I met John Gage when he became the Orchestra Director while I was a member at First Baptist Church of Atlanta and playing trumpet with the orchestra there.  At the time, the church had grown to over 10,000 members and the ability to speak with Charles F Stanley was not much of an option. John was not only the director of the orchestra but became my pastor and friend.  He knew me well and helped me through some difficult times in my life. Even when he was called to move to Bakersfield, CA, we stayed in touch.