In Loving Memory

James 4:6 (KJV) Says, "But he giveth more grace, Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud but giveth grace unto the humble." Matthew 5:5 (KJV) Says, "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth." Matthew 22:37-39 (KJV) Says, Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." "Proverbs 22:2 (KJV) Says, " The rich and poor meet together: the Lord is the maker of them all."

In the above verse of scripture taken from the book of James we are told that God gives grace to the humble, and that He resists the proud. Grace by Christian definition is the free and unmerited favor of God. The verse listed above taken from Matthew chapter five tells us the meek meaning those that are quite, gentle, and humble will inherit the earth. This verse also tells us that those that exhibit these characteristics will share in the kingdom of God on earth, and the blessedness of Heaven. In the passage of scripture taken from Matthew chapter twenty-two Jesus gives us the two greatest commandments which are first and foremost to love God with all our heart, mind, and soul and secondly to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Finally, the verse listed above taken from the book of Proverbs reminds us that God created each and every one of us, and that He views us as equals. This verse makes clear that God does not show favoritism based on worldly possessions, and that the rich and the poor will meet together in Heaven. God doesn't look at us as other people do considering our worldly possessions and social status,  He looks at our hearts. Praise God that all born again Christians will meet together in Heaven, and that worldly possessions and social status won't matter in the least.

I very recently lost my hero, my Daddy, who went home to be with the Lord and I must add that at fifty-one years old this is the most difficult storm I have ever had to walk through. I miss him so very much, and there is a hole in my heart that can never be filled. My Daddy was loving, kind, understanding, humble, gentle, quiet, friendly, caring, forgiving, and possessed many other great Christian characteristics. That being said, this may seem hard to believe but knowing all of these characteristics to be true of my Daddy, I never really thought about them as a whole. I knew he was my Daddy, that he loved me immensely, that he was a born again baptized believer in Jesus Christ, and that he was a great man. During his final days, at his viewing, and at his funeral service I saw the overwhelming results of him having loved God and putting him first, and of his love for people. I witnessed an outpouring of love for him that could not possibly be measured, and this outpouring of love came from all walks of life.

Daddy lived in a modest home, he dressed modestly, and lived an overall humble life. After retiring he enjoyed tinkering around in his garage on lawnmowers, and having various family members, friends, and acquaintances drop by to chat with him while he worked. Strangers dropped in also, but they weren't strangers for long because with Daddy many, if not all of them soon became friends. He sat for hours in that garage ever day with the exception of Sundays listening to others share with him what they were going through in their lives. They left that Daddy's garage feeling better about whatever might have been troubling them, and they left knowing that someone cared.

My siblings and myself gathered around my Daddy, when we were told by his hospice nurse that he was transitioning, and would soon go home to be with the Lord. We love our Daddy dearly, and we wanted to be with him when God called him home. We gathered at his house along with his siblings the morning of the day before his passing, and were amazed by the number of individuals that joined us not only that day, but throughout the night and into the next evening. There were multiple vehicles parked on both sides of my Daddy's house, in his driveway, and in his front yard. These vehicles belonged to family members, friends, and neighbors whose lives my precious Daddy had touched. As I stood on his front porch looking out across his yard my heart overflowed with the demonstration of love these people had for my Daddy. I was in and out of the house where I stood by his bedside talking to him and holding his hand, and I spent some time outside on his porch and some standing in his front yard.

As I stood in the yard various individuals would pull up in their vehicles, and approach me to check on Daddy and to tell me how very much he meant to them, and how sorry they were he was so sick. At one point, a young man I believe to have been around 30-35 years old, dressed in a very nice suit and driving an expensive looking car came over to me crying and told me he was the pastor of a local church. He went on to tell me he met Daddy, when he brought his lawnmower over for repair some years ago. He told me how great a man he thought Daddy was, and how much he enjoyed stopping by and sitting in the garage to chat with him. He went on to tell me that Daddy was like a father figure to him. As I thanked him for his kind words and began to walk away, another man pulled up sobbing profusely. He was dressed in black and was the polar opposite of the pastor that I had just spoken with. He appeared to be in his 40's and he too told me how very much my Daddy meant to him, and shared that he would come by the garage often to sit and chat with Daddy. He stated that he enjoyed his visits in that garage, and that he looked at my Daddy as a father figure. He went on to tell me how sorry he was that Daddy was so sick then returned to his vehicle, and drove off down the road.

The magnitude of the demonstration of what it truly means to be Christ-like in humility, kindness, love, patience, forgiveness, understanding, and all things good as well as what it truly means to love our neighbors as ourselves did not elude me that day. I was overwhelmed  at the number of people who had grown to know, love, respect, and treasure the friendship they shared with Daddy. I saw in those few moments exactly what it means to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. What it means to love people from all walks of life was made visual for me in those few moments also, as were the results of what it meant to treat people equally. I knew my Daddy fulfilled the first greatest commandment loving the Lord with all his heart mind and soul, and on this day God revealed to me that without a doubt Daddy fulfilled the second greatest commandment which is to love thy neighbor as thyself, and even though I knew he obeyed this commandment, it was a blessing to see visual proof of this as a testimony for all to see, even in the face of the worst storm I have ever faced.

Multitudes of people remained at Daddy's house overnight, through to the next day, and into the evening. It was at that time that my siblings and I were informed that we only had moments left with our Daddy here on earth. We gathered around his bed, and each of us took turns holding his hand, hugging and kissing him. We each told him what a great Daddy he was, how much we appreciated how hard he had worked so we could have everything we needed and wanted, and how very much we loved him. With my siblings and I along with a few of his siblings gathered around his hospital bed, our precious Daddy went home to be with the Lord on July 14, 2014 in the early evening.

Daddy had touched so many lives that it was necessary for him to be viewed in the chapel of the funeral home in lieu of a regular viewing room which would not hold the multitude of people that came to pay their respects to him. I could hear him saying that he didn't need such a grand celebration because he was one of the most humble people I've ever known. His funeral service further confirmed that he'd had a positive impact on numerous people and that he loved and treated each of them as equals. This was again reflected in the kind words people shared, and the sermon that was preached. The flood of tears I witnessed were a further testament to what a great man he was, and of how much he was loved. This man was my hero and my Daddy.

 It is my hope that others can learn from my experience and from what I witnessed and that they will be encouraged to live there lives listening to people, loving them, and treating each and every  individual they meet equally. My siblings and I miss our Daddy more than words could ever possibly convey as we loved him tremendously. Praise God  we find hope and comfort in knowing that we will one day see him again.

If you have a prayer request and would like me to pray for you send me a message, and I will be more than happy to do so. May God bless you.