Day: October 25, 2017

Seriously, folks. What do you want to be remembered for?

Participation in a march? A protest?

Your excellent rhetoric, or an eloquent turn of phrase?

How about the size of your paycheck, or the length of your business day?

Your car? (I remember a Dead Milkmen song from many years ago: Bitchin’ Camaro. Always wanted one)

It could be lots of things. Look at those Egyptian tombs or pyramids: piles of gold and jewels everywhere, mummified cats. Mummified people.

I don’t care about that. My circle is small, and probably no one will know me except the people in it. And that’s ok with me.

I want people to think of me as the guy who worked hard, but not too hard.

I want to be the guy who put his family before his self. I want to be the guy who loved his wife and honored her the way God wanted him to.

I want to be the guy who told people about Jesus. I want to be the guy who showed him to them with his life. I may have spent a great deal of my life sucking at that, but not anymore.

Don’t misread this, but I want to be the guy who is Jesus to his kids–in the sense that I will be anyway. It may not be intentional, but their image of Jesus is affected by their image of me. Their ability to relate to Jesus is in part formed by how they relate to me. No longer will I be pissy with them because of some stupid me thing.

That’s not showing them anything of use. That’s not showing them Jesus or anything he represents.

He came not be served, but to serve, and give his life as a ransom for many (Matt 20:28).

I want my kids to know that while they are not my life, I’d gladly give it for them. I want them to know what is really important.

So with that in mind, why would I get caught up in thinking of some stupid thing I might not be able to do when I want to do it because of something else?

That’s junk, like my kids would both say.

Makes me think of a book that football player Gayle Sayers wrote many years ago. “I am Third.”

I want to be the guy that is intentionally third. God being first, family and friends second.

Then me.

I want to be that guy.