Denis Alan Bates, D.A. Bates, Mr. Man, born on October 20, 1949 and died the same day as his mother Madeline Jean on July 20th of 2022. He was a servant and soldier of Christ, devoted husband of Annie in a covenant marriage spanning forty four years, father to Jamin Daniel, Charis Anne, Amy Elizabeth, and Matthew Alan, Papa to Arizona, Stephanie, Landon, Michael, Ivy, Caleb, Erin Ruth, great grandfather to Phoenix, and beloved brother to Darlene. He was a Marine who scored the second highest marks on the range with a broken wrist, but God diverted him from deployment to Vietnam to fight a different war, a spiritual war. He dedicated his life to fighting against the Devil for the Kingdom of Christ, and he spent his final years pounding the pavement in parking lots talking to people about the grace of Christ and the plan of salvation. He showed up for God, his family, his friends, and even for strangers on the side of the road to change flat tires or fix cars. He did not mince words or back down from contending for the truth of God's Word, and he never worried about popularity or the repercussions of standing on truth. He said his peace and his purpose were in street evangelism. His bond was his faith, be it within his marriage to his beloved wife Annie, or his friendships over the years with Calvin and Judy Welford, Chuck and Carol Ann Weston, Andy Jackson, Terry and Debbie Downey, Teddy Ray and Rachel Jackson, Freddie and Madeline Leonard, Mark and Annette Jones, David and Cathy Jones, and Claude and Kay Landry. These were the people he counted as his kind, the people he came into Christ with at First Baptist Church of Bayou La Batre, Alabama. That faith informed his every relationship and interaction. The world might have been double minded and unstable in all of its ways, but Denis was not. He was singularly focused on God and His Word. He stood and he fought against abortion, homosexuality, fornication, and he did not compromise on sin. He never wavered. He lived his beliefs with the courage of a conviction that was absolutely certain of the true path and its end destination in the arms of his Father. His wife Annie preceded him in death, and she was waiting for him at the gate when he arrived in his eternal home. He longed for this, and would tell you that the life to come is the life to long for, and this life is merely preparation. He served as a warrior in God's army for over 46 years, pastoring two churches. He showed up in every phase of his life: Christ follower, husband, father, and friend, and now he has shown up in the Eternal Kingdom to continue his service. Goodbye, Dad. We'll see you soon. Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 A.M. Eastern Time, on Wednesday, July 27, 2022 in the United Baptist Church in Eastpoint, Florida with Pastor Scott Shiver officiating. Interment will follow at Magnolia Cemetery in Apalachicola, Florida. The family will receive friends from 10:00 A.M. Eastern Time until the start of the service. Arrangements are entrusted to the caring staff of Comforter Funeral Home in Port St. Joe, Florida.
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