— Makes his life about caring for others?
— Empathizes with those he meets?
— Is a disciple of what is good?
— Meets people wherever they are in their lives?
— Spreads God’s love?
Tim’s father told stories of the escapades of his
children. The tales were fairly typical of what most of us would hear our
parents tell about our younger years. What made an impression on me were the
accounts about one of the siblings who took care of the other kids.
One of the stories he told was about the time one of
the kids hit the car’s gearshift knocking it out of park. The car started
rolling into the road. Traffic was heavy as the car inched toward it. The big
brother sprung into action to save his younger brother and little sister. He
stomped on the brakes and screamed, “Daaaaaad!!!”
In another incident when the family had a flat tire
on the West Virginia Turnpike, the older brother began crafting a plan to get
his younger brother safely home. Of course, his father had it all under control
even without the help of his oldest boy.
But there was one thing that struck fear into the
heart of Tim’s older brother, Ed. Like a dog knowing when it is being taken to
the vet, whenever Ed had to go to the doctor to get a shot, he dug in his heels
and grabbed any solid object so that he wouldn’t have to go. He must have
thought it was punishment because he would repeat incessantly, “I’ll be good,
I’ll be good. Don’t’ make me, I’ll be good.”
Maybe being good was a positive affirmation he told
himself because it seems to have stuck with him. It made me realize that
caring, giving people probably have goodness in their heart when they are
young. To this day he is still helping people through his nonprofit, Single Purpose Ministries.
Today’s gift was to send a donation to Ed’s ministry
so that he can continue helping men find their way to Christ. I enjoy hearing
stories of how he helps others as he continues to do his good work.
In Giving,
Robin
No comments:
Post a Comment