DEL CITY—Shane Hall, the beloved pastor of Del City, First Southern, died on Feb. 16 after a protracted and courageous battle with stomach cancer. The ministry and legacy Hall leaves behind has a nationwide, as well as eternal, impact.
Hall, who was 46, is survived by his wife Misty and daughters Maci and Mallory. He lived nearly three years longer than doctors first predicted when they diagnosed his illness in October 2014.
Throughout his health crisis, Oklahoma Baptists and people across the nation expressed prayer and support for the family since Hall’s illness was made public.
In the hours after Hall’s passing, Anthony Jordan, Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma (BGCO) executive director and treasurer, called on Oklahoma Baptists and others to continue to “pray for Misty and the girls, as well as for the entire First Southern family.” He added, “While we are deeply grieved at his passing, we are thankful there is no more pain and that he now is home with the Lord that he so faithfully preached and followed throughout his ministry and life.”
/// A love for our Lord
A memorial service for Hall was held on Feb. 21 at Oklahoma City, Southern Hills. Numerous Oklahoma Baptist leaders spoke to the large gathering, as well as Hall’s longtime friend Noble McIntyre, who shared humurous stories from their childhood days and college years.
Hance Dilbeck, BGCO Executive Director-Treasurer-Elect delivered a eulogy in which he said, “I want to remember Shane Hall as a Minister of the Gospel so that those of us who share this calling might run the race set before us with a little more discipline, determination, even joy.”
Dilbeck added, “In the first part of Shane’s battle with cancer, I said, ‘Shane is tough! … After a year or two, I started thinking, ‘Shane is deeply committed. His devotion to his people, to His Lord is strong. So strong that He will not flag or falter in the work of his ministry.’ A few months ago I realized that it was neither toughness nor devotion that was keeping Shane in the work. He did not quit because he loved his calling.”
Others who spoke or played a role on the program included Jordan, Doug Melton, Joe Sherrer, Steve Russell and Frank Page. The Singing Churchmen of Oklahoma sang various musical numbers.
Preaching the funeral message was Hall himself, through a video recording of his sermon at the 2017 Pastor’s Conference at the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in Phoenix. The sermon was titled, “All we need is Jesus! ”
/// ‘Miracle’ baptism
Just days before his death, Hall saw one of his longstanding prayers answered in what his wife Misty described as “truly a miracle.”
“I just wanted to baptize Mallory,” Shane had told Misty as the couple sat on their couch with the realization of the disease’s progression. “So, for him to say that and then to see it within two or three weeks was just a precious gift to him. I felt like, that’s what kept him here for a while, his wanting to fulfill that desire to see her come to know the Lord.”
Mallory professed her faith in Christ Feb. 7 to her mother Misty, who led her in accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior. Misty had pushed Shane in a wheelchair into the sanctuary near the end of the worship service to allow him to assist First Southern’s children’s minister Neal Livingston in baptizing Mallory. He was able to help baptize his younger daughter, 10-year-old Mallory, Feb. 11.
/// An Oklahoma leader in the SBC
According to the Hall obituary, he began pastoring the same year he graduated from high school, 1989, having been called to Canute, First. Over the next 29 years, he also pastored Hobart, Washington Street; Bogalusa, La., Mount Pleasant; Tulsa, Calvary; Clinton, First; Lawton, First and finally Del City, First Southern where he served faithfully until his passing.
The obituary said, “His desire to serve the Lord and the church has given him opportunities of involvement on the associational, state and national level. Among those are roles on the BGCO Board of Directors and the Nominating Committee and Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention.”
Even after his diagnosis, Hall stayed faithful in remaining in the pulpit at Del City, in spite of challenges. Hall was invited to offer an opening prayer at a meeting of the United States House of Representatives in the summer of 2015. In 2016, he delivered the OBU commencement address at the spring graduation. Hall also preached at CrossTimbers Children’s Mission Adventure Camp in summer 2017, in spite of battling illness.
He was able to share his testimony on Oklahoma City’s KWTV Channel 9 and numerous other media outlets throughout his battle with cancer.
/// About Shane and his family
The obituary highlighted the Hall family’s legacy. “The son of Loyd and Bethel (Hale) Hall, Shane was born May 25, 1971, in Brook, Ind. His family moved from Fowler, Ind. to Burns Flat in 1982. Shane graduated from Burns Flat High School in 1989. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma Baptist University and Master of Divinity from New Orleans Seminary. Shane and Misty were married on May 19, 2001, in Chickasha and made their first home in Tulsa. They became the parents of Maci Marie in 2004 and Mallory Mae in 2007.
“Shane is survived by his wife of 16 years, Misty Hall, and their daughters, Maci and Mallory; his parents, Loyd and Bethel Hall; his brother, Mike Hall and his wife Kiley and their children, Dustin Hall and his wife Trina and Jordan Hall; sister, Tami Siess and her husband Gary and their children, Gary Jr., Trevor, and Aubrey Siess; brother, Greg Hall and his wife Rita and their children, Zack, Blake and Jadin Hall, as well as numerous other relatives and friends.”
The Hall Family requested that, in lieu of flowers, memorial gifts be made to the BGCO to establish the Shane Hall Fund to support the Oklahoma Pastors’ Conference at the BGCO Annual Meeting. To give, visit bgco.org/hall-memorial.
Though his life, which all prayed would last longer here on earth, Hall pointed people to Jesus. Hall’s life is one marked by an unmistakable legacy of faith.