Covenant Church pastor remembered for love-filled teachings after his death from COVID
Ricky Texada, beloved senior pastor at Covenant Church in North Texas, died Monday at the age of 57 from COVID-19.
Texada had been a pastor at the church since 1997. He served at the Colleyville campus until about a year ago, when he moved to the main campus in Carrollton.
In an interview with KDFW, Texada’s family declined to say whether he was vaccinated or not, but said he had been hospitalized since Aug. 10.
He married his wife, Cyd, who is also a pastor at Covenant Church, in 1998 and they have two sons, Seth and Caleb, according to his obituary. Caleb Texada, a Grapevine High School football player, visited his dad in the ICU before scoring a touchdown in the second half of Grapevine’s game against Colleyville Heritage on Friday. Seth also played football and graduated from Grapevine in 2019.
In 2014, Ricky Texada wrote the book “My Breaking Point, God’s Turning Point,” which highlights his journey facing unexpected loss and heartache through his faith after his first wife, Debra, died in a car accident.
Philip Murdoch, senior pastor at Ilan Church in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, saw first-hand how impactful Texada’s sermons were through his family, he told the Star-Telegram. After growing up in Rio de Janeiro and moving to North Texas, Murdoch’s children got involved in Covenant Church about four years ago. Since then, they saw how Texada helped make people feel loved at the church.
“His sermons kind of drip with love,” Murdoch said. “The love that [Murdoch’s family] have been filled with through his teaching and through his leadership there at the church, that is the main quality that is so visible through his ministries.”
News of his death was shared with the congregation through an Instagram post from the church on Monday.
The post has received thousands of reactions and hundreds of comments mixed with disbelief and prayers for Texada’s family.
Covenant Church officials declined an interview but said the community was deeply saddened by the loss and that Texada was a beloved pastor and an honorable man of integrity.
“We are eternally grateful that he is now in the presence of the Savior he loved so deeply and proclaimed so passionately,” church officials said in an emailed statement. “Thank you for the overwhelming support, prayers and for respecting the privacy of his family during this difficult time.”
Covenant Church will host a viewing ceremony Friday and a service for Texada on Saturday at the Carrollton campus at 2644 E. Trinity Mills Road. The viewing will be from 1-4 p.m. Friday, and the service will start at 11 a.m. Saturday, according to the church’s social media pages.
“Ricky will always be remembered for his fiery, uncompromising messages laced with compassion and grace,” his obituary says, “As a man who knew no strangers and was generous with his unconditional love, encouragement, and support; a man who always paid attention to the details of life and the growth of others.”
This story was originally published September 2, 2021 at 12:09 PM.
