trouble, they could share with her their most personal and deep-seated problems, knowing that even if she did not have a solution, her lovingkindness and understanding and deep concern was a precious balm for their broken spirits. Even if her loved ones persisted in destructive ways for decades and broke her heart, or failed to honor her, the intimacy of her motherly connection to them was never lost or even strained, and her sweet tender love never wavered. When people she loved were in pain—even of their own making—she literally took the pain on herself and suffered with them. When she labored for someone in prayer—which was often—that person could palpably feel the tide start to turn in the spiritual warfare going on around him or her. She would have been willingly martyred for the cause of Christ if her Lord had asked that of her. A voracious reader, Beverly loved classic literature, biographies, and most everything she could get her hands on, as the stacks of books all over her home would attest. She loved to read to her children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and others. On long family car rides, she would keep her family spellbound while reading to them in her sweet poetic voice. But more than anything else, she read God’s word, which she studied daily with her husband. When she prepared to teach her Sunday School class, her table would be filled with multiple versions of the Bible and commentary from various sources. Small but illustrative examples of Beverly’s continuous acts of love and devotion to her family and her Lord included: cooking fabulous meals for the family (including old-fashioned pot roasts and turkey with “Yankee” stuffing); making homemade cinnamon rolls and her incredible pies with homemade crusts during holiday times; bringing her husband coffee in bed every morning; giving her 50-something-year-old sons $100 and making them their favorite dessert on their birthday; and reading one of her beloved Psalms to the church congregation every Sunday, which she did until the very end. Beverly’s sons and grandchildren would stand on a mountaintop and proclaim her blessed. Her husband will testify to all who will listen that of all the virtuous women in the world, his Beverly “excellest them all.” Proverbs 31:28-29. Beverly’s legacy will survive all whom she left behind. Indeed, her legacy is eternal. Those who were so blessed to have been loved by her can best honor her by trusting and obeying the Lord Jesus Christ until their joyous reunion with her in her heavenly abode. “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17. Those who loved Beverly, and those who did not know her well but nevertheless wish to honor this great lady, are welcome to a celebration of her life at Little Prairie Baptist Church in Prairieville on Tuesday, September 5, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. Viewing will be at the church from 9:00 to 10:00 right before the service, and also the preceding evening (Monday, September 4) from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.