A missionary and pastor in Michigan was killed in a wrong-way crash on Sunday while driving to preach at a local church.

The accident took place on the northbound lanes of U.S. 131 at about 8:30 am. Pastor Dean Elliott, 63, of Byron Center, was killed after a suspected drunk driver traveling south on the wrong side of the road struck his vehicle. The wrong-way driver, a 30-year-old man from Grand Rapids, Michigan, was critically injured.

"Over the years and throughout the state, we've implemented measures to prevent wrong-way drivers, and we will continue to do so. We've installed additional wrong way signage, adjusted the height of wrong way signs, added reflective delineators, and installed wrong way detection systems," the Michigan Department of Transportation said in a statement.

"All interchanges are peppered with large red and white signs that say WRONG WAY DO NOT ENTER. The only common factor with these types of crashes is that the driver has been impaired in some way."

Pastor Patrick Pointer, who stepped down from leading Manistee Assembly of God earlier this year, noted that Elliott was on his way to preach at the church when the crash occurred.

"My heart weighs heavy in a broken state. As many of you know, I had to step down from serving as the Pastor of Manistee Assembly of God in January due to medical issues. Since then, our church does not have a Pastor and has been receiving pastoral care from week to week from guest speakers, pastors, missionaries and evangelists. Yesterday, April 2, 2023, Pastor, Missionary Evangelist Dean Elliot died in a traffic accident when on his way to speak at MAG's Sunday Service," Pointer explained in a Monday statement on Facebook.

"My heart is broken at the losses involved. Yesterday marked the 'Triumphal Entry' of Jesus into the city of Jerusalem during this Easter season ... Dean celebrated his own triumphal entry into Heaven and the arms of Jesus!" he noted. "Prayers for his family and friends and all of those who are in the state of grieving at this tragedy. We know that Dean loved the call of God on his life and died in pursuit of his passion for serving Jesus Christ."

According to The Christian Post, Elliot and his wife, Brenda, founded the ministry Abounding Hope in 2003. The ministry is focused on evangelizing Eurasia, particularly India, and has reached 58 countries on five continents.

"He was a wonderful guy. He loved his family, and he loved the church," Pastor Joe Coffman of Northpoint Assembly of God in Holland said of Elliot.

Huntsville-based Paraclete Ministries president and founder M. Wayne Benson commended Elliot and his wife for their commitment to ministry.

"I have known Dean since his youth and had the privilege of seeing his spiritual growth and development. The call of God became apparent in his life as a young man, and he pursued missions' evangelism, traveling with people of profile such as David and Beth Grant," Benson said of Elliot.

"Dean's passion for the lost was then expressed through church planting and home missions in Michigan. Today, there is a congregation in Kentwood, Michigan, as a direct result of Dean's leadership and the support of his wife, Brenda," he added. "They are people of integrity and models of Christ's love."

Elliot is survived by his wife and two children.

Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for Christian Headlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.

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