I went to the funeral of a dear friend’s father a few weeks ago. I didn’t know the man well, but my son is good friends with his grandson. My son had the privilege of spending a recent weekend at their family farm, leaving only hours before his friend’s grandfather died in the middle of the night.
When I received the middle-of-the-night text from my friend asking a group of us to pray, I knew this was going to be hard for many people, not the least of which was my son—a reminder of how life can go from seemingly ordinary to unimaginable in the blink of an eye.
My son and I drove two hours to attend the funeral and were greeted by a full-capacity sanctuary and more flower arrangements in one room than I have seen in my entire life. Looking around the room told you everything you needed to know about how this man lived his life. The pews were filled with folks from every background, every socioeconomic status, and seemingly every walk of life.
There are so many things that could be gleaned from this man’s full life, but on the drive home there were two things I knew I had to make sure my son understood about what it looks like to live your life well in Christ.
Live generously.
“They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.”
—1 Timothy 6:18–19 ESV
Story after story was told of a man who would have given you the shirt off his back. Handing out five-dollar bills to kids on the street so they could take their parents for ice cream. The kind of guy who gave jobs to those who needed them and second chances to those whom likely didn’t deserve them.
I explained to my son that living generously is giving someone your time when you don’t have it to spare. Sharing resources even when the cost is more than you can afford. Providing opportunity where you can’t benefit in return. And unapologetically pointing people to Jesus when you know their eternity is unsecured.
It is best displayed in the quiet places that most people will never see and rarely acknowledged by those around us. When we teach our kids to live life generously, we give them the opportunity to experience true and abundant life, the kind of life marked by the Lord’s provision.
Use your platform faithfully.
“Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.”
—1 Corinthians 1:26–27 NIV
The pastor’s eulogy described the man spending fifty-plus years in a very small town, experiencing the success and financial benefits that come with being business savvy and gaining resources. He didn’t have widespread fame or notoriety, but the people around him knew he did life well and did it for Jesus.
My son and I talked about how God chose us to be the messengers of his gospel despite what may seem like small and unimpressive platforms. He picked us knowing we aren’t particularly wise, influential, or eloquent. But his best work is accomplished when we understand the value of being faithful everywhere we go, in every situation, all the time. It’s a discipline.
This man used his platform faithfully. So does Tony Dungy, the Hall of Fame football coach. I recently had the opportunity to interview him and his wife, Lauren, as a part of our Christian Parenting podcast. I talked to Tony about his large platform and how he consistently uses it for Christ.
I asked Tony who had influenced him in his lifetime, and his response surprised me. He said that one of the most influential people in his life was his high school barber because he used the twenty minutes a month that Tony sat in his chair to ask him about his walk with the Lord and purposefully took time to invest in his life. A barber used his platform faithfully, leading to a coach (and likely many others) using their platforms faithfully.
I headed home from that funeral a few weeks ago with the realization that we will likely never know the impact our lives have on others. Certainly, this man did not know that his earthly legacy would be celebrated by a sanctuary packed full of people, especially impacting an eleven-year-old boy and his mom. But when we live generously and use our platforms faithfully, the Lord is gracious to use our lives in ways we could never have anticipated.
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