31 Days: Pathway to Perseverance - Celebrate a Life Well Lived
Today is my father's birthday. It is safe to say that at seventy-seven years of age, he had a wealth of life experiences; some good, some tragic. My father has always had this incredible servant's heart. He not only served as a pastor for now more than sixty years, he was charged with helping to restore congregations that had been torn apart by disagreements or pastoral transitions. He was a literal peacemaker.
He has always had a gift of teaching, preaching and simply loving people. I remember as a child standing in awe at the grocery store while people seemingly flocked to my father to engage in lighthearted conversation. People were drawn to him, he never even had to say hello or initiate a conversation.
I watched my father fight for his life, after contracting tetanus (the first case identified in over thirty years at the time), work two jobs to help support our family, perform weddings, baptisms, baby dedications and bury my mother and start a new life with a new wife. Through it all, he remained a steady force holding steadfast to his faith in God.
This new season, this little later in life season is hard. My dad has a new reality, one that comes with an uncertain future. He has advanced Parkinson's Disease and every day he notices his motor skills diminish and his memories fade a bit more. Movements are painful. His voice is frail and weak at times and he confesses that he feels invisible. He questions his purpose, but he has refused to accept a purposeless life.
Despite his frailties, my dad sees himself through the eyes of his Heavenly Father. So, he looks for ways to continue to bless others. He shares his life experiences and his love with his grandchildren and great grandchildren. He is determined to leave a legacy of faith behind. He hosts church services at convalescent homes for people who are further along this journey of the end than he is. He may have to sit in a wheelchair or use a walker and use a microphone even in the smallest rooms, but he pushes on. He knows his purpose is to share Christ with as many people as he can before it is his time to see his precious Jesus face-to-face.
He perseveres.
And, once again I am that little girl in the grocery store in awe of her daddy who will forever be her hero.
He has always had a gift of teaching, preaching and simply loving people. I remember as a child standing in awe at the grocery store while people seemingly flocked to my father to engage in lighthearted conversation. People were drawn to him, he never even had to say hello or initiate a conversation.
I watched my father fight for his life, after contracting tetanus (the first case identified in over thirty years at the time), work two jobs to help support our family, perform weddings, baptisms, baby dedications and bury my mother and start a new life with a new wife. Through it all, he remained a steady force holding steadfast to his faith in God.
This new season, this little later in life season is hard. My dad has a new reality, one that comes with an uncertain future. He has advanced Parkinson's Disease and every day he notices his motor skills diminish and his memories fade a bit more. Movements are painful. His voice is frail and weak at times and he confesses that he feels invisible. He questions his purpose, but he has refused to accept a purposeless life.
Despite his frailties, my dad sees himself through the eyes of his Heavenly Father. So, he looks for ways to continue to bless others. He shares his life experiences and his love with his grandchildren and great grandchildren. He is determined to leave a legacy of faith behind. He hosts church services at convalescent homes for people who are further along this journey of the end than he is. He may have to sit in a wheelchair or use a walker and use a microphone even in the smallest rooms, but he pushes on. He knows his purpose is to share Christ with as many people as he can before it is his time to see his precious Jesus face-to-face.
He perseveres.
And, once again I am that little girl in the grocery store in awe of her daddy who will forever be her hero.
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