Noting that Bishop’s funeral would be somewhat lengthy, his widow, the Rev. Darlene Bishop, said “It takes more than an hour to bury a king.”
Delivering a eulogy for Bishop, the Rev. Steve Fender of the Livingway Church said Bishop was like “John Wayne and the apostle Peter rolled into one.”
Bishop was well known for his love of horses, owning a large ranch not far from the church on the west side of the highway. According to a biography in his souvenir program, Bishop was considered one of the top quarter house auctioneers in the world.
Bishop also had a notable career as a bluegrass performer, with such albums as “Travelin’ Preacher Man” and “Cowboy Up.” Many people at the service wore cowboy hats, and a cowboy hat was placed in Bishop’s casket.
The Rev. Rod Parsley of the World Harvest Church called Bishop “the last of a dying breed of man. He was a man’s man. He is one cowboy who lived life on his own terms.”
Although tissue boxes lined the seats in the church’s balcony, shouts of praise were much more evident as people commended Bishop for his religious calling.
“The moment he (Bishop) took his last breath on Earth, Jesus said to the devil, ‘Don’t even think about it,’” said evangelist Dwight Thompson to enthusiastic applause.
Darlene Bishop also recalled her husband’s sense of humor. He had been thinking about death months before his passing and she told his wife that he wanted his pallbearers to be his fellow horse traders, saying “I carried them a lot when I was with them.
Darlene Bishop said her husband “exceeded every goal he made for himself ... he lived like no other man I knew.”
Lawrence Bishop died Friday, Sept. 29 at the age of 69 after suffering a massive brain stem stroke. He was laid to rest in Woodside Cemetery in Middletown.
Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2836 or erobinette@coxohio.com.
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