James Hart Mack McDonald

James (Jim) Hart Mack McDonald, 87, of Mauriceville, Texas, passed away on 31 January 2026, at Mid Jefferson Hospital in Beaumont, Texas.

Funeral services will be held at 1:00 p.m., Monday, 9 February 2026, at Port Acres United Pentecostal Church in Port Arthur, Texas, with a visitation to begin at 12:00 p.m. Officiating will be Reverend Anton Smikal and Reverend Glenn Anderson. Burial will follow at Linscomb Cemetery in Mauriceville, Texas.

An additional visitation will be held from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m., Sunday, 8 February 2026, at Claybar Funeral Home in Orange, Texas.

Born in Monrovia, California on 2 April 1938 to Archie Richard McDonald and Violet (Slevenski) McDonald, Mack lived most of his young life in Pueblo, CO. After graduating high school, he joined the Navy in 1955 at the age of 17 years. His dedication to his country took him across the seas to Guantanamo Bay and the Mediterranean. But not even that would prepare him for his greatest adventure to come, when one night while stationed in Orange, TX, he walked into an Apostolic church service and met the young woman who would become his lovely bride, forever by his side, for the next 67 years.

Marrying in 1958, he and Patsy Ann raised a family in the great state of Texas. In 1961, he completed his time in the Navy and later worked at the Livingston Shipyard as a Truck Supervisor and Equipment Operator. Additionally, he served two terms on the Manvel (TX) City Council. In 1959, at the age of 21 years, he was called to the ministry where God would eventually use him all over the world as a guest minister, evangelist, missionary, and pastor. His calling carried him across state lines and even across oceans to areas like Haiti (5 times) and Jamaica, and right back home to Houston, TX where he pastored his own church, The Temple.

In the early years, he published “The Living Word Revival Fellowship,” a bi-monthly pamphlet which was mailed to Christians across the world, sharing testimonies and God’s messages to anyone who would listen. So often he would speak about how great it was to be “spent for the Gospel of Christ.” Through his vast ministry, he lived every day until his last, doing just that, leading as many lives as he could to Jesus.

In his lifetime of calling, through prayers and faith, he witnessed many healings, including his own from Leukemia, Lymphoma, and Epilepsy—all because he believed in the power of God’s Word, and he had an incredible gift of helping others believe as well. For 87 years, he was a true testimony and steward for the Gospel of Christ.

On 31 January 2026, Reverand James (Jim) Hart Mack McDonald, carried by the angels, entered Heaven’s gates where he must have truly said, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith,” and where he most assuredly heard our Lord say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

He is preceded in death by his parents, Archie and Violet McDonald; and brother Richard (Dick) McDonald.

He is survived by his loving wife of 67 years, Patsy Ann McDonald; son, James Kevin McDonald and wife Jana; spiritual daughter, Brenda Willis and husband Stephen; grandchildren, Kevin James McDonald and wife Kimberly, Keith McDonald and wife Brittany, Braydon McDonald, and Brittney (Nacole) Horton and husband Luke; great grandchildren, Kyliee McDonald, Addilyn McDonald, Grayson McDonald, and Lilly McDonald; sisters, Dorothy McDonald Ingo and Linda Armstrong; many nieces, nephews, other loving family, friends, and brothers and sisters in the Lord.

Serving as pallbearers will be Kevin McDonald, Braydon McDonald, Keith McDonald, Michael Vance, James Carr, and Stephen Willis. Honorary Pallbearers will be Elvis Lavergne, Aaron Enos, Ronald Santiago, and Ronnie Atwater.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to American Cancer Society for Leukemia and Heart at https://www.cancer.org OR the GoFundMe account created previously to ease the burden of this family’s financial hardship at https://gofund.me/e4a3e965f.

The services for James (Jim) Hart Mack McDonald will be livestreamed for the ones who are unable to make it. The livestream can be found at https://facebook.com/portacresupc.org.